2012/13 Week 8 Issue 600

600th ISSUE

The University of Exeter’s Independent Student Newspaper

Monday 12 November 2012 • Issue 600 • www.exepose.ex.ac.uk • Twitter: @Exepose • www.facebook.com/Exepose

Since 1987 Free

SSB plans unveiled

Photo: Helen Lisk

• Five stages with three headliners and 20 artists • Tribal theme announced • Students must enter lottery for prized tickets • Chart-topping headline act remains shrouded in secrecy Tom Payne, Editor Phil Thomas, News Editor ORGANISERS of the Safer Sex Ball (SSB) have announced that this year’s event will feature a “massive” headline act, as well as a number of new features.

Exeposé has learnt that this year’s main headline artist, which is shrouded in secrecy, has achieved a number-one single in 2012 and will play at the SSB with three other “massive” headline acts.

This year’s event, which organisers have described as the biggest in SSB history, will feature five stages, three main headlines, 20 acts, pole dancers, burlesque dancers, arcades, casinos and a rodeo. At last Saturday’s launch event,

Music: Interviews Joy Division legend - PAGE 20

organisers announced that this year’s dress code will have a tribal theme.

Organisers are hoping that a new balloting system will give students a more equal chance of getting tickets to this year’s event, which they claim will feature a “huge” headline act who has achieved a number-one single in 2012.

48 artists have had a chart-topping single so far this year, which means that anyone from Cheryl Cole to Coldplay could headline at this year’s SSB. However, this year students will need to enter a lottery in order to win tickets. From Monday 12 November to Thursday 16 November, those wanting SSB tickets will have to register their

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If you go down to the Forum today, you’re CHILDREN IN NEED ON CAMPUS in for a big surprise... NEWS, PAGE 2 EDITORIAL, PAGE 7

Books: Debates over the future of the book - PAGE 26

Sport: Meets Judo in the Clubhouse - PAGE 37

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MAKING THE HEADLINES Y E A R S

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News

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Beccy Smyth & Phil Thomas news@exepose.com Design: Zoe Bulaitis

Contact us Exeposé, Devonshire House, Exeter, Devon, EX4 4QR

Editors Zoe Bulaitis & Tom Payne editors@exepose.com Deputy Editors Ben Murphie & Ellie Steafel comment@exepose.com News Editors Beccy Smyth & Phil Thomas news@exepose.com Features Editors James Crouch & Megan Drewett features@exepose.com

Screen Editors Louis Doré & Owen Keating screen@exepose.com Books Editors Tom Bond & Emily Lunn books@exepose.com Arts Editors Clara Plackett & Emily Tanner arts@exepose.com Games Editors Marcus Beard & Jonathan Jenner games@exepose.com Sport Editors Will Kelleher & Mike Stanton sport@exepose.com Photography Joshua Irwandi photography@exepose.com Senior Proofreaders Elli Christie, Megan Furborough & William O’Rourke

Online www.exepose.ex.ac.uk Site Managers Craig Browne & Ellie Swingewood sitemanagers@exepose.com

@Exepose facebook.com/exepose issuu.com/exepose Advertising Ross Trant R.Trant@exeter.ac.uk (01392) 722432 The opinions expressed in Exeposé are not necessarily those of the Exeposé Editors nor the University of Exeter Students’ Guild. While every care is taken to ensure that the information in this publication is correct and accurate, the Publisher can accept no liability for any consequential loss or damage, however caused, arising as a result of using the information printed. The Publisher cannot accept liability for any loss or damage to artwork or material submitted. The contents of this, unless stated otherwise, are copyright of the Publisher. Reproduction in any form requires the prior consent of the Publisher.

Chart-topping headliner for SSB interest online to be in with a chance of acquiring tickets through a random ballot.

At the end of the week, The Guild will collate all the registered names and put them through a randomiser programme, which will pick names at random and announce winners on Friday afternoon. Lucky winners of the lottery will be entitled to buy two tickets from the Guild Information Point, though they

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Playing the guessing game, Exeposé editorial team speculate on SSB headline act... Wiley With his chart-topping hit ‘Heatwave’, Wiley is our top guess for a fun, flirty headline set at this years’ SSB. RAG will confirm the headline act in the next issue of Exeposé.

“We’re excited about our new lottery system for allocating SSB tickets. This is great for all students as it gives everyone an equal chance” SSB spokesperson may only buy one if they wish. If there are any uncollected tickets after 23 November, they will be entered into a second ballot from the remaining registered names.

There are two ticketing options this year, a £42 ‘normal ticket’ and £60 silver

VIP tickets. Students can apply for both ticket types.

The new system has been introduced following the first-come, first-served process used last year, which was criticised after the online system crashed minutes after opening ticket sales.

A spokesperson for the SSB said: “We’re excited about our new lottery system for allocating SSB tickets. This is great for all students as everyone has the opportunity to sign up and has an equal chance of getting tickets.

“This system also saves students money because there will be no booking fees as the online box office is not involved.”

The new system has recieved a mixed reaction from students. One student, who attended the Ball last year, told Exeposé: “It sounds like a better system than last year, where it just kept on crashing.”

However, another said: “This will just cause chaos between friendship groups. If one part of a friendship group gets tickets while the others don’t it will be terrible for everyone involved.”

The SSB will be held on 10 December in the Great Hall.

University hosts Children in Need Ellie Steafel Deputy Editor ON Friday, 16 November the University of Exeter will welcome the BBC’s Children in Need onto campus. Friday night will see the Forum transformed as the BBC broadcasts the South West Children in Need party. Fundraisers and celebrities from all over the South West will come together to celebrate weeks of hard work raising money for Children in Need.

The University is working in conjunction with the Student’s Guild to do their bit for the cause. The Guild will be putting on a variety of events throughout this week which students can get involved in. As well as a daily raffle in the Forum and a children’s tea party, students will be taking part in a charity cycle ride from Falmouth to Exeter. Some brave souls have even signed up for the Guild’s version of the ITV dating show “Take Me Out”.

Fourth Year Spanish and Maths student Charlotte Berman is one of the lucky

girls hoping to find a man on Sunday night. “I think it’s a really great cause and what a fun, if slightly embarrassing, way to raise lots of money!”

“It might be slightly embarrassing but its a great way to raise lots of money” Fourth Year Student

Friday will see the biggest event held in the Forum since the Queen’s

visit in May, cementing the University of Exeter as a cultural centre of the South West. Jon Bagnall, VP Campuses and Participation, has lead organisation for the week’s events and says “we hope that as many students will dig into their pockets and donate as much as they can at one of the many events we have planned throughout the week […] this is a fantastic chance for all of us to demonstrate just how committed we are to making a difference in the world, and I have every faith that students at Exeter will make that happen”.

Student convicted of indecent exposure James Crouch Features Editor AN undergraduate student has been handed a community order after being found guilty of indecent exposure by Snaresbrook Crown Court.

The student, 20, asked a female passer-by for directions, before she no-

ticed that he was touching himself, on 26 May in Longland Drive, Totteridge.

He handed himself into the police four days later.

His sentence included a 12-month community order with a supervision requirement and payment of £400 costs. He will also have to sign the sex offenders’ register for seven years and

disclose the conviction to any future employer, which may affect any future career. Judge William Kennedy said: “I don’t think there is a need for custody, what he needs is a little help.”

The female victim, 21, who cannot be named for legal reasons, gave evidence behind a screen and told the jury: “I jumped back. I was so shocked and I

shook my head in disgust. “[He] picked the wrong person to do this to, because I will straight away get your number plate down and call the police.”

The jury took less than 20 minutes to find the man guilty of indecent exposure, which carries a maximum penalty of two years imprisonment.

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2011/12 residents fork out thousands as the cost of damages to Halls of Residence soars

• 2011/12 Freshers pay over four times as much for damages to halls of residence • University blames price hike on “two major incidents” as well as an increase in rooms and student numbers Tom Payne Editor COSTS in damages to Halls of Residence amounted to £17,003 in the 2011/12 academic year, an increase of £12,538 on the previous years’ damage costs.

Figures acquired by Exeposé under the Freedom of Information act (FOI) have shown that students are paying thousands more in damages, as bed stock and student numbers increase.

In the 2010/11 academic year, costs amounted to just £4,465.62, while total damage costs have not exceeded £7,000 for five years.

The University is attributing last year’s high cost to a number of factors.

A University spokesperson told Exeposé that “two major incidents”, in addition to a “large number of brand new student bedrooms”, caused a rise in

damage costs. They said: “Over £6,500 was attributed to damage caused in kitchens by two fires started as a result of students leaving hot pans of oil unattended on the stove.”

Another incident caused £2,000 worth of damage after students broke in to an area of older residence, which should not have been accessed.

The University’s Guide for Services and Facilities stipulates that students are charged for repair and replacement costs that are “over and above fair wear and tear”. The University does not make a profit from the fees, but states that costs change from year to year in line with the commercial cost of items.

However, some students have expressed their dissatisfaction with the current repair and replace system. Alexander Palmer said: “I was charged £33 to replace my door key, which was stolen, along with my wallet – it was

Photo: Josh Irwandi

very unreasonable.”

The University replied: “Residential Services are trying to ensure that robust and fair procedures are put in place for ensuring that those responsible for damage are charged rather than costs being shared amongst all residents in a flat or corridor”.

“The University is trying to ensure that those responsible for damage are charged rather than costs being shared amongst all residents in a flat or corridor ” University Spokesperson “More students appear to be losing their room keys/fobs. Lost keys are not only costly to replace but create a big security risk”.

Drive to make Exeter first conflict-free uni in England Beccy Smyth News Editor AS part of an effort to lobby the University and the Students’ Guild to make Exeter the first ‘conflictfree’ campus in England, a petition will shortly be available for students to sign on the Guild website.

The petition, created by Be the Change Society, is part of their on-going Project Congo.

consoles, among others. Currently, there are no alternatives to these minerals available. Companies including Nokia, Apple, Intel, Sony and Nintendo all rely on conflict minerals for the production of their products.

Be the Change Society has emphasised the importance of creating a consumer demand for conflict-free alternatives. It hopes that the University will

soon sign a declaration to demonstrate its dedication to the conflict-free drive.

Georgia Potton, President of Be the Change Society, commented: “The conflict in the Congo is beyond devastating. By buying technology from electrical companies that have so far not been responsible in their mineral sourcing, we are essentially fuelling a war. With our apathy we are allowing

human suffering to go on day after day.

“These companies operate on the basic economic principle of supply and demand, and as a university spending millions on electronics, together we harness an incredible power to demand change. We’re not calling for a boycott, we’re not asking for a change of supplier, but by signing a conflict free declaration hopefully we can generate enough Photo: Be the Change Society

“By buying technology from electrical companies that have so far not been responsible in their mineral sourcing, we are essentially fuelling a war” Georgia Potton, Be the Change Society President The aim of Project Congo is to raise awareness of the situation in the Congo, where over 5.4 million people have died as the result of the conflict in the country, making it the deadliest conflict zone since World War II. The militia use rape, murder and trafficking as weapons against civilians in order to source minerals including tin, tantalum and tungsten, which are then sold on to manufacturers in the production of electrical products.

The conflict minerals are essential components in items such as mobile phones, laptops, mp3s and game

>> Alex Louch (Campaigns Officer), Nick Davies (Guild President), and Imogen Sanders (VP Academic Affairs) at Be the Change Society’s recent Congo Night.

pressure so that one day in the future we can buy a laptop or a mobile and have a guarantee that no blood, rape or child labour has gone into its production”

“The dedication and hard work that students have already shown in fighting for this cause is truly inspirational” Imogen Sanders, VP Academic Affairs Nick Davies, Guild President, said: “I think this is a fantastic campaign that has been well organised

by Georgia and the team. If this campaign succeeds, Exeter will be the first conflict-free campus in England. The support shown so far has been overwhelming, with over 200 people attending the launch last Thursday. This student-led campaign shows just how powerful the student voice can be, and hopefully with the Guilds support, can make Exeter a Conflict-Free Campus.”

Project Congo is part of the wider Conflict-Free Campus Initiative, which originally started in universities in the US. St Andrews University was the first British university to declare itself conflict-free.

Be the Change Society has encouraged any individual students or societies who want to support and stand with them in this campaign to get in touch.

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12 november 2012 |

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Photo: Joshua Irwandi

National Student News Griffin interview sparks controversy Phil Thomas News Editor LEEDS UNIVERSITY’S student newspaper has been criticised by the National Union of Students (NUS) for printing an interview with BNP leader Nick Griffin.

The NUS published a letter arguing that fascists should be denied publicity and started a petition for the article to be removed.

In the interview, conducted by a gay journalist, Griffin said: “Gay people have complained for years that the rest of society hasn’t understood how they feel, and has had to make allowances, has to be tolerant.

“So why can’t you people simply get over it and tolerate the fact that a lot of heterosexual people – we don’t want to persecute you – but we find the sight of two men kissing creepy. That’s just a fact. What’s the problem?”

Griffin also claimed that civil part-

nerships: “undermine the institution of marriage, and as a result children will die over the next few years. They’re not all bad of course, but they are a weaker way of raising children, it’s what the statistics say.”

The NUS petition stated: “In publishing this interview the Leeds Student risks giving legitimacy to a fascist organisation, and boosts the BNP’s attempts to join the political mainstream when we should be isolating them.”

However, the editor of Leeds Student said: “Ultimately, people come to university to be challenged, not to toe the line of some over-arching organisation which is far removed from our everyday campus lives. And the reaction from current Leeds students and alumni has so far been overwhelmingly positive.

“Griffin is a politician in a country which has free speech, it is essential that his views and policies are exposed for what they are. Leeds Student merely gave Griffin enough rope to hang himself.”

Student rent doubles in a decade Phil Thomas News Editor THE AVERAGE cost of a room in university owned accommodation in the United Kingdom has doubled in the last ten years.

A report conducted by the National Union of Students (NUS) revealed that the average weekly rent in university owned accommodation increased by 97 per cent, from £59.17 in 2001/02 to £117.67 in 2011/12.

Overall, the average rent across institutional, nominated, and private halls increased by 25% in the last three years.

In 2009/10, average weekly costs in these category of halls stood at £98.99, but by 2012/13 they had reached £123.96 a week.

Pete Mercer, Vice President of the National Union of Students, said: “Student rents have skyrocketed, leaving

fewer reasonably priced accommodation options for students from lower and middle income backgrounds who are really feeling the pinch.

“The responsibility of universities to support their students does not begin and end at the doors of the lecture hall.

“University heads should urgently be looking at properly planning accommodation supply and capping rent increases to ensure students are not priced out of living in halls.”

Martin Blakey, Chief Executive of Unipol Student Homes, said: “Costs of private sector accommodation and educationally provided accommodation have moved much closer together.

“It is important for universities to acknowledge the vital role they have to play in enhancing access and the student experience by providing distinctive and affordable accommodation for their students within a not-for-profit framework.”

NUS survey highlights “alienating” culture of campus sports societies Gareth Browne A REPORT published by the National Union of Students (NUS) investigating gay participation in sport has found that homophobia and an alienating culture are preventing gay students from fully participating in campus sports.

The report found that only 34.6 per cent of gay students participate in team sports while at university and one in seven students felt that prejudice towards their orientation had put them off participating.

Gareth Thomas, former Welsh rugby captain, said: “The time is right for the sport to start accepting openly gay people in the same way other areas of society has done in recent years.”

The issues identified in the report were accompanied by ten practical recommendations for improving the participation of gay students in on-campus sporting activities.

Finn McGoldrick, a National Union of Students officer, said: “these [recommendations] will begin to remove the barriers to LGBT students’ participation in sport.”

RAG’s winter wonderland

Last week, RAG brought the University’s very first outdoor ice rink to the campus from the 5-10 November

Water machines to sober up students

Photo: Joshua Irwandi

Declan Henesy CLUBS in Exeter are participating in a new scheme which will see water machines installed within the premises.

This is part of a campaign backed by local police with the aim of trying to reduce crime caused by drinking.

The project hopes that, with the installation of water dispensers, clubgoers will be more sober, reducing the rate of anti-social behaviour on city streets.

The scheme also hopes to have health benefits for clubbers who can keep hydrated in hot, active environments.

A similar project was successful in Gloucester recently, where the number of alcohol related incidents at the pioneering venue went down from 17 to one, in comparison to the previous year.

Beverley Weston, of the Devon and Cornwall Police Department, said the scheme in Gloucester “was a simple but very effective method at reducing some of the factors that cause alcohol related crime and disorder.”

Arena, Timepiece, Rococo’s, Mosaic and EX4 are the current clubs participating in the scheme. However, local police are keen for all licensed premises to think about whether their customers would benefit from a water dispenser.

A spokesperson said: “Most customers who are simply thirsty are reluctant to queue at the bar and ask for a glass of water. Inevitably most will decide to purchase an alcohol drink [instead].”

The project is still in its early stages but reports from the participating clubs has thus far been positive.

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Fruni scheme launched in Exeter

Photo: Joshua Irwandi

Beccy Smyth News Editor THIS year for the first time, Exeter is engaging in Fruni, a social enterprise that will allow the student body at large to benefit from lecturers’ research they would ordinarily not encounter during their studies.

Fruni, which stands for free-range university, is a new scheme running throughout many UK institutions, and was originally piloted at Bristol University.

“At the University we have lecturers whose research is officially of world-class standard, and yet far too often only students within certain modules benefit from their teaching” Imogen Sanders, VP Academic Affairs Through the Fruni website, students are invited to nominate lecturers from any discipline whose research material they believe will be interesting and thought-provoking for the student

SEVERAL weeks after the opening of the new A&V (Activities and Volunteering) space in Devonshire house, the £500,000 development is consistently receiving praise from students.

The money invested in the space has been spent in several ways to bring to life a much-needed space for societies and volunteering groups, such as Community Action and RAG. Victoria Burrows, Community Action Officer, expressed her views to Exeposé: “The A&V space has really benefited CA. It means we now have more space, more computers and greater communication within our committee, with staff, and with other societies.”

Smaller societies are also benefiting from the hub’s new look and new features. Kate Hird, co-editor and Pres-

body at large. Students can vote for the lecture they would most like to hear. The top five lectures will then take place at the start of Term 2 in the alumni auditorium, and will be open for all students, staff and alumni.

Imogen Sanders, VP Academic Affairs, commented: “at the University, we have lecturers whose research is officially of world-class standard, and yet far too often only students within

these individuals’ modules benefit from their teaching.

“Fruni provides a platform to spread their research further, bringing all the different facets of the institution together and creating a vibrant academic community that sees undergraduates, staff and even alumni coming together to listen to fascinating and contemporary speeches on all kinds of different topics.”

A final year student has expressed her enthusiasm about Fruni: “It’s not often at university that academic members of staff are celebrated and I think Fruni offers a much-needed opportunity to do so.”

For more information about the scheme, and to nominate lecturers and vote for their lectures, visit the Fruni website, fruni.org.uk, and search for Exeter University.

ident of Razz My Berries magazine and society, said: “I often pop along to the hub to sort out society stuff. I like the open plan design, and you can see the student activity right before your

eyes.”

The hub now boasts a single reception point for all enquiries to save students having to rush from one place to another, as well as 12 new PC’s and a Photo: Joshua Irwandi

new mac entirely for society and volunteering usage.

“The new A&V hub has really benefited CA. It means we now have more space, more computers and improved communication ” Victoria Burrows, CA Officer The consistent problem of space for training and meeting purposes has also been dealt with via the creation of three new meeting rooms. Besides its new look, which has been hailed ‘stylish’ by students and includes a Students’ Guild sofa, the hub has thermal modelling to ensure that it is as energy efficient as possible.

The Exeter Express & Echo saves Christmas Phil Thomas News Editor EXETER’S Christmas light display has been saved after a successful campaign by the Exeter Express and Echo.

Cash-strapped Exeter city council had hoped that major retailers would

Entrepreneurship Week kicks off Salonee Kakodkar

Societies praise new A&V space Jessica Price

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be able to raise the £50,000 needed to ensure the display went ahead, but received little response.

After the Echo launched a campaign to save the lights, businesses came forward to offer their support.

Tony Rowe, chairman of South West Communiactions, offered to underwrite the cost of the High Street lights.

SunGift solar, an electrical firm, will put up the entire display for free.

John Harvey, City Centre manager, said: “It would have been really detrimental to the city not to have Christmas lights. It was important when talking to the major city centre retailers that we knew the Echo was backing us.

“The support from the Echo was

really important and we were very grateful to receive it.”

Ellie Steafel, an Exeter student, said: “The lights help me get into the festive mood and it makes Christmas shopping all the more enjoyable.

It marks the changing of the seasons and the beginnings of the most important celebration of the year.”

THIS week is Global Entrepreneurial Week at Exeter University, (GEW), which is the world’s largest campaign to promote entrepreneurship.

Last year in the UK, 213,000 people got involved in the campaign’s 2,300 events that were supported by 914 organisations. This year GEW takes place between 12-18 November 2012, the theme being: Pass it On! Imogen Sanders, VP of Academic Affairs, said: “The Guild is working alongside the University and the Innovation Centre to put on a series of events in Global Entrepreneurship Week. It will coordinate a market in the Forum so that student entrepreneurs can sell items and gain critical market research to drive their ideas forward.

“We are also launching a social entrepreneurship initiative that will give students and University staff, who have ideas about social ventures, access to £25,000 funding in order to help passionate people make the difference they want to in the world we live in. The week culminates in an amazing SPARK conference on the Friday, which has keynote speakers including Richard Hurtley from Rampant Clothing and sessions by recent graduates.

“The Guild is also launching its brand new IGNITE entrepreneur support unit.”

Students are urged to book quickly, as places are limited to 80.

Blaze destroys charity offices in Southernhay Salonee Kakodkar A CHARITY based in Exeter, has been left homeless after a blaze tore through its offices.

The flames decimated the head office of Surf Life Saving Great Britain, the charity, which could be seen across Exeter’s skyline.

To control the blaze, a total of 35 firefighters had to force their way into the unoccupied offices.

Esther Pearson, the charity’s chief executive, says she was relieved no one was injured, but now desperately needs to find temporary accommodation for the charity.

Anyone wishing to donate or help the charity is asked to visit www.slsgb. org.uk.

CHILDREN IN NEED WEEK – 12-16 NOV Children in Need is here! With the University of Exeter hosting this year’s regional event, there has never been a better time to raise as much money as possible for the cause.

Prize Raffle stall selling tickets throughout the week Live draw, Friday 3.30pm, The Forum

TUESDAY

Sponge Stocks

Come and play Heads and Tails every day with a chance to win a prize and raise money!

2.30pm, All week, The Forum

Throw wet sponges at the sabbs!

The police are coming onto campus with their very own stocks and locking up volunteers, so grab a sponge and make sure you aim straight!

SATURDAY

WEDNESDAY

Children in Need Lemmy

Pudsey in Local Schools

8pm-2am, The Lemon Grove

Come to the Lemmy wearing your spottiest outfit for Children in Need and raise money for a worthwhile cause while having a great time!

SUNDAY

Take Me Out Children in Need Special

THURSDAY

Pyjama Day Donate money to see the Students’ Guild staff come to campus dressed in their pyjamas

Fundraising Fever All day in the Forum

7-11pm, the Lemon Grove

No likey no lighty returns for Children in Need! £4 Entry.

MONDAY

Children in Need Tea Party Great Hall and Piazza 12-5pm

Children in Need Charity Concert

Great Hall 7 - 11pm £5 suggested donation

FRIDAY

The Big Build Up! As The University of Exeter has been chosen to host this year’s Children in Need in the South West, there will be lots going on on the night, including live broadcasts taking place in the Forum!

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University’s behaviour Exeposé called into question over . 1987 controversial arrest SSB: Will you be in Meg Drewett, Features Editor, questions the the lucky few?

University’s actions following the arrest of an armed est

FOR many students, the Safer Sex Ball (SSB) is the social event of the year.

Every winter, thousands of scantilyclad students undress to impress, raising thousands in the name of charity.

This year, SSB organisers are introducing a new ticket-allocation system after last year’s unsuccessful attempts to host ticket sales online.

The process appears simple – students have four days (Tuesday 13 – Friday 16) to ‘register’ for two pairs of tickets online, and the winners are randomly allocated.

As with every option, this system will come with pros and cons. Exeposé believes that the SSB committee have done a good job by addressing last year’s problems, and for imagining a solution that is fair and unlikely to cause a great deal of technical prob-

lems. We will wait and see.

Older students will share fond memories of waiting in line for firstcome-first-served tickets – many will say that early morning queues are all part of the SSB experience.

In this day and age, it seems as though it’s more difficult than ever for a student to simply purchase a ticket for an event they would like to see – ‘random’ allocations of tickets could provoke complaints from unlucky students, while restricting ticket sales to two tickets per person may put-off those who want to go with a large group of friends.

The system is fair, but organisers should be prepared for angry reactions from students who miss out.

For and Against, see page 9

Children in Need on campus THE choice for the University of Exeter to host the BBC Children in Need in the South West has brought an air of excitement to campus. The charitable work of students at the University has always been a strength for Exeter, and it is fantastic that the University has allowed the South West party to happen in the Forum.

The fundraising activities are truly varied. from a Teddy Bear’s Picnic tea party to a massive charity gig. Students shouldn’t find a shortage of opportunities to get involved with some Pudsey fun and the important Children in Need fundraising.

The national coverage of the events on Friday means that the University will be on show to the entire country. This is a proud moment for our rejeuventated campus and for the University, but

mainly for the individual students who have contributed time and effort into the organisation of this event. Finding time outside of your set academic course to get involved in charitable work is a challenge, and those who choose to volunteer their time and energy deserve to be congratulated.

The Students Guild’s active role in the ‘Pounds for Pudsey’ campaign should secure a high level of fundraising over the next week, and Exeposé hopes that all students get in the spirit of Children in Need and take part. Whether a contribution big or small, from buying a raffle ticket to running a race (CHECK) there are so many chances to support CiN there is no excuse not to get involved.

For more information, see page 8

Thanks to those who helped proof this issue: Megan Furborough, Elli Christie, Will O’Rourke, Dale James, Kate Gray, Liz Moore, Amey Higgon, Emma Holifield, Charlotte Earland, Bryony James, Giverny Masso, Becky Mullen, Chloë Parkin, Cameron Ho, Samuel Lazarus-Keene, Lauren Swift, Thomas Griffith, Vanessa Tracey and members of the Exeposé editorial team

homeless man near to the University cricket ground

Meg Drewett CONSIDERING the current campaigns regarding student safety in Exeter and around campus, recent reports of a machete-wielding man being arrested on the public footpath from Prince of Wales Road to near Danes Road should be a great cause for concern and alarm.

It is believed that this man has been identified as the homeless man who has lived off the public footpath for years, who is well known to students and has affectionately been referred to as ‘the Wizard’. Reports have claimed that this man has been arrested in possession of a number of weapons, including axes and the machete. He is currently being detained

“How is it possible that no one has taken responsibility for this man earlier? He is well known on campus and has lived in the area for years” by the police and is supposedly due to go to court next week. Despite this,

the police seem to have suggested that the man poses no serious threat to the public in general. So there seems to be a larger problem with this case.

How is it possible that no one has taken responsibility for this man earlier? He is well known on campus and has lived in the area for years and it is impossible for him to have been overlooked by both the University and the Exeter City Council. And yet, overlooked he clearly has been.

“We are talking about a man who allegedly has a serious history of mental health issues and is clearly [...] not able to help himself ” We are talking about a man who allegedly has a serious history of mental health issues, and is clearly in a position of not being able to help himself. Living in such close proximity to campus, and presumably coming onto campus frequently, how has he not been in contact with Estate Patrol and been moved along to a homeless shelter? Surely a man with a mental illness in possession of serious weapons on campus’ doorstep is a matter of the University’s concern and they should have stepped in to help him, and protect students.

However, if the University has

not been willing to take action in this case, why have they not encouraged

“If the University has not been willing to take action in this case, why have they not encouraged the Council to do so in their place?” the Council to do so in their place?

Obviously the University’s first concern is their students and helping a homeless man nearby, prior to the news of his arrest, may not have been their top priority, but there is no reason why they could not have urged the Council to offer him substantial help in their stead.

This man is representative of the most vulnerable people in society - the homeless - and this is a classic example of where someone who should have been helped has not been.

Considering the amount of effort that the Council seems to be making to save money, like turning off our street lights, this seems to be yet another case where they are cutting corner and failing to protect those in the greatest danger - both students and this homeless man himself.

It is situations like these that make us lose faith in the Exeter City Council and cause us to question whether protecting Exeter citizens is really their top concern.

Want to join the team at Exeter’s student newspaper?

Exeposé is recruiting:

1 x Online Lifestyle Editor

Duties will include: • Working with three other Lifestyle editors to source and write content and pitch article suggestions to writers • Working with your co-online Lifestyle editor to regularly maintain and update the Lifestyle section of Exeposé’s website (www.exepose.ex.ac.uk) • Promoting Lifestyle articles through Twitter and Facebook No previous experience is required. E-mail a 150-word manifesto by Wednesday 21nd November to editors@exepose.com.

You will be expected to give a 2-minute speech at the elections, which will be held on 22nd Thursday in the Exeposé office room. All Exeposé members are welcome to come and cast their vote.

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12 NOVEMBER 2012 |

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Exeposé

Save our Streetlights under the spotlight

Zoe Bulaitis, Editor, and Sarah Ali examine Exeposé and the Guild’s ongoing campaign to save our streetlights...

Zoe Bulaitis Editor

DEVON County Council is proposing to cut back on street-lighting in Exeter City Centre. This will mean that residential student areas will be plunged into darkness after 00:30am and be off until 05:30am. As a student, I often find myself coming home after this time, and the idea that there should be no lighting down my immediate road or indeed the connecting B-road, causes me some distress. I live in very close proximity to the city centre, and feel that in a city environment, the suggestion that lights should be switched off is ridiculous. In any city there are people coming and going from their homes throughout the night, whether working night shifts or enjoying the social nightlife that a city holds. Removing street lighting makes approaching or leaving one’s resi-

dence in the nighttime a more difficult or off-putting activity, and does not take into consideration that it is precisely in these early hours that people appreciate street lighting the most.

The FAQ Section of the Devon Country Council website poses and answers the question, “when I return home and turn off the main road, everything will be dark, this will not be safe, especially for women on their own, what can I do?” by suggesting that “most dwellings have low-level outdoor lighting and this is sufficient for someone to make their way from a vehicle to their house, or from the garage if they keep their vehicle in there overnight. The human eye adapts very well at low light levels, for example, most people are able to move about their house at night without having to switch lights on.”

From my experience of student residential areas, there is very rarely an external outdoor light. The council also advises that residents should carry a torch about with them after 12.30 am, which somewhat contradicts the above statement about the human eye

adapting to low light levels.

In terms of economics: converting each street light to part-night lighting costs between £20 and £30, which will take three years of the energy savings to cover this cost. Certainly the cut to Exeter’s carbon footprint is the only redeeming feature I can understand in this proposed scheme. It is important to acknowledge that the reduction of carbon emissions is an important concern that needs to be addressed.

However, it seems that the County Council is regarding the carbon reduction of street lights in solely financial terms. On the Country Council website the answer to “why are you switching lights off?” is met with “the County Council has carbon emissions reduction targets to meet and less street lighting will help to achieve these targets and avoid financial penalties.”

Overall I feel that the desire to turn off street lights in the City is a proposal that compromises student’s feeling of safety in and around their homes, and that students should speak up before we are all left in the dark!

Sarah Ali Is Save Our Streetlights: missing the Point? The Student Guild Save our Streetlights campaign is laudable in its goal of protecting Exeter Students.

The proposal to turn off streetlights to ‘save energy’ is dangerous, and is little more than cost-motivated cornercutting by Devon County.

It is very much the responsibility of the Guild to respond to policies that are clearly not in the best interests of students. But is it really addressing the issues at hand?

The campaign has included little commentary about who would (and inevitably does) experience the most violence, and whose autonomy would be most infringed upon by unlit streets.

And who would be most at risk?

Women, people of colour, transgen-

Letters to the Editors [RE: Issue 599, Student safety threatened] Dear Editors, WITH reference to the edition of Exeposé of 29 October, I support your campaign against Devon County Council’s plans to turn off many of the street lights in Exeter in the early hours of the morning.

Leaving the lights on in just a few main roads leading out of the city centre is not acceptable, as many residents (particularly students) live in smaller streets and need to have a safe and well-lit route home after a night out. I appreciate that protecting the environment is also a serious issue, but modern technology must allow better solutions than just flicking the ‘off’ switch.

What I find particularly regrettable is the County Council allowing this issue to drag on for so long without proper consultation with residents or local councillors. This procrastination on the County Council’s part only adds to people’s anxiety. Communication has never been easier in this day

and age, so why don’t the County Council engage in it?

Your coverage on page three of this issue was, I believe, informative and well balanced. It provided good advice to students which hopefully they will all heed.

What I am unhappy about, however, is the ‘shock, horror’ nature of the front page. I appreciate that you want to encourage students to read your paper, but the alarmist tone of the front cover is likely I believe to unnecessarily alarm some people. Exeter is still a relatively safe place to live, in spite of these recent incidents, and I think that Exeter’s residents (students or otherwise) should not be be made to think otherwise by coverage which would be better left to other less reputable tabloids.

Keith Owen Labour City Councillor for St James

dered and the elderly. These are the people who are regularly the victim of street and in-home violence, whose likelihoods of being sexual assault are highest, who are the most threatened by this policy.

But nobody is talking about them!

The people that the Save our Streetlights campaign is aimed at supporting are the very people that are made invisible by it.

“Until we address the underlying issues of rape culture, racism, and homophobia inherent in the Save Our Streetlights Campaign, the Guild has missed its point” Until we address the underlying issues of rape culture, racism, and homophobia inherent in the Save Our Streetlights Campaign, the Guild has missed its point

Send your letters to comment@exepose.com

[RE: Issue 599, Harry McCarthy, The Bare Witch Project] Dear Editors, UPON reading Harry McCarthy’s article on Halloween costumes in the Lifestyle section last issue, I was troubled by his interpretation of the sexual politics of Halloween.

As such, I thought I would take this opportunity to explain to Mr McCarthy the difference between a sexualised male and a sexualised female as he seems to believe that no such difference exists.

Very simply, when a man bares all as a ‘topless Spartan’ for instance, he is quite clearly in a position of power.

His lack of clothing is obviously meant to symbolise the fact that he’s a big , strong man - a lad if you will - capable of causing women to faint at his rippling torso.

His sexualisation doesn’t have negative connotations - people find him attractive and girls might want to get with him, but when he takes off his Spartan cloak and loin cloth

and redresses in Jack Wills the next day, his position as a sexual object doesn’t prevail.

But let’s look at the girl’s prospective. She ‘chooses’ to dress up as a ‘sexy’ witch or scantily clad superhero, because those are the only girls Halloween costumes on sale in town, because culture and Mean Girls has dictated that she must dress as a sexualised object.

As Mr McCarthy does note, her being dressed ‘slutty’ doesn’t actually make her a slut, but - and here’s the fundamental difference between the sexualisation of men and women at Halloween: on November 1st, that view of her as a sex object continues when she’s out of costume, whereas his does not.

The next day, people who saw her dressed in a ‘slutty’ costume still retain that view of her, be it the guys who tried to get off with her or the other women who judged her costume. This scenario does not occur with men with nearly the same frequency as it does to their female

counterparts and thus it is utterly foolish of Mr McCarthy to claim that there’s no difference between sexualised men and women. Maybe he does so because he has never been a woman who felt forced to dress in a sexualised way by her friends, her housemates, her society - so her choice to do so was never really a choice.

Clearly he has never been a woman treated as a sexualised object by blokes all evening; who then was labelled as a slut for the rest of year because of her costume the night before. But seeing as he has probably never been in this position, perhaps Mr McCarthy should leave the analysis of the sexualisation of Halloween for women to women themselves.

Yours sincerely, Anonymous.

Exeposé

| Week EIGHT

COMMENT

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9

SSB ticket lottery... will you be one of the lucky ones?

As the SSB committee announces radical changes to their ticket distribution system, two Exeposé writers battle it out over the pros and cons of playing the lottery... efficient, and it was only a marginal improvement on pre-2010 SSB ticket sales which had thousands of students queuing outside overnight, yes overnight, to get their freezing hands on a ticket.

Rachel Tait AFTER two years of first-come-firstserved online SSB ticket sales, RAG is mixing it up. While the new ticket lottery might outrage some people, I believe it is about time that this stressfree, straightforward and fair system is introduced.

Some people will say that firstcome-first-served is better. I have tried to see things from their point of view, so bear with me here as I recap some of the old system’s selling points… You’ve got to wake up early, give your broadband a little pep talk, and

“Progress is a beautiful thing, and this year’s SSB ticket lottery will benefit everyone” The point is that progress is a beautiful thing, and this year’s SSB ticket lottery will benefit everyone.

We get four days to apply for tickets, it doesn’t matter if we apply first or last, there’s no booking fee and our chances are not dependent on how reliable our broadband is. Plus the tickets will end up in the hands of people who really want them thanks to a second ballot for those tickets which haven’t been claimed.

But enough about us… it’s far too easy to get caught up in the logistics and forget about the point of the SSB. This year’s 21st annual RAG Safer Sex Ball is going to be the biggest World Aids Day event outside London. A ticket lottery means that more money goes to people who truly need it because RAG won’t waste precious money on an unreliable ticketselling system. Last year, RAG raised an astonishing £146,275.34 thanks to events like the SSB. I for one reckon that it is time to embrace the ticket lottery and get on with the Raising and Giving.

FOR

“The old way was far from fair or efficient, and it was only a marginal improvement on pre-2010 SSB ticket sales which had thousands of students queuing outside overnight to get their freezing hands on a ticket” then spend an hour clicking ‘refresh’, screaming at your computer and keeping the world updated on your lack of progress via Facebook statuses. Oh yes, a winner of a system.

The old way was far from fair or

Photos: Henry White

right about going without the others.

What’s more, the introduction of the SSB Launch Party organised by RAG and Foreplay Events, (whereby students buy a ticket worth £15 to an event which will secure them a ticket for the SSB itself) completely defeats

Isabel Stoddart THE SSB. This longstanding tradition of partying in one’s underwear has long been a part of student life here at Exeter, but this year that is all about to change for some unlucky thousands of students. RAG’s brave decision to change the way of ticket allocation will no doubt cause uproar amongst many who have been looking forward to the event since the beginning of term. Instead of buying online, the process will now involve registering your details on the internet before being put into a lottery out of which names will be pulled at random.

“Perhaps RAG should have kept the event at Westpoint so that more tickets could be sold and more students could have the opportunity to join in” the object of allocating tickets in a fair way as 500 students will already be entitled one for paying an extra £15. If it is all about ‘Raising and Giving’ then perhaps RAG should have kept the event at Westpoint so that more tickets could be sold and more students could have the opportunity to join in.

Up until two years ago the whole ticket procedure used to be a lot more fun. Tickets would go on sale at 9am on the nominated day in the Lemmy.

From about 6pm on the previous evening, students would start queuing and stay all night in order to get their hands on the prized tickets. Although not the nicest way to spend an evening, the whole thing was a bit of fun and was a fair and just means of allocating places.

This thoughtless and quite frankly unfair move from RAG is a recipe for disaster and might just be more trouble than it’s worth.

AGAINST

“I know that if in my house, one or two of us got a ticket, we wouldn’t feel right about going without the others” Although for some the SSB is all about dressing to impress and pulling that girl/guy that you’ve had your eye on, for others it’s chance to dress up with your friends, get a bit tipsy and dance around in your undies. Nevertheless with this new ‘fair’ process how on earth is that now supposed to happen? I know that if in my house, one or two of us got a ticket, we wouldn’t feel

Cartoon: Charlotte Micklewright

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COMMENT

12 NOVEMBER 2012 |

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Exeposé

Guild helps students find accommodation Grace Hopper VP Wellfare and Community

AS part of this year’s Housing Finder campaign, The Guild are offering an extensive range of advice and information on accommodation for students. Our key message when it comes to looking for a house is not to rush, and to get all the facts before making any decisions; after all, they will be legally binding!

As well as all the information that The Guild will be providing students with online, from the 6 November there will be a drop in session every day between 12pm and 2pm. During the sessions, which will be held in a pop up house by the Ram, you will be able to receive advice from all the various housing experts on campus.

And remember: moving into a house

with a landlord is not the only option!

The University accommodation offers all-inclusive fees which include utility costs that may suit your financial situation, so come along and inquire – every Wednesday betweem 12-2pm, a staff member from the University Accommodation Office will be joining the Housing team.

sort of house you want to live in or how many people you want to be with, then be sure to come along to the second week of drop in sessions. There you will also be able to find out what sort of housemate you and take our “Who do you want to live?” quiz, which will help you find out what sort of housemate you will be compatible with.

Stage 1: Affordability 6-14 November, 12pm-2pm, Outside the Ram In the first week of HousingFinder, you can come along to the drop in sessions to find out all you need to know about the varying costs of student accommodation in Exeter, as well as advice on how to manage your accounts. All you need to bring is a pen, some paper, and questions!

“The Guild can help you find your preferred style and area of accommodation”

Stage 2: Who do you want to live with?

15-23 November, 12pm-2pm, Outside the Ram Finding the right people to live with is never easy. If you’re not sure about what

The Bear necessities

John Bagnall VP Participation and Campuses Children in Need may hit our screens every year, raising huge amounts of money for a number of really worthwhile causes, but this year it’s going to be very different.

Exeter is the only university in the country to have been chosen as a host venue for Children in Need, which gives us a great opportunity to showcase the volunteering and fundraising ability of our students. On Friday 16th November the BBC will be broadcasting from the Forum at several times throughout the day and night across both local and national television.

These broadcasts will incorporate acts brought in by the BBC but will also enable students here at the University to show off their talent in front of the camera through an array of different performances.

Together, we will be representing students all throughout the country, and we don’t plan on letting them down.

Everyone is aware of the general stereotypes surrounding students, and while it would be naïve to deny the fact that they occasionally (and unfortunately) live up to them, it is unfair to tar the majority of students with the

same brush as the media so frequently does.

Children in Need this year provides the perfect chance for everyone watching to see how against popular opinion, the majority of students are hard-working, dedicated, and at every chance more than willing to commit themselves to a cause bigger than themselves.

The number of students and the amount of time they contribute to volunteering and fundraising at this University alone is staggering. Last year, after an incredible 18,000 hours of volunteering, the students involved in RAG raised a record £146,275 for charity. Community Action managed to involve over 1,100 students in their various volunteering schemes in the local community, whilst the Sports Volunteering Scheme (SVS) organised by the AU had over 400 volunteers volunteering in sport on and off campus.

These figures really demonstrate the drive students at University have to help not only their fellow students but the wider community that surrounds them.

We are brilliant at what we do and so my message to everyone is this: let’s use this opportunity to raise as much money as we can for this brilliant cause and show our local and national community how much students actually care.

I hope that every student will get involved with Children in Need in some form this week, be it volunteering or donating money to the cause.

Stage 3: Where do you want to live?

26 November-4 December, 12pm-2pm, Outside the Ram With the variety of accommodation on offer to students in Exeter, it is sometimes difficult to know where to start when it comes to looking for a house.

The Guild can help you find your preferred style and area of accommodation. As well as the usual drop-in sessions, we will also be inviting students to join us in the Exploration Labs in the Fo-

rum 12-2pm on the 26 and 29 November and 3 December. Here you will be able to have a proper look at all the different places you could live in Exeter, and talk with some housing experts.

Also, for any questions surrounding campus vs. city accommodation, the University will be able to offer help, so come along and find out more about where the best place is for you to live!

Stage 4: Contract Checks and Negotiation: 5-7 December, 12pm-2pm, Outside the Ram The Students’ Guild Advice Unit can provide a whole range of advice on housing, and even offer a free contract checking service for students. To find out more, come along to speak to one of the Advice Unit team outside the RAM in Week 4.

Stage 5: Weighing up your options 10-14 December, 12pm-2pm, Outside the Ram Remember – there is no rush when finding accommodation and always plenty

of places available to students all year round. This week is for you to consider all your options and use the advice you have received over the last four weeks to come to a decision that best suits your needs.

“You will be able to meet Exeter’s estate agents, private landlords and see what houses are on the market” Stage 6: The Housing Fair 15 January 2013, The Great Hall, Devonshire House Now you have received all the top tips on housing from The Guild, you can make your way to The Housing Fair!

Here you will be able to meet Exeter’s estate agents, private landlords and see what houses are on the market. Key info concerning utilities will also be available, along with plenty of freebies. You never know what might happen: you may find your dream house!

Cartoon: Ellie Taylor-Roberts

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Features

Features FOLLOW US ON TWITTER @ExeposeFeatures

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FEATURES EDITORS

James Crouch & Meg Drewett features@exepose.com

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How much is your virginity worth to you?

Dominic Madar asks if a recent virginity auction in Australia is a dangerous development in the sex trade

CATARINA MIGLIORINI recently agreed to sell her body in an online virginity auction for the tidy sum of 780,000 dollars. My initial and primeval reaction upon hearing such news was not to question the controversial and much criticised event, but to wonder exactly how desirable this twenty year old Brazilian girl must be to attract such an extortionate price. Google images left me rather perplexed – she’s pretty no doubt, however, she wouldn’t look out of place in Arena and Timepiece.

“I’m no expert on the Japanese prostitute market, though I’m sure far cheaper and lower profile alternatives exist for him” Putting aside Catarina’s decision for a moment, I think the one made by the winning bidder (an unknown Japanese businessman, referred to as ‘Natsu’) is what I find more baffling. I’m no expert on the Japanese prostitute market, though I’m sure far cheaper and lower profile alternatives exist for him. Of course the real premium in this deal is the one off chance to take a woman’s virginity.

Countless societies around the world prize its supposed chastity and innocence.

The Holy Book itself and even Star Wars clearly refer to virgin births. Celibacy is practiced and actively encouraged by many around the globe for all sorts of reasons, ranging from the moral and pure to the immoral and disturbing. There’s nothing wrong with such noble commitments when the choice to do so is not one made for you. Yet any sorts of argument based on the moral implications of sex are surely negated by this deed being one of prostitution. It’s combining two very different ends of the traditional moral compass. Natsu has never met and knows nothing about this girl.

This really makes me wonder about this guy. How can you expect a sense of anything greater than the lustful act itself? Sex is like most things – the more you practice the better you get. Why on earth would you want a virgin for something stripped down to its rawest level and devoid of genuine emotion?

Catarina herself seems in no doubt as to how she views the concept: “I saw this as a business. I have the opportunity to travel, to be part of a movie and get a bonus with it.” The auction is part of a documentary created by film maker Justin Sisely, with the act itself taking place on a flight between Brazil and Australia to avoid national persecution laws.

Although a classier way around

the system than most it all comes back to a similar theme: should we legalise the transaction of sex for money? It’s

“I would jump at the chance to sell my body to somebody of the opposite sex for such a reward. Unfortunately I don’t think they would be willing to buy” certainly not something I would like to endorse in society but that doesn’t necessarily equate to banning it. Even in developed countries like the UK violent and dangerous black markets continue to exist; nobody wants to see women pressurised or driven to such undesirable conclusions when they clearly don’t want to be – especially when the law isn’t there to protect them.

Yet, this was Catarina’s decision and we should respect the right for her to make that. Furthermore her family also endorses it and she reportedly intends to spend a significant chunk of the money to build homes for poverty stricken families in her native Brazil. This is a far cry from the situation of a desperate underage girl forced to repeatedly sell her body to keep food on the table. A desir-

able outcome may arise from an undesirable source.

The idea of someone paying somebody else for their virginity makes me wince; so does somebody buying a Justin Bieber CD (I’m aware there’s probably better comparisons). People spend money in ways we don’t like and make us feel uncomfortable – that doesn’t inherently make it wrong. I would rather see that money spent on building houses for the poor than wasting away in an oversized Japanese bank account, even if the route taken isn’t the most ideal.

Half a million pounds is a truly staggering amount of cash. I would jump at the chance to sell my body to somebody of the opposite sex for such a reward.

Unfortunately I don’t think they would be willing to buy.

Virginity auctions MS MIGLIORINI’S is not the first case of virginity auctions to hit the headlines in recent years.

In 2004, British university student, Rosie Reid, then 18, decided to auction her virginity on eBay to avoid graduating with large student debts. Although eBay removed the auction from the site, Ms Reid continued the auction on her own private site.

Ms Reid’s example was then followed in 2009, when an American student, Natalie Dylan, then aged 22, made world news by auctioning off her virginity in order to pay for her Master’s degree. Dylan claimed that over 10,000 men had placed bids for a one-night stand with her with final bids reaching up to £2.5 million.

Also in 2009, Romanian teenager Alina Percea auctioned her virginity away to a 45 year old Italian businessman for the price of £8800. Percea caused a stir when she later revealed intimiate details of their encounter with the Daily Mail .

Exeposé

| week EIGHT

Features

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Unlocking the ballot: should prisoners have a right to vote?

Emma Milton explains why she believes that prisoners shouldn’t be voters THE Prime Minister, David Cameron, has stated in no uncertain terms that prisoners will not receive the right to vote under his rule. Whilst not all members of the public may feel as ‘physically sick’ at the idea as Cameron, the overwhelming majority (67 per cent according to a recent YouGov poll) will sleep easier at night knowing that Parliament has spoken for the good of the people.

The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR), which is attempting to lift the UK’s ban on prisoners voting, has overstepped its boundaries on this issue. If you read the original 1950 convention, written at a time when Stalin was in power and sending people to political prison camps, it is clear that it was established for a very different purpose to some of the ways in which it is now being used. It is doubtful that its authors intended it to contradict the sophisticated, comprehensive and just legal system of the 21st century.

right to this privilege, among others.

If offenders are not willing to abide by laws set out by the government then they should most certainly not be permitted to have an impact on government-related processes, such as voting.

Besides, a prisoner is not stripped of their right to vote forever. For those who believe prison should also be a place of rehabilitation, I agree, but I also believe that we should wait for the process of personal transformation to have been successful and for the inmate to have returned to society before allowing them to impose their views on the public as a whole.

The ECHR wants to lift the current total ban on voting and is not implying that the vote should be granted to all prisoners but how would you differentiate between who received the right and who did not? Murderers and rapists cannot vote, but armed robbers and those who have committed manslaughter can? It would be an administrative nightmare and with all the cuts that we face, wasting money on this superfluous process is just not an option. Already many criminals retain their right to vote as lesser crimes tend not to receive prison sentences, thus it is only those who pose a greater threat to society who have this right revoked; those who we would not want swaying decisions as to who governs us anyway.

Parliament has the right to say to the ECHR that it does not agree with its ultimatum and given the overwhelming opposition to giving the vote on all side of the House of Commons and amongst UK citizens, is it really a court in Strasbourg who should be making the decision and not the UK government?

NO

“If offenders are not willing to abide by the laws set out by the government, then they should most certainly not be permitted to have an impact on government-related processes, such as voting” Some human rights campaigners argue that voting is a civic responsibility and that everyone, including prisoners, should assume that responsibility. But who wants the government running our country to be decided on by the group of least-responsible civilians that society has? Even locally, prisoners who do not belong to the local community and who may be hundreds of miles from where they used to live, would suddenly have the power to change an election result. If even a third of the inmates in some of the larger prisons decided to vote in a local election they could impact on real issues, swinging priority away from the concerns of local residents.

The point of sentencing criminals to prison is to remove them from society, where they present a danger to other citizens, and to punish them for infringing laws by removing their freedom. One component of freedom is the right to choose whether or not to vote and by having knowingly broken UK laws, prisoners have sacrificed their

“How would you differentiate between who received the right and who did not? Murderers and rapists cannot vote, but armed robbers and manslaughters can?”

I am, and will continue to be despite any changes an incompetent future government may make, a strong advocate for the belief that as soon as a crime is committed, that criminal relinquishes any right to affect the lawabiding citizens of the UK.

Photo: thebureauinvestigates.com

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Meg Drewett, Features Editor, argues in favour of granting prisoners the vote THE right of prisoners to vote isn’t something that a lot of us spend time considering, unless maybe you know someone in prison. Indeed, the topic has in recent years become irrevocably linked to the issue of powers and the European Union; with resentment growing about our relationship with the EU, there has been an increase in the number of people who would hate to give prisoners the vote, simply as an ‘up yours’ to our counterparts on the continent.

But the issue of prisoner voting should be above the politics of the European problem. Whether or not we give prisoners the vote is a separate question to whether or not we give prisoners the vote because European Court of Human Rights is telling us to do so.

This is because, in fact, prisoner voting should have nothing to do with the politics of our national sovereignty; prisoner voting should be entirely about what sort of society we really want to live in.

For many, the idea of giving prisoners the vote is appalling, but this view is nearly always based upon the most extreme sample of prisoners. Should murderers, rapists, paedophiles have a say in what sort of society we live in?

Probably not. But most people in prison aren’t murderers, rapists and paedophiles. There are two undeniable facts about our prison system: 1) A vast number of people in prison pose no threat to society and don’t really need be there, and 2) the rehabilitation element isn’t working.

Both of these factors can be linked to reasons for giving prisoners the vote.

For the most part, less than half of convicts are imprisoned for some form of violent crime; the sort of crimes that might genuinely make you question someone’s judgement about who should run the country. But what about the rest?

15 per cent of all sentences are for drug offences, 29 per cent for some type of theft, burglary etc. and whilst there are clearly serious versions of these crimes, that doesn’t mean that all imprisoned for them have committed such an offence against society that they should be denied the right to express their beliefs on government. Should someone imprisoned at the time of a general election really have their vote denied because they were repeatedly caught carrying drugs or stealing a handbag? In these cases, does the punishment really fit the crime?

And perhaps more significantly, by

denying the vote to prisoners, we’re denying some of the most vulnerable in our society the chance to have a say how our country develops. Everyone knows that the rehabilitation of prisoners isn’t working at the moment; there’s an obvious reason for this. In our prisons, we systematically dehumanise our convicts. We tell them they aren’t worth a place in society, that they don’t deserve to contribute and that even once they’ve served their time, society isn’t going to forgive them for what they’ve done. When you tell someone, often from a deprived background as many of our convicts originate, that they’re worth nothing, what do you expect but have them believe you and act accordingly? Reoffending rates are so high because we tell our convicts that they no longer belong to our society, so when they get out, they continue to act as if they don’t belong and commit crimes against it.

Offering prisoners the vote would help solve this problem. Giving prisoners the chance to have a say allows them to feel connected to society, even if they are at that time separated from it. Indeed, taking away this right from prisoners only adds to their isolation from the world we live in and in the long term, does nothing to help them readjust upon release.

YES

“Should murderers, rapists and paedophiles have a say in what sort of society we live in? Probably not.

But most people in prisons aren’t murderers, rapists and paedophiles” Of course, there are those who will always believe that if you commit a crime, you must be punished and part of that punishment is to lose your right to be part of society, your right to vote.

But criminals who are convicted but not given a custodial sentence, those who are forced to pay a fine or do community service, retain their right to vote.

The system isn’t perfect or fair but the only way to fix it is to grant prisoners the vote. It doesn’t have to be all prisoners and it doesn’t have to be a symbol of servitude to Europe, but giving over 50,000 vulnerable people the right to have their say would force politicians to address the problems with our justice system, and that can only be a good thing.

14

Features

12 NOVEMBER 2012 |

www.exepose.ex.ac.uk

Exeposé

Griffin interview exposes NUS divisions

Tom Payne, Editor, congratulates Leeds Student on confounding the NUS’s confused ‘No Platform’ policy follow-up article for the Guardian: “Griffin is a politician in a country which has free speech, it is essential that his views and policies are exposed for what they are. Leeds Student merely gave Griffin enough rope to hang himself.”

The National Executive Committee made a serious error in denying Leeds Student freedom of speech. This is, after all, an example of the NUS attempting to practically dictate opinion – but student hacks aren’t easily silenced. This kind of censorship seems a step too far in any society where the freedom of the press is taken seriously.

ON 26 October, Leeds Student, the student newspaper of the University of Leeds, published an interview with Nick Griffin, the chairman of the British National Party (BNP).

The response of the National Union of Students (NUS) was alarming in two ways: firstly, in the implications of attempting to publically censor a student newspaper, and secondly, by the manner in which the debate revealed internal disagreements over the terms of ‘No

Platform’, a key NUS policy.

The interview, which probes Griffin on accusations of racism and gay rights as well as the future of the party, was condemned by members of the National Executive Committee of the NUS for its “appalling” and “offensive” content, and has since sparked a fierce debate over press ethics and freedom of speech within Student Unions.

Writing to Lucy Snow, the Editor of Leeds Student, on the day of the in-

terview’s publication, Aaron Kiely, the NUS Black Students’ Officer, claimed: “In publishing this interview, Leeds Student risks giving legitimacy to a fascist organisation, and boosts the BNP’s attempts to join the political mainstream when we should be isolating them.”

In spite of a considerable amount of pressure placed on the Editor, Leeds Student stuck to their guns and refused to retract the interview. For this I applaud them. Why? As the Editor put it in her

Samsung vs Apple?

“Leeds Student aren’t admitting their Griffin has something valid to say they’re demonstrating the role of student newspapers in holding all authorities to account” Allow me to make myself clear: I do not in any way condone the policies of the BNP. I do not agree with any of the views that Nick Griffin has, but I will always be a firm believer in defending his right to say what he says. And so I defend the right of a newspaper to print his views and opinions. In publishing their interview, Leeds Student aren’t admitting that Griffin has something valid

to discuss – they’re demonstrating, with forcefulness and flair, the role of student newspapers in holding all authorities to account, no matter how great or small, controversial or conservative.

This debate seems to cast even greater doubts over the internal relationship between members of the NUS Executive. This is particularly true with regard to the NUS ‘No Platform’ policy, which is intended to ensure that anyone considered racist or fascist should not be able to stand in any NUS elections or participate in any NUS function. While Members of the National Executive Committee considered the interview to be in breach of their ‘No Platform’ policy, Liam Burns the NUS President, refused to condone the letter sent to Leeds Student. Following intense media interest, Burns stated: ”I won’t be signing the letter because I believe that our work must always be with the student unions we work with”.

My opinion is simply this: Leeds Student must be applauded for publishing the interview. Although the interview had no wider context in the news at the time of its publication, it has been invariably valuable in drawing out evidence of divided opinion on the NUS Executive.

Perhaps most importantly, the interview has given many students the opportunity to participate in an open debate about aspects of the ‘No Platform’ policy.

Congratulations, Leeds Student!

Adrien Des Palmas asks why the former allies are now at war THE atmosphere between Apple and Samsung has probably never been as highly-charged as it currently is. The two big multinational companies, leaders in the sector of smartphones, have been suing each other all around the world for more than a year now, the one accusing the other of infringing its mobile phone patents. Yet, before becoming enemies, the two firms were key partners: Samsung provided Apple with most of the components, and in particular the processors, that are needed to assemble the iPhone.

So, what happened? The “war” actually began last year in April when Apple started proceedings against Samsung for the first time, judging that the South Korean firm had copied the unique design, user interface and technology of the iPhone and iPad to create several of its devices (namely, the Galaxy series). Since then, Samsung also decided to sue Apple for the violation of its patents, and the proceedings have thus been following on from each other in the USA, South Korea, Japan, the UK, the Netherlands, Australia, and the list goes on…

You may probably wonder which of

the two giant firms is winning the battle.

Well, this is quite hard to say. The different courts before which the case was brought strangely did not all come to the same conclusion. On the one hand, in California, the jury claimed that Samsung had definitely infringed several patents belonging to Apple and that therefore the South Korean firm had to be punished. What better punishment than requiring Samsung to pay Apple a $1.05 billion fine? On the other hand, in London, the conclusion was the complete opposite: Samsung had not infringed Apple’s patents. Why? For the simple reason that the South Korean’s devices are not as “cool” – quote from the judge Colin Birss in London – as the American firm’s products. For having sued Samsung, it was Apple’s turn to be punished. The court has recently stated that Apple will have to include that judgement on its official webpage and will also have to advertise this decision of the court in several European media outlets.

As for the South Korean court, the jury considered that both Apple and Samsung had infringed their respective patents and that therefore both had to

pay one another a nice fine.

While it seems quite difficult to determine who the winner is with certainty, one thing is for sure, the loser is no one but the consumer. All these amounts of money that have been outrageously spent by both parties on legal costs could have wisely been spent on research and development or been invested. After all, what we consumers expect

“While it seems quite difficult to determine who the winner is with certainty, one thing is for sure, the loser is no one but the consumer” from these two growing companies is to continue creating outstanding products, to keep surprising us with impressive innovations each time they release a new device, don’t we? Another disappointment for the consumer has been to see that Apple and Samsung have not only claimed financial compensation but have also asked the court to forbid some of the devices on the market. In

a sense, we can understand their frustration as they see their products being plagiarised by an unscrupulous competitor, and this is the reason why they ask for compensation. However, taking a product off the market simply leads to a reduction in the choice of products available to the consumer. And what if every case involving the infringement of patents could lead to the ban of products? Wouldn’t this threaten competition between firms? Eric Schmidt, Google Chairman, said last month in South Korea: “I think one of the worst things that happened in the last few years has been the belief that somehow there are so many patents in the mobile phone world, an estimated 200,000 patents that are overlapping and complicated and so forth, that one vendor can stop the sale of another vendor’s

phones or devices.”

But the conflict between Apple and Samsung is more than proceedings; it is also a real war of statistics. The release of a new smartphone has always been an opportunity for both to advertise their sales success: 10 million Galaxy SIIIs sold in two months, 5 million iPhone 5s sold in three days.

Despite incredible sales figures, the recent release of the iPhone 5 has nevertheless disappointed many people.

It may be due to the lack of amazing features and innovations or to the impression of no real improvements when compared with its predecessor. In fact, some of us have probably desperately tried to find more than seven differences between the iPhone 5 and the iPhone 4S; some more courageous among us may have tried to repeat the same exercise for the iPad 2 and iPad 3 (or The New iPad as it is officially named); but others may have stopped playing that game and may have already knocked at the competitors’ door.

Exeposé

| week EIGHT

Features

www.exepose.ex.ac.uk

Nick Baker sets a Grand Challenge

15

Photo: wikipedia.org

Zoe Bulaitis, Editor, talks to Nick Baker about providing a challenge for students

THE UNIVERSITY OF EXETER’S Grand Challenges launch week has just finished and all first year students are requested to sign up to a 21st century dilemma of their choosing. It is not often within the first year of an undergraduate degree that a student is offered complete freedom of choice. The University of Exeter is the first University in the UK to attempt a interdisciplinary project of this kind amongst all first year students, and the coming months will reveal the successes and failures of inter-college collaboration and shared knowledge of this kind.

In the inaugural Grand Challenges lecture Professor Andrew Shaw described the current fate of University graduates. He argued, “you will be depressed at how much your degree is worth” and that it was the aim of this project to equip students with the ability to “gain an independent bright mind” and find “a good clever way to resolving a problem”. What makes the Grand Challenges initiative different from other academic weeks in the term is that it brings students into contact with real world problems. It encourages students to use the skills that they have acquired academically in a new and productive way. This project, the University hopes will equip Exeter graduates with the skills they need to survive outside of the University bubble.

Naturalist and TV presenter Nick Baker was the keynote speaker at the Grand Challenges launch, and was keen to spend some time speaking with Exeposé to outline his view on the changing University education system. He described his personal experience on leaving the University being told he was “a clever bugger” and left “full of pride and then went straight on the dole”: a grim reality facing today’s graduates.

The current national statistics sit with 40 per cent of graduates failing to get graduate-calibre posts more than two years after leaving education. In the final quarter of 2011, the unemployment rate for new graduates stood at 18.9 per cent. With one in every five new graduates facing unemployment, it is clear that students need to be equipped with more than just a respectable degree to secure success in the job market.

Nick Baker urged students to understand “the world doesn’t owe you a living”. He described “thinking I was one of the top 10 per cent of the population” and how “there was nothing more degrading

coming out of university waving that piece of paper and nobody taking any notice.” His desire to return to the University came from wanting to motivate first year students to realize that success in the world of work was not simply dependent upon fulfilling the requirements of your course. He described leaving university feeling “unprepared for the big world and not knowing how to apply what I had learnt”. He explained “I had never been taught to see the other side of the argument, and see that they have a point too […] biologists never spoke with mathematicians and physicists with drama students”.

To a certain degree this remains a true observation of academic life at the University. The varying colleges rarely share knowledge. There is a sense of competitiveness between departments as a result of limited funding to be divided between disciplines. However, this is a phenomenon that the Grand Challenges project seeks to override. As Nick Baker suggests “the solution to the world’s problems are multidisciplinary and Grand Challenges allows you to go through intellectual processes to see how they works in real world dilemmas”.

The dilemmas are run by world leading academics who are experts in their field.

The Vice-Chancellor Sir Steve Smith is heading up the dilemma ‘Human Security vs Power Politics’ while Deputy Vice-Chancellor Janice Kay, Professor of Cognitive Neuropsychology, is leading the discussion on growing old. Students have the opportunity to have contact with members of University staff who normally are outside of the classroom offering a unique learning environment.

Nick Baker expressed, “there is no other way you will meet leading academics in those fields and you are finding it out right from the horse’s mouth”.

The Grand Challenges project is an innovative scheme that will challenge not only the first year students who select a dilemma, but also the academics who will teach the course. Interdisciplinary collaboration is a growing part of University life, and the successes of the Grand Challenges project will be found in people’s willingness to adopt a more inclusive perspective. The project is unchartered water for the University, and students are urged to try to avoid going for the dilemma that immediately jumps out at them. In the words of Baker “only dead fish go with the flow”.

Fighting the wrong war

Arthur der Weduwen looks at the invasion of Afghanistan and argues why the crisis in Syria is far worthier of our attention THE 21st century is, like every previous century, marred by war. The invasion of Afghanistan in 2001 by an Americanled coalition force has led to a decade of guerilla warfare which has spilled over into neighbouring Pakistan. As forces are currently withdrawing and handing over to the Afghani security forces, casualties are rising, especially in light of numerous ‘green on blue’ attacks by rogue Afghan soldiers. More than 14,000 coalition forces have been killed in the last eleven years of fighting.

Now turn to a younger conflict. The civil war in Syria, one of the offspring of the Arab Spring of 2011, has at this moment claimed more than 30,000 lives, a figure rising daily.

There are great differences between these two wars. One that stands out is the measure of Western intervention. Over 100,000 soldiers were deployed in Afghanistan (of which almost 70,000 were of the United States of America) as part of the coalition, whilst the extent of intervention in Syria extends to Saudi Arabian weapons, Turkish border clashes, and several foreign mujahedeen.

“The presence of the West in Afghanistan has hurt its reputation, and although the Taliban were ousted from power, the current situation is not much better” I am of the belief that the Western coalition is involved in the wrong war.

There are several reasons why Afghanistan should not have been invaded in 2001, and why Syrian rebels should be actively aided in toppling the Assad-regime instead.

Modern invading forces have never

had much success in Afghanistan. The British, in the First Anglo-Afghan war, learnt that the mountainous territory, the aggressive tribes, and the lack of centralised power in Afghanistan were forces to be reckoned with. During the retreat from Kabul in 1842, more than 16,000 soldiers and camp followers were slaughtered, whilst only one Brit made it back to Jalalabad, then British governed.

Similarly, the Russians experienced the hostility of Afghanistan’s territory and people in 1979, during the Soviet occupation.

Afghanistan’s hostile environment has provided insurgents with opportune moments to strike, re-group, and strike again at Western forces. Although Kabul may be in control of Hamid Karzai’s doubtful government, large swaths of countryside spin in and out of control of various factions hostile of the central government and its allies.

The territory surrounding Afghanistan has also provided insurgents with a means to infiltrate and destroy the country from within. In general, the presence of the West in Afghanistan has hurt its reputation, and although the Taliban were ousted from power, the current situation is not much better. Without the unwavering support of neighbouring countries, like Pakistan and Iran, it will be difficult for Western forces to follow an effective policy of democratisation.

Syria, on the other hand, is a completely different case. Its strategic power lies centralised in several large cities, such as Damascus, Aleppo, Homs, and Hamah. It is surrounded by countries hostile to its regime – Turkey, Israel, and Saudi Arabia – and the actual mass of the country consist mainly of desert.

Syria, as a state, is a relatively new concept, having gained independence from France in 1946. It has been ruled by the

Ba’ath party since 1970, and as the current civil war has portrayed, the regime has many opponents.

Disregarding the ideologies of the opponents of Assad, the West should take the Syrian civil war as an opportune moment to improve its standing in the area. The overthrow of Gaddafi in Libya showed how foreign intervention could change the fortunes of the rebel movement, and this would also apply to Syria.

“The overthrow of Gaddafi in Libya showed how foreign intervention could change the fortunes intervention could changes the fortunes of a rebel movement” If the West aligns itself with a struggle that is characterised as a struggle for human rights, freedom, and a civil government, then its standing with the Middle East will improve. It will have a chance to repair diplomatic damage done by the invasion of Iraq and its continuous support for Israel against the Palestinian people.

Naturally, Russia and China have vetoed numerous proposals regarding intervention in Syria. A risk has to be taken with intervention. In all truthfulness, the Assad regime has lost its political legitimacy, and has therefore presented the West with an ideal opportunity to help the majority of the Syrian people and improve its own reputation with the various countries of the region.

The decade-long conflict in Afghanistan has done as much harm as good. In place, an intervention in Syria would be a realistic, and easier, step forward for human rights, democracy, and freedom, concepts that the West continues to preach.

FESTIVAL OF LIGHTS - DIWALI Come and be transported into India’s diverse cultures. The lemon grove will showcase states of India With dance, food, fireworks and lots of activities.

Details about the event: Date: 17th November 2012 Time: 1430 - 1900 hours Venue: Lemon Grove Entry: FREE

www.exeter.ac.uk/internationalstudents/eventsoncampus/diwali/

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Exeposé

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LIFESTYLe

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Poppycock to poppy fashion James Crouch, Features Editor argues why the Rememberance Day Poppy has lost its appeal OVER the past few weeks, the little red poppy has sprouted on almost every coat lapel, shirt pocket or blouse front up and down this country. We now live in an era without deference, we no longer judge the man on the street if he doesn’t wear one. But there are rules when you live in the public eye, the ‘must’ is still there.

Perhaps in this scenario, where most celebrities are more likely to be laughable than dutiful, it’s not too surprising that they run away with the idea and try to make it something of their own, so they’re not shown wearing something that ‘just isn’t my colour’. And the Daily Mail gossip column gets a few extra hits.

Unsurprisingly, X Factor takes the top prize for ostentatious Remembrance Day fashion, with bejewelled broaches and beaming rings. The most well-known item is probably Simon Cowell’s broach, at £60.

“I doubt they’ve given the Poppy Appeal a second thought” Regardless of being right or wrong, these things look ghastly. Rather than the usual bright red, the colour is dimmed to the jewel’s darker shade, making it a rather boring maroon. Far from shining, it sits like a dark lump on the chest.

It resembles a poppy, having been set alight, the flame doused just before being charred beyond recognition. A fashion

faux pas and not a fashionable reworking of an idea either. Add to this that many of the other jewel-like accessories barely even look like poppies. The hair slides look like roses with holly stuck to them, while the extravagant sounding Enamel Crystal Brooch resembles more a tiny crab on a piece of red pasta than a symbol of remembrance. They don’t even seem to look any better when worn; Kitty Brucknells’s brooch on the X Factor last year looked like she had a giant wilting mushroom sprouting from her armpit.

Returning to the right or wrong, the reason why regular poppies look like they’re made of material cheaper than loo paper is because they are. The point being that as much money goes to the Poppy Appeal as possible because it’s made on the cheap. Whereas only 10 per cent of the profits from these fashionable brooches goes to the Poppy Appeal.

Many of us will probably give more to the cause than Simon Cowell simply by virtue of losing our poppy several times and needing to replace it. At least on the plus side, losing a £60 ‘accessory’ is probably something you won’t do in a hurry.

Some veterans, such as Falklands survivor Simon Weston, drops the orthodox line on poppies. He’s prepared for people to take it and make it their own, providing the message gets out and we still in some way keep up with the tradition. But I’ve got to be honest, who really doubts that not much is going on upstairs with half of these B-list celebrities? I

doubt they’ve given the Poppy Appeal a second thought outside of their PR man or their producer tapping them on the shoulder come 1 November. The fact that they choose these costly and hideous growths on their outfits is tantamount to how little they could really care.

What would be so much better is to donate and get a simple poppy. And every time it looks a bit worn and shoddy, donated again and get another one.

In this way, you donate as much as you want and all goes directly to the veterans.

This way everyone’s happy. They look presentable (or at least their poppy will do), the veterans get their money, and for everyone in between, the greatest communal symbol of remembrance in human history isn’t reduced to something ugly and vulgar.

Picture by Ellie-Taylor Roberts

It’s a foxy business

Fashion entrepeneur, Jonathan Mills, shares how he launched his own fashion brand, Mammal Swag, and the thinking behind his fashion-savvy animals IT’S not often I spend my holidays launching fashion brands, but I consider this summer to be the exception. Mammal Swag - an independent clothing label revolving around fashion-conscious animals - is a venture I started this year.

I have always thought that, whilst a tee is a very straightforward garment, it can communicate a lot. For this reason, the brand very much grew out of the designs. Featuring various animals characterized in recognizable get-ups, there are endless possible compositions; there can be a character with whom everyone can identify. In designing the range I’ve always felt this element of choice gives the collection a certain edge, where picking out your Mammal Swag makes shopping all the more interesting.

Though the range launched with multiple designs, I hoped that the continuity of design would become the signature of Mammal Swag. In this way, Shepard Fairey was a huge inspiration to the designs; his creation of a street-art effigy brought into the Obey fashion line was something I’ve sought to emulate.

With these characters I’d scribbled down during a sequence of underwhelming lectures already in mind, I started by polishing up my designs into digital illustrations, making sure to ensure the characteristic hand-drawn quality remained. At this point, I didn’t really have an obvious business strategy and was really just keen to get my t-shirts seen. For Mammal Swag, the t-shirts came before the business so the enterprise has been

very much a learning-by-doing process.

Though having some previous knowledge of the business helps, studying Economics only prepared me so far. But personally, not knowing what to expect was what I found exciting.

A week ago, Mammal Swag made its debut on campus in the Forum. My first time running a stall, I couldn’t have anticipated how many sales I would make on the day, but luckily my stab-in-thedark projections turned out to be more or less correct. Bringing my brand into the Exeter student scene has been the most exciting part of the Mammal Swag journey so far, and I like to think the brand now officially resides in Devon.

But where next for Mammal Swag?

With early interest expressed in the label, I’m now hoping to build on this through local sponsors and little south-westerly the hype already garnered. Gradually, I hope to switch the focus of my reinvestment towards marketing and promotions.

In terms of the designs, you can expect to see new characters in themed spin-off ranges: like an international range, for instance, featuring a squirrel in a kimono or a giraffe in a dashiki.

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lifestyle

12 NOVEMBER 2012 |

www.exepose.ex.ac.uk

Is Movember worth shaving?

Exeposé Lifestyle debates: is Movember an act of charity or an attention-seeking stunt?

Illustration: Ellie Taylor-Roberts

KATIE GARRETT MOVEMBER is once again with us, and we have finally reached the age where the majority of our peers should be ready and able to grow a moustache. The idea started in Australia in 2004 and has become an annual phenomenon ever since, with men around the globe attempting to sprout and sport the best facial decoration that they can. By doing so, they aim to raise awareness for men’s health, particularly prostate and testicular cancer.

to have been diagnosed. Last year 854,000 worldwide Movember participants raised £79.3 million for the campaign, making the total funds raised since 2004 a whopping £184 million.

With hundreds of looks ranging from the simple ‘tache to the handlebar a la Mr Monopoly, the horseshoe a la Axl Rose, the toothbrush a la Charlie Chaplin, the Fu Manchu a “Last year Movember la…Fu Manchu, there’s something for everyone. Even those that can’t raised £79.3 million for physically join in, be it women or the the campaign ” prepubescent, won’t struggle to find a fake moustache on Amazon, in Urban As well as raising the important Outfitters, or even in the newly opened issue of men’s health, the month-long John Lewis.

And it may not be the most apevent also raises money to support programmes run directly by Movem- pealing month for the girls and women out there; upper-lip fluff is more ber, which is listed in the Top often than not highly unat100 Non Governmental Ortractive, and kissing a ganization’s in the world, Read more bristly face isn’t particuas well as contributing of our Movember larly comfortable, but largely to the NGO’s girls are encouraged health partners: Prosfeatures online at to support the guys in tate Cancer UK and the exepose.com any way possible, be it Institution of Cancer Rewith donations, spreadsearch. Some of the funds ing awareness, or generraised go towards educatally supporting the admirable ing men about the health risks they face, and how they can change men that do take part. In any case, for their habits and attitudes in order to the next two months we will have our detect symptoms early on. Other con- turn… You may want to look into Detributions are used directly to provide cembrow and Fanuary (unfortunately treatment for those unfortunate enough very real things)… Or you may not…

Tweets of the week Follow @exeposelstyle to see your tweets in Lifestyle!

EXETER GUILD @ExeterGuild Say no to the Council’s plan to switch off Exeter’s streetlights! #exetersos JAMES CROUCH @TheBig_JC “This colander doesn’t drain very well” No James, it drains fine, you have the tap on. #facepalm LUCY HERRING @LucyHerring93 Got chased by a badger last night #onlyinexeter

“Can anything that raises awareness really be that bad?”

The controversy, towards something that supports such a valuable cause that it should not be in any way controversial, is that the men who choose to take part in this somewhat unattractive month may only be doing so for attention seeking purposes, as opposed to actually acting as a billboard for men’s health. The cynical criticism that can be found on forums and in content columns webwide accuses men of forgetting the real reason behind Movember, but can anything that raises awareness really be that bad? Even if the guy sporting the ‘tache isn’t doing so with the best intentions, the presence of his upper-lip warmer can still spark up conversations between passers-by and observers, which ultimately does raise awareness for a subject which is often skirted around by men. Statistics show that 82 per cent of people learnt about Movember through word of mouth, and 91 per cent of people taking part in the campaign spent time thinking about improving their general health.

Research shows that Movember really is making a difference.

Exeposé

SCOTT JENKINS @MeltingMeteor In ten years Nicki Minaj will reveal the results of her genius social experiment and the whole world will be appalled at its idiocy.

KATE GRAY @_hownottodraw Why does Morrisons always smell like old people and gravy? #itsnoteveninthenorth HANNAH PATRICK @hannahswonders Just had a rather philosophical discussion about whether peanut butter is in fact a butter.

IMOGEN ROSSI@imogeneugenia In the library all day on a Sunday, defying the sabbath.

CIARA LONG EVEN as a female student who finds moustaches inherently unattractive, I have to admit that Movember is, in reality, a great idea. Sculpt your facial hair for one month of the year in order to raise awareness, and hopefully some funds, for Cancer Research and Prostate Cancer UK. Women have the Moonwalk to raise awareness for breast cancer, so why shouldn’t men have a specific way to raise money for their own gender-specific cancer?

Quickly expanding as an established charity, Movember is growing in the number of participants and the funds it raises every year. In 2011, it ran in 14 countries with exactly 854,288 participants, and raised £79.3 million for its causes, which is a substantial increase on the previous years.

When I was back at school, the male Sixth Form teachers decided that Movember was a good idea. They, like many other men in the month formerly known as November, grew ridiculous moustaches and were slightly ridiculed, but on the whole raised a fairly substantial amount from admiring students and various parents’ evenings. And with 88 per cent of the money raised by Movember going directly to its charities, who can really

complain? Well, that would be me.

Out of the millions of men who decide to grow Movember moustaches, only 854, 288 of them actually did it to raise any money for the charity.

Yes, there’s the ‘raising awareness’ aspect as well, and of course that’s important. But out of the number of absurd, faint and fluffy lines that seem to appear above the upper lip of the males on campus during this month, how many people actually do it for those reasons? For some reason, at least half of my male acquaintances insist resolutely on growing a ‘moustache’ (yeah, right) during Movember. I have one friend who seemed to actually remember the point of the month. He grew a handlebar moustache and actually bothered to raise some money, rather than futilely attempting to assert his masculinity, which is the only reason that ‘tache growing even seems to occur at this university.

So, I guess what I’m really saying is this – boys, if you’re going to grow a moustache for Movember, think about it first. Can you grow something more substantial than a fuzzy upper-lip? Yes? Then grow one of the many varieties of silly moustache available to you (horseshoe, chevron, pencil, to name a few), and set up a sponsor page. Do your part to raise awareness, not because you feel some overarching need to demonstrate your masculinity to your peers.

TOBY CRADDOCK @TobiasCraddock Using the Timepiece hand dryers to preen your quiff after a rainy walk from Vic St #exeteruniproblems JON JENNER @JonJenner Just watched a man cycle up queens drive. Never before have I seen a more profound example of mankind telling gravity to fuck off.

BETHAN ROBERTS @bethanaroberts Girl on the train reluctant to let me sit in the seat next to her because she’d reserved it for her lacrosse racket #exeter HUGH BLACKSTAFFE@hugheyb The council want to shut down Exeter’s street lights. Help stop this by signing up to the #exetersos campaign!!

JESSICA PETERS @jesspeters93 Hiding dirty dishes from the cleaner in my bathroom. Student life has officially begun.

WILL BATEMAN @thewillbateman The bowl cut is obviously back in fashion, saw three guys in Exeter today that looked like Coconut Head from the show Ned’s Declassified.

ANNE-MARIE CLIFFORD @ammersc Sitting in the study room eating the crunchiest apple #everyonehatesme

Exeposé

| WEEK EIGHT

How to survive... your social life Lifestyle’s columnist, Kate Gray, points out the worst ways way to lose friends and alienate people THERE are more than 15,000 students at Exeter University. Chances are, at least one of them has got to be into the same niche stuff you are - knitting scale models of WWII aeroplanes, that band that sings songs exclusively about houmous, posting pictures of cats with bread on their faces - you name it, it exists, and there’s probably some freak out there who shares your passion for re-enacting Shakespeare with finger puppets and making tiny raincoats for dormice.

“Gossip at university spreads like the clap at an orgy”

In that respect, you’ll never struggle for friends, which at university is a term meaning people you can bully into going to Arena and/or who will lend you their printing credits five minutes before a deadline. The difficulties surrounding having a social life are different than they were at school, where your friendships were built around whether or not your shoes had flashing lights in, or what your favourite flavour of Hula Hoops was. Once you come to university, shit gets real; friendships can be made or broken based on things as important as whether or not you enjoy drinking dirty

lifestyle

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pints through a penis-shaped straw, or the complicated equation of adding up how many marks more you got in an essay and multiplying it by the amount of time you bragged about it and then getting punched in the face an equal amount of times.

A difficult dynamic to deal with at first is living with your friends. Be prepared for it to go one of two ways: either you’ll end up living with them for two years, either out of genuine friendship or, more likely, because you’re all lazy bastards; alternatively, you’ll end up wanting to garrotte them with their own dental floss because they do the washing up about as often as you start a world war by marching into the Bolivian embassy with a colander on your head spouting racist filth about their mothers while wiping your bare arse on their burning flag. I assume that’s not terribly often.

The issue is, kids, that unless you went to boarding school (hello, 50 per cent of Exeter) you may not have ever realised that sometimes, other people are about as house-proud as a dung beetle that brings his work home. The best you can do is not let their questionable hygiene and terrible music taste at 2am affect how much you like them as a friend.

An issue that I never came across at school was that of relationships within

the group; more specifically, that of sharing lovers. Now, I’m not going to say that it was entirely down to me having gone to an all girls’ school, but I’m sure that was a factor. You will quickly learn that gossip at university spreads like the clap at an orgy, so if you don’t want your nearest and dearest finding out not only who you did the nasty with, in what position and what time, the best course of action is perhaps not to do it in the first place. While it’s quite true that university seems to be a breeding ground for this sort of behaviour, it’s not too hard to find a suitable conquest that doesn’t come with the epithet “my best friend’s ex-boyfriend”.

You’ll inevitably make friends while at university that will stick around for the rest of your life, like a particularly stubborn rash that you grow to be quite fond of. Don’t miss the social opportunities while you’re here; say yes to invitations unless they involve backstreet organ transplants (we’ve got to be careful), and network more than a prostitute with delusions of grandeur. I suppose I should add a disclaimer: try to get some work done too, after all, you’re not paying [insert large sum of money here] just to socialise, but if you make friends with the right people, it may not matter that you got a 2.2 in Equestrian Psychology after all...

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Sweet bakes Pudsey Cupcakes MERIEL ROYAL

These cute Pudsey cup cakes are just as sweet as they look (and they’ll make you look charitable at the same time) Makes 12 Takes 40 mins INGREDIENTS 120g (4oz) soft butter/ Stork 120g (4oz) caster sugar 120g (4oz) selfraising flour 2 eggs 1 tbsp baking powder 140g/5oz unsalted butter 280g/10oz icing sugar 1-2 tbsp milk A few drops vanilla essence A few drops yellow food colouring Ready-to-roll white icing A handful of Honey Cheerios Black writing icing Small colourful sweets (mini smarties, or Silver Spoon Coloured Choco Beans)

METHOD 1. Cream together the soft butter and caster sugar until smooth 2. Beat in the eggs until light and airy 3. Gradually fold in the flour and baking powder 4. Bake in a pre-heated oven at 180°C (gas mark 4) for 15-20 minutes, until light brown and springy to the touch 5. To decorate, use a fork to mash up the unsalted butter until soft, gradually sifting in the icing sugar 6. Add some more icing sugar if it’s too runny, more milk if too thick 7. Add the vanilla essence and yellow colouring until it’s a bright yellow Pudsey colour 8. Apply to the cakes with a palette knife (or back of a spoon) until smooth 9. Cut out a curved strip of white icing for the eye patch, and stick Honey Cheerios either side for ears 10. Draw on a nose, eyes, eyebrows and a mouth with black writing icing 11. Stick the sweets onto the eyepatch for the spots.

Illustration: Emily Lunn

Blind Date: When Caitlin McNerney met Callum McLean What Caitlin thought of Callum What were you hoping for before your date?

I was just hoping that I wouldn’t be walking home at 8:30pm thinking: ‘Well, that was awkward’.

What were your first impressions?

To be completely honest, I somehow found Callum on Facebook before the date. But the first impression I got from his profile was ‘Shit, this guy is way too cool for me’.

What did you talk about?

The conversation topics went from our weird childhood phases to people burning down tents in festivals.

Was there any romantic tension?

I didn’t exactly arrive at Bill’s on the prowl. Maybe next time I’ll put my seduction techniques to use and bring my blind date home with me, but this time I was just there to get to know a guy and have a good evening.

What was the best thing about him?

Callum has this cool confidence about him that put me at ease straight away.

He’s also very conversational and has a really nice smile as well.

What was the worst thing about him?

His hat. Poor choice.

By the end of the night was there a hug, kiss or something more?

Well there was a hug at the beginning and a hug at the end.

What mark would you give the evening out of ten?

9. Giving it a 10 would probably make me seem like I’m about to propose. It was the first dinner date I had ever been on and I had really a great evening.

Would you meet up with him again?

I think I just might.

What Callum thought of Caitlin What were you hoping for before your date?

A free meal, a chance to posture as a casual, civilised independent, and appear desperate in a paper widely circulated amongst my peers.

What were your first impressions?

Caitlin was immediately dynamic, intelligent and cheerful - she had an attractive, instantly disarming smile and left no time for awkward introductions.

What did you talk about?

Family, friends, uni, this write-up what do you expect? Funnily enough I didn’t bring out the dead baby jokes and Poststructuralist theory. We never ran out of things to talk about - conversation was easy, fluid and amusing but safe.

Was there any romantic tension?

If I swooned over girls within hours of meeting them I probably wouldn’t be single. But a creeping niggle at the back of the mind always arises

towards the end of the date where you consider how well it’s going - it went well, and that realisation (and a bottle of wine) made us a bit wobblier towards the end.

What was the best thing about her?

She was constantly engaging, nothing seemed to bore her (despite my best efforts). It was actually quite hard to steer the conversation back to her, but when we did she proved calmly modest about her many achievements in drama and dance, amongst other things. She had a wicked accent too.

What was the worst thing about her?

Nothing I can recall - worst part of the date was forgetting to keep the receipt for Exeposé, so scuppering the free meal plan. She thought I was edgy, which was funny.

Was there a hug, kiss or something more?

Well I wouldn’t kiss and tell.

Mostly because we didn’t. Strictly hugs.

If you want to go on a blind date then email lifestyle@exepose. com

What would you give your evening out of 10?

8. Maybe a Pitchfork style 8.3.

Would you meet up with them again?

Probably yes

20

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Hook: bassline and thinker

Adam Sumnall talks to Peter Hook , co-founder of Joy Division and New Order, about resurrecting the influential group’s back catalogue, clashes with former bandmates and Take Me Out

Interview

Mon 19th Nov DJ Fresh Live Lemmy Tues 20th Nov Peter Hook and The Light Phoenix Wed 21st Nov Clock Opera Thekla, Bristol Wed 21st Nov Beats & Bass science special Cavern Fri 23rd Nov Jack Beats Phoenix Fri 23rd Nov Purity Ring Thekla, Bristol Tues 27th Nov Rodrigo y Gabriela Colston Hall, Bristol

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Fri 30th Nov Professor Green Great Hall Exeposé Music is selling tickets at a reduced price of £15. Come to our office in Devonshire House on Tuesday 12-2pm for yours Mon 3rd Nov James Blake Thekla, Bristol Sun 9th Dec Gentleman’s Dub Club Cavern Fri 14th Dec The xx Colston Hall, Bristol

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PETER HOOK’S career has never failed to make headlines. It seems that co-founding Joy Division, scoring the UK’s biggest selling 12” ever and owning Manchester’s infamous Hacienda dive wasn’t enough to fill Hooky’s CV. So in 2010 he made the bold decision to tour the Joy Division LPs Closer and Unknown Pleasures with his new band, The Light. “What happened was it was the 30th anniversary of Ian Curtis’ life, as I prefer to call it, and I was involved in doing an exhibition and tribute gig”, recalls Hooky over a shaky Skype connection, “It fell through, so I thought ‘why the fuck do we not celebrate anything to do with Joy Division? Sod it, I’ll do my own celebration’. I only intended

“I had a lot of internet terrorists singling me out” Montevideo - Castles (Tom Furse [The Horrors] Remix) facebook.com/MontevideoMusic New Belgian EMI signings brought to slow burning light in true Horrors style liquid crescendo.

to do one gig, but I got inundated with offers to do it all around the world.” And now, on 20 November, even Exeter (yes, you heard right) will get to experience Joy Division live the second time round.

As he points out gently, and as any Joy Division fan will already know, the “trials and tribulations that we [the band] went through with Ian Curtis were the only thing that blighted Joy Divi-

sion”. For all of us who weren’t there, Joy Division and New Order before we can only imagine what memories me”, defends Hooky, “But for some unknown reason, which they’ve never playing the albums again would answered in two and a half resurface. Hooky, however, years, it was a problem with over 30 years to let Hear the rest for them.” the dust settle, seems of this interview Neither was it just to have relished the opportunity: “The and much more on Sumner and Morris thing is that playing Monday 6-7 by tuning who initially disagreed. With Joy Dithe music has been into facebook.com/ vision now quoted wonderful, because XmediaMusic by many (Arcade Fire in a selfish way, it was and White Lies to name just great to get it back.”

Show a few) as a major influStill, he adds, “The only ence, Peter received an amount thing it did bring back was the hopelessness, frustration and the fear of unwanted “keyboard attention” from that you felt when you were trying to those who were worried that his decihelp Ian deal with his epilepsy and also sion could taint the band’s revered legathe guilt you felt afterwards because cy. “I had a lot of Internet terrorists sinyou couldn’t stop him from departing gling me out, especially at the start” he concedes, “but as we played it more and this mortal coil, shall we say.”

Being no stranger to controversy, more, we won them over. I was a little Hook’s decision to play the LPs has bit humbled in a way to see how popular brought on an incendiary press war with Joy Division still are. Ten years ago, 15 his Joy Division band mates Bernard years ago, they weren’t anywhere near Sumner and Stephen Morris, with whom as influential as they are now.”

Never one to place all of his eggs he also is engaged in a long standing legal altercation with over the use of the in one basket, Hook released his new New Order trademark. “I don’t really book Unknown Pleasures: Inside Joy understand why they were surprised I Division on 27 September, which docudidn’t contact them, but it was an odd ments the gritty, no holds barred realone because they had actually played ity of life with Ian Curtis and co. “I was

a little bit worried”, he admitted when asked about potentially breaking the aura of mystery surrounding the band, “but I got sick of reading books on Joy Division by people who weren’t there.”

It seems clear that Peter Hook has made a bold statement with this book, which marks a turning point in the ubiquitous myth of Ian Curtis and Joy Division.

“I got sick of reading books on Joy Division by people who weren’t there” So when - in a potential Exeposé exclusive - the interview takes an unexpected turn into the ambiguous territory of TV game-show Take Me Out, it’s hard to know what to make of it. “You know when the guy has got all the girls lined up, then his mate comes on and says, ‘oh he eats his dinner in the bath, he’s a dirty bastard and his feet smell’, and the lights go out? It was sort of like that; I was a little bit worried it would be ‘no likey, no lighty”.

Peter Hook and The Light play Exeter Phoenix on 20 November, Unknown Pleasures: Inside Joy Division is out now.

Exeposé

| WEEK EIGHT

MUSIC

www.exepose.ex.ac.uk

21

Judge Dreadlock: Newton Faulkner plays the Great Hall Vanessa Tracey caught the seminal ginger, Rastafarian troubador in the Great Hall and couldn’t move for couples “RIGHT, now see if you get this one,” he said with a wry grin, swinging back a red dreadlock and launching into a Kermit the frog impression. Definitely not the typically wild Friday night I was expecting before I discovered that the gig had been pushed back a week due to a bout of laryngitis, and that there were still some remaining tickets. Yet you couldn’t help but be charmed by Newton’s mellow harmonies, blasé attitude and old lady anecdotes, all told in a very well-spoken voice which didn’t quite fit with his appearance.

“He played the kind of music perfect for nights in under a blanket, consequently giving couples in the audience the perfect opportunity to rub each other”

His nonchalant air on stage perhaps explains why Newton has always been on the edge of the public eye, despite topping the album charts for the third time in July with Write It On Your Skin.

Even with a three year break, the album is filled with the same kind of inoffensive and non-boundary pushing songs as his other two. The kind which are perfect for nights in under a blanket, consequently giving couples in the audience (everybody) the perfect opportunity to rub each other all night and make others feel awkward.

With an acoustic act, it can be difficult to maintain an audience’s attention, especially since it was just him, four different guitars and a kick drum. But somehow, between sips of tea and guitar tuning, Newton had the crowd engrossed with his rhythmic guitar playing and his own syncopated accompaniment created by tapping and patting both the strings and body. I don’t think there was one part of the guitar that he didn’t use, and he even sang through the sound hole at one point. His earthy vocals were warming, and we all did a sufficient amount of swaying throughout which increased for the more well-known tracks like ‘I Need Something’ or Massive Attack’s ‘Teardrop’.

Admittedly, it was sometimes difficult to distinguish one song from the

next. However, Newton didn’t just stand and play his new stuff, but taught it to us by splitting the crowd into three and

“Between sips of tea, Newton had the crowd engrossed with his rhythmic playing and syncopated accompaniment” making each part sing a harmony. Yeah I know, a bit cheesy, but with the kind of tunes like ‘Clouds’ it worked really well and livened the atmosphere which was just on the verge of being too laidback.

Other highlights were ‘Long Shot’, the more upbeat ‘Brick by Brick’ and a surprising cover of Stevie Wonder’s ‘Superstition’.

I was assuming that the concert would end with ‘Dream Catch Me’ seeing as it’s the one we were all waiting for. But instead he played ‘Write It On Your Skin’, which was just as well received, and after that we confusedly sang along to his one man rendition of ‘Bohemi-

Ram-Nam Style: The circle of Rameoke hell

Hugh Dignan waxes theological on the hysterical warbling of drunken freshers on Friday nights at The Ram

Photo: Joshua Irwandi

RAMEOKE: Where stars are born and dignity lost. Where that fine line between poor singing and crimes against humanity becomes blurred. Where people who are much too drunk sing/ songvomit Journey. And sometimes they’re not even drunk.

And this Friday was no exception; what started as some friendly drinks at the Ram eventually led to a collective loss of faith in God’s decision to create human life, brain function battered into simply staring agape as that guy gets on stage again, and again, and again; virtually every performance devolving into some kind of sick, alcohol-fueled parody of the very concept of music.

All set to fucking ‘Uptown Girl’. Surely there’s some kind of circle of hell

“What started as some friendly drinks eventually led to a collective loss of faith in God’s decision to create human life” that’s just bad karaoke, Dante must have just blocked it out; you can only assume even the Renaissance had some kind of unholy ancestral precursor, this kind of evil is eternal.

Even when there is a rare glimpse of hope, like the sight of Bohemian Rhapsody on the song list or a performer who actually has functional vocal cords, all it does is remind you of the horror that surrounds you, hammered home as that old favourite gets up once more to drunkenly mumble something before vocalising a brain haemorrhage to some Elton John. It’s like in their drunken, perma-blurred state they reason (or attempt to) that if blindness gave Ray Charles and Ste-

love lives shouldn’t go to see him without a partner, you’ll be distracted by all the smooching and leave slightly more depressed than before.

an Rhapsody’. I decided not to think about it too much and overall felt quite humbled, wanting to nip down to the Firehouse with him for a chat.

Although those with emotionally complex

F*ck Da Policies Romney’s Kid Rock & Meatloaf fell flat to Obama’s Al Green and duet with BB King. Assuming musical taste equals political success, what would you like to see sung by politicians?

Anne Widdecombe doing Lil Wayne’s “Pussy, Money, Weed.”

Or as she likes to call it “Celibacy, Farthings, Oregano.”

BEN WINSOR

Perhaps Cameron and Osborne could do a nifty take on “Ni**as In Paris” - of course it would have to be “Old boys In Eton”, with such lines as “I spend so hard, tax man never gonna find me, yeah first he gotta find me, whats fifty grand to my expense account can you please remind me?”

BEN MURPHIE vie Wonder super-human talent maybe tone-deafness will too. They are wrong in that assumption.

But the weird thing is, the thing that makes me suspect some kind of sorcery, is that it’s kinda fun. A weekly

“Old favourites become vocalised brain haemorrhages” testament to the idea of ‘so bad it’s good’, Rameoke provides constant background amusement. Got nothing to say? Just turn round and laugh at the person eating the microphone. Cold rendered you too poorly to dance and drink too often equally awful music in

a club? Fear not, you can just go and thetical terrorists are into irony. I doubt watch music destroy itself onstage, they are though. Hypothetical terrorlocked in some kind of rhythm black ists are renowned for their seriousness hole. Feel a bit dead inside? Think no and absolute devotion, which is why a nail file is considered a dangerous one else relates to your misery? weapon on a plane.

Well then you probably So yeah, I’m not reshouldn’t be around alRead more ally sure if this is an cohol. But if you must reviews and endorsement or a then go get some good ol’ soul-nour- articles on the newly scathing criticism.

All I can say is, if ishment by watchlaunched you are that guy deing people sing as if, website and join the filing everyone else’s as one noted analyst community on ears you’re probably opined, they’re hoshaving a hell of a lot of tage victims, forced to Facebook fun; I’ve been there, group sing as some kind of meskareoke is awesome once your sage about the decadence of the West, possibly whilst singing ‘We body is 23 per cent alcohol, even UpDidn’t Start The Fire’ if these hypo- town Girl. *Shudder*

Exeposé

I’d like Romney to have a breakdown, take loads of cocaine and play ‘Murder The Government’ by NOFX. TOM OBERST

I’d like to see Chairman Mao sing The Beatles’ ‘Revolution’ as an ironic comeback to his opponents.

TOM BOND

Surely BoJo singing ‘Right Said Fred’ in his best Bernard Cribbins impression would instantly hit number one shortly before completely melting the internet through too many downloads.

LEAH DEVANEY

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Misfits: Series 4 Episode 1 Director: Nirpal Bhogal

Newsreel

Cast: Nathan Stewart Jarrett, Karla Crome E4, Sundays at 9pm

Nicholas Cage confirmed for Expendables 3 Nicholas Cage has joined the ramshackle crew of grizzled hardmen that make up the cast of the Expendables franchise. Sylvester Stallone confirmed Cage’s appointment via his Facebook page.

Harrison Ford open to Star Wars return Cinema icon Harrison Ford has said that he’d be open to appearing in the recently announced Star Wars Episode VII. Ford has previously called for Han Solo to be killed off.

Facing Mirrors brings transsexuality to Iranian cinema Despite transsexuality being legal in Iran since 1987, Facing Mirrors, the story of two women from different sides of the social spectrum, tackles one of the biggest taboos in Iranian society.

Benedict Cumberbatch to play Brian Epstein Sherlock star and all round good guy Benedict Cumberbatch has signed on to play Brian Epstein, the man who managed The Beatles, in a 60s biopic. The biopic will focus on Epstein himself, who, according to the producers, is “the man who threw the biggest party of the 60s but ultimately forgot to invite himself”.

IT’S fair to say that I wouldn’t invite Derren Brown to my house. It takes a special kind of bloke to persuade a total stranger that the world is ending. That is, special in two ways. If we assume that his experiment is real (which, to be honest, you kind of have to if you’re going to bother watching it), then Apocalypse is groundbreaking, compelling television.

It’s also exploitative, voyeuristic, and potentially damaging for the subject of the experiment in both psychological and physical terms.

The subject in question is, to be honest, a bit of an idiot; he has to be for Apocalypse to work, let alone to justify its premise. Stephen Brosnan, 21, is feckless and uninspired, struggling to hold down a job or even convince his family that he loves them. It would be harder to find someone more deserving of a sharp kick up the backside. Stephen has everything that he could ever need and more, yet he acts like he’s permanently mid-tantrum. At least initially, Brown’s ruthless manipulation of Stephen’s world is not only morally acceptable, but pretty much necessary.

Credit where it’s due, the mind magician’s adaptation of Stephen’s reality is immensely impressive. He hacks his phone, his computer, and his favourite radio station, using everything and everyone from Danny Wallace to the official NASA website to convince his hapless victim that Earth is at risk from a gigantic meteor strike. Stephen’s immersion into this world is total; gullible and bored, he almost welcomes the fact the world might end, as we see him discussing the potential strike with his beleaguered family. Brown does well to keep us onside during this part of the show, since it doesn’t take too forgiving a moral compass to think that persuading

a young man that his life’s about to end is anything other than callous.

“Apocalypse is groundbreaking, compelling television.

It’s also exploitative, voyeuristic and potentially damaging” On Stephen’s 22nd birthday, his brother whisks him away to a Killers’ concert. Long story short, the bus explodes, and Stephen wakes up in a dilapidated hospital bed, accompanied only by emergency broadcasts and his own shallow breathing. He’s suddenly a world away from his sofa and his iPhone, and he’s forced not only to look out for himself, but also his now missing family and the people he happens to meet along his journey through this new world he finds himself in.

I say “happens to meet” like his encounters are accidents. In Derren Brown shows, nothing is accidental. Each person he meets is a carefully constructed character, designed to bring out his best traits, be they leadership, decisionmaking, or even just compassion. To be fair to Stephen, he reacts

Amy Young assesses the latest recruits to Lord Sugar’s entrepeneurial circus a profit. Both project managers – for the boys Patrick and for the girls Ashleigh – had some level of experience in the clothing industry, so we may naively assume that they would know what they were doing. However, from the start it may have been possible to judge that Patrick’s team would lose, which they did by £122.99. After all, when they were deciding on their team name ‘Odyssey’ – though creative – it took them long

well to the pressure heaped upon him

by Brown’s mind-games. He consoles a child, accepts a desperate stranger, and says goodbye to one of his closest accomplices, allowing him to give up his life for the woman he loves. It’s oddly heartwarming to see Stephen change so much, and come out of the experiment a genuinely better person; the only problem is that it has literally taken the end of the world for Stephen to stop being such an interminable, dislikable moron.

So, was Brown’s show worth the hype? It is undoubtedly a fascinating experiment carried out with style and panache, and Stephen, unwillingly coerced and manipulated as he is, is genuinely enthralling as a protagonist. His reactions are more real and more visceral than any TV drama ever could be; unsurprising, really, because this is an apocalyptic imprint of real life. Theoretically, Brown tells us, this could happen to you. How would you react?

SINCE 2009, Misfits has been one of Britain’s best dramas, winning BAFTAs and launching Hollywood careers in the process. Five young offenders are bestowed with supernatural abilities by a freak thunderstorm, and across the first two series, the actors behind them each gave breathtaking performances. Misfits is very much a character-driven show.

The problem with series four is that only one of these original five characters is still in the programme. And quite frankly, it’s hard to give a toss about any of the others.

Curtis, the lone member of the original five, is rejoined by superschizophrenic Rudy and drug dealerturned-heartthrob Seth, as well as newcomers Jess and Finn. Neither of the new characters have interesting powers, so you’d be forgiven for hoping that they were somewhat interesting as people. They aren’t. Finn’s defining characteristic is that he’s a bit thick, and Jess is a bit lairy with a heart of gold.

Kelly, anyone?

When most of the cast are new or recent additions (Rudy’s only had one series bless him, and Seth never more than a bit-part) the emphasis should be on introducing characters with a bang.

Rudy had a stormer of a start in series three, and Jess and Finn should have had something similar here. Instead, the episode focused entirely on a plot that was limp in comparison with going back in time to kill Hitler and a serial killer that can control milk. It was also utterly transparent; within the first ten minutes it was clear what was going to happen, and the rest of the episode felt like waiting for them to get it over with.

It isn’t genuinely interesting until the last five minutes, with the introduction of an utter prick of a probation worker and some sort of depth to Finn’s character.

But after the first episode, “nice” Rudy is the only character worth watching… and if that doesn’t change soon, Misfits will be on the hunt for Nathan’s original power if they want to survive for a fifth series.

JON JENNER GAMES EDITOR

Screenshots: The Young Apprentice With The Young Apprentice you always have certain expectations: 12 teenagers with varied experience in business (most of whom will argue, make ridiculous entrepreneurial mistakes, and have one or more absurd catchphrases) will battle it out to win £25,000. And the first episode of Series Three entitled ‘Rags to Riches’ certainly did not disappoint.

The task was seemingly simple: take discarded clothes and then sell them for

23

enough to work out how to spell it.

Of course, when a team loses, one candidate must leave, and for the first, 11 A*s Maximilian Joseph Anthony Semasko Grodecki was fired, for being far too busy folding and re-folding stock. For a moment I was convinced that Patrick’s time was up, mainly due to his decision to leave the shopping centre where they were experiencing their busiest selling time of day, and

his abstract fashion sense which led to the expensive creation of a wetsuitkimono-dress. Yes. It’s exactly how it sounds. The girls also made their fair share of mistakes, the most memorable being when a concerned citizen had to approach them in a launderette as they were attempting to wash their chosen clothes and remarked “Don’t put them in there. That’s a dryer - that don’t wash”.

This first episode was no different from all the other The Young Apprentice episodes, or episodes from The Apprentice adult series for that matter.

But this doesn’t matter. We enjoy

watching budding entrepreneurs battle for supremacy within the teams, and the winning team smiling and laughing on their treat, whilst the losing team sit in the barren white-walled cafe, clutching their cups of tea and slowly starting to play ‘the blame game’, which then escalates into an all-out war in the boardroom.

Next week, the teams must produce a cookery book. The preview shows more of the same, and it concludes with Lord Sugar remarking with a trademark pun “A disaster, no? A recipe for disaster.”

Can’t wait.

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SCREEN

Silent Hill: Revelation Director: Michael J. Bassett Cast: Sean Bean (15) 94 mins LET’S get right down to brass tax here; Silent Hill Revelation is bad. Even for someone who’s a vague fan of the video games, the film can’t even qualify as a bad film that can be minimised by convincing yourself that ‘no, really, it’s okay overall and I’m glad I spent an exorbitant amount on the cinema ticket and popcorn.’ For one thing, the Silent Hill video game series has always been one made famous by its brooding atmosphere, subtle sense of dread, and introspective psychological horror, so the mind can only boggle at how many cricket bats to the head it must have taken to convince the creators that the above points would have been enhanced by 3D. Perhaps they thought that the onscreen verbiage would have been made more appetising if it was quite literally shoved in the upturned faces of the audience with the full power of stereoscopic vision.The plot, such as it is, revolves around a

12 NOVEMBER 2012 |

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girl, Heather, searching for her missing father in the titular town after he gets kidnapped. There’s more to it than that, but the whole film is such a bloated mess of indecipherable fan-wank that I was lost by the point it started mentioning demon child this and seal of maguffin

“A bloated mess of indecipherable fanwank” that. On top of this, the acting sucks, and I mean sucks hard, and when the film isn’t delving into verbose exposition it’s painfully slow, with Heather wandering from one monster encounter to the next.

On that note, though, the visuals aren’t bad, so if you like the art design of the games knock yourself out. Actually, no, scrap that; see Jacob’s Ladder – a film that inspired the games and ranks as one of my all-time greatest horror movies.

Yeah, do that instead.

JAMES DYSON

Exeposé

What I’ve Been Watching: My So-Called Life MY SO-CALLED LIFE should be mandatory viewing for every teenager (or just those who want to re-live the awkward confusion of being 15).

Comprised of just one 19 episode season that aired on MTV between 1994 and 1995, My So-Called Life stars Clare Danes as 15-yearold Angela Chase; a Pittsburg teen that, desperate to redefine and establish herself, dyes her hair, changes friends and attempts to discover her place in the world.

Part of the perfection of the show comes from its cast. A.J. Langer plays the

wild and self-destructive Rayanne, whilst Wilson Cruz plays Ricky, Rayanne’s bisexual best friend who is abused by his uncle.

A young Jared Leto plays Jordan Catalano, a nearilliterate guitarist that serves as Angela’s love interest, and Devon

Gummersall is Brian Krakow, Angela’s dorky neighbour who has a longstanding unrequited crush on her.

“The show, despite being over fifteen years old, doesn’t feel dated” These characters aren’t polished, but this only adds to the sense of realism that is lacking from other teenage orientated series of the time – the exaggerated characters of Beverly Hills 90210, for example, are replaced by those who gets spots, have stupid arguments with their parents and discover the perfect guy isn’t so perfect.

The audience doesn’t align with certain characters because the episode dictates them to do so; you begin to relate to Angela and her friends because they speak and act like real teenagers.

Angela can be flippant and even selfcentred at times, but who wasn’t at 15?

The show, despite being over 15 years old, doesn’t feel dated, and is completely watchable for any new viewer in 2012. Yes the wardrobe is 90s-tastic, with plaid and scrunchies galore, but I would totally urge you to go with the feel of the show and fully emerge yourself in the wonderful world of My So-Called Life.

MEGAN FURBOROUGH

Private Peaceful Director: Pat O’ Connor Cast: Richard Griffiths, Jack O’Connell, Frances de la Tour (12) 100 mins MICHAEL MORPURGO’S critically acclaimed novel Private Peaceful is a favourite among young readers. But far from the hype surrounding Steven Spielberg’s tear-jerking adaptation of Morpurgo’s book War Horse earlier this year, Private Peaceful was scarcely advertised and shown in only a handful cinemas.

With part of it being filmed in my home town I really wanted to favour Private Peaceful over its big-budget animal-focused counterpart and, following a similar story, it was hard not to compare the two. But unlike Spielberg’s epic, Private Peaceful felt inescapably small scale. Its tiny cast made the idea that a world war was raging seem unrealistic and I found myself wondering what exactly the boy

soldiers were scared of; was there really a whole German army waiting across no-man’s land to attack the 10 or so men in their regiment?

The small cast could have provided the perfect way of focusing the horrors of war and making them more personal.

However, the sugary dialogue, not to mention the attempts at West Country accents, was often cringe-worthy. I spent more time asking ‘Did she REALLY just say that?’ than empathising with the characters.

Although probably in part due to my mother poking me each time a location she recognised came on the screen, I found Private Peaceful to be interesting but far from engrossing. Several of the film’s interesting characters, such as the aggressive Seargent (John Lynch), were unfortunately side-lined for the decidedly blander Peaceful brothers (Jack O’Connell and George MacKay).

I left the cinema disappointed and dry eyed (a far cry from the panda-eyed ruin that left War Horse).

EMMA HOLIFIELD

Rust and Bone Director: Jacques Audiard Cast: Marion Cotillard, Matthias Schoenaerts, Armand Verdure (15) 120 mins RUST AND BONE opens with Ali and his son Sam travelling south through France. Within seconds Matthias Schoenaerts’s astonishing performance reveals a catalogue of past misery behind his stoic exterior.

A lonely impoverished life, the care of a child he is wholly unsuited for, whatever catastrophe has put them on the run; these troubles hang heavy around Ali’s neck. The pair settle in his sister’s house and Ali begins a career of violence, going from bouncer, to guard, to boxer. The role of gruff, physical loner is hardly a new one but Schoenaerts plays it brilliantly, giving Ali a charitable and loyal heart.

This is most evident once he meets the resolute Stéphanie (Cotillard) for the second time after she has lost her

legs. He talks in his usual brusque manner, not through any disdain for Stéphanie’s condition but because he sees no reason why she should live differently or he should act differently, just because of her accident. He effortlessly drags her back into life and they grow closer, though Ali never quite realises just how important he has

“This is film-making with a sledgehammer, a powerful mounting barrage of crushing blows” been for her recovery. Their situations offer a critique of a life based around violence, with Stéphanie unable to understand why Ali would willingly put himself in danger. Now she has lost part of it, her body is such a precious thing that watching Ali take a beating simply for fun and money is baffling.

Aside from an odd and thankfully brief interlude where Stéphanie goes

a bit Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Rust and Bone is flawlessly paced, beautifully directed and brilliantly acted with the two leads developing an intriguing dynamic. The two hour runtime flies by without relying on bombast or histrionics, ending with a tense and terrifying climax that had the audience gasping. Audiard is masterful in his direction, throwing in flourishes like the stunning underwater and slomo sequences to create a film fully deserving of its win for Best Film at the London Film Festival.

This is filmmaking with a sledgehammer, a powerful, mounting barrage of crushing blows. By the end you will feel battered, bruised and profoundly moved, but most of all you will feel. Don’t run from this film because you fear it’s intimidating or depressing. Cinema is rarely this resonant, rarely this powerful or accomplished. Don’t run from it.

Embrace it.

TOM BOND BOOKS EDITOR

As Hot As... the hots and nots of this week’s film news GEORDIE SHORE - The fake-tanned simpletons are back. Gaz, James and the gang have returned to MTV, ready to guzzle vodka and creep on Geordie clubbers. We’re painfully unexcited.

Jabba the Hut

THE X FACTOR - The nation’s most grudging excuse for not going out is haemorrhaging viewers at an alarming rate. Last week’s episode had two million fewer viewers than its 2011 equivalent.

JOHN CUSACK - One time teen heartthrob and renowned liberal John Cusack is set to play Rush Limbaugh, the controversially conservative talk show host, in a new biopic. It’s not about the money...

BEN AFFLECK - Once a blockbuster whipping boy, Ben Affleck has finally found his feet, with Argo, his nervy Iranian hostage drama which won rave reviews at the BFI Film Festival.

SKYFALL - The newest addition to the Bond franchise took more money at the in its first week than any other film ever has in the UK. Starring Daniel Craig and Judi Dench, it took £37.2 million in its opening seven days.

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BOOKS

Books

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Books Playlist In honour of Remembrance Day we pick our ten most iconic war novels 1. Diary of a Young Girl

Written by Anne Frank whilst hiding in an Amsterdam house with her family and friends, this legendary book shows the way war affected the average person.

2. Birdsong

Sebastian Faulks’ literary epic spans a lifetime from WWI through to the 70s. It has achieved huge popularity, earning a TV adaptation and is one of the bestselling books of the last decade.

3. All Quiet on the Western Front

Written from the unfamiliar perspective of a group of German soldiers in WWI, Erich Maria Remarque’s novel is, in her own words, “neither an accusation nor a confession, and least of all an adventure, for death is not an adventure to those who stand face to face with it.”

4. Goodnight Mr Tom

Michelle Magorian‘s classic is one of the most loved war novels for children, the story of Willie Beech, a wartime evacuee, is both touching and harrowing, and will work it’s way into the heart of all ages.

5. A Woman in Berlin

Published in 1954, this anonymously published book is a harrowing account of a woman who lived in Berlin during the Battle of Berlin. It details her experiences as a rape victim during the Red Army’s occupation. A distressing but necessary read.

12 NOVEMBER 2012 |

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Exeposé

BOOKS EDITORS

Tom Bond & Emily Lunn books@exepose.com JOIN THE FACEBOOK GROUP Exeposé Books

Is the handwriting on the wall?

Ebooks and Kindles are replacing paperbacks, keyboards and touchscreens are replacing typewriters and handwriting. Kate Gray agrees that the ink is fading from our writing DEAREST Exeposé readers, It feels a bit too late to say that letter writing is dying. The thing is dead, buried and forgotten about, and those of you who still engage in the art might as well be trying to reanimate the corpse of Tolkien in the hope of getting him to write your English essay. Even 2,000 words solely describing in loving detail the every facet of a field has got to be better than your own dire efforts.

“Humans are intrinsically lazy and if we’re offered a choice between quill and keyboard, we will always pick the simpler option” The last time I sent anyone any form of written communication (let’s not count passive-aggressive Post-It notes on the fridge) was a postcard sent from Cornwall to Exeter. The only reason I did this was because Cornwall is still stuck in the Dark Ages, and thus not only has no Internet or phone signal, but I also had to heat up my own bath water by the fire and hunt my own food (who knew croissants were animals?). My point is that the only reason I resorted to handwritten missives was that Facebook

wasn’t available, and that’s a rather sad summary of the tech-driven society we’ve become.

One person I know that still indulges in epistles is my grandfather. However, his style of letter writing has still been somewhat affected by the modern age: his current modus operandi when writing to my family is to type it all out in an email, screen grab the email, print it off, and Tipp-Ex out the mistakes.

Part of me wants to explain all the things that are wrong with that series of events, but part of me thinks it’s quite entertaining. The part of me that is writing this article is going to be all pretentious and say that the whole thing really reflects how technology has just buggered up the tradition of letter writing, the same way that my grandfather’s IT ineptitude has buggered up his chances of having any of my family take his letters seriously.

Don’t get me wrong, I would love to be sitting in my room right now, scripting this article by candlelight in my finest cursive, but humans are intrinsically lazy and if we’re offered a choice between quill and keyboard, we will always pick the simpler option.

The paraphernalia of pens and papers is without doubt one of the coolest things to own, along with an engraved hip flask and a whisky collection, yet all of that has been cast aside for touchscreen typing and thumbs-only texting. I’m one of the only people I know that still uses a fountain pen, which frustrates me to no end .

wouldn’t you prefer to look like James Bond than some ink-stained twat chewing on a biro?

But even if I did buy enough ink to make a squid blush and reams of the finest papyrus, who would I write to? And more importantly, what would I say?

We aren’t still stuck in Jane Austen’s time, where letters were used in the same way whispered conversations over pints are used today - gossip, rumours and flirting.

“We don’t need to write letters, because we see most people who are important to us on a dayto-day basis” We don’t need to write letters, because we see most people who are important to us on a day-to-day basis, either in person or while scrolling through their embarrassing Facebook photos to see what they’re up to, and everything important that needs to be said has been said already. Relationships aren’t formed through a well-thought out letter, delicately scented and tied with a ribbon; they’re made through drunken encounters in Arena and awkward fumbling first dates. Is that such a bad thing?

Yours, Kate Gray

Liz Moore champions the personal touch of handwriting WE live in a technological age.

Throughout the developed world, you would be unlikely to find many who didn’t at least have access to a computer or a mobile. But with the advancement of electronics, including the rise of the internet, the Kindle and the iPad, it isn’t hard to see the end for all forms of print, with newspapers disappearing and bookshops slowly becoming obsolete.

This transition may take some time, but it’s certainly plausible.

“Knowing that someone has taken the time to write means that you’re far more likely to sit and read their words” First in the firing line of course, was the art of letter writing and handwritten scripts. It is a sad fact that people now spend far more time typing and texting in shorthand to one another, rather than actually sitting down and writing a thoughtful and truly personal document. There is something very special about receiving such a message. I for

one find it far more thrilling to receive a handwritten letter from my friend in Lancaster than a long-winded Facebook message. Knowing that someone has taken the time to write means that you’re far more likely to sit and read their words, rather than skimming over uniformed lines of text on a screen. It is a far more personal experience, and yet most envelopes that go through letter boxes each day are bills, deadlines and cold corporate correspondence.

Most university students, especially those doing humanities degrees will find themselves writing between 50 per cent and 90 per cent of their work on word processors, some even taking laptops to lectures to avoid writing. But what effect does this have on our standards?

For some, it simply means that time is saved, and hands only get cramped in exams, but for others it can have severe detrimental effects, like the loss of true language when returning to the pen (I was once informed by a teacher that one of their students had started to write “u” instead of “you” in their classwork, probably due to instant messaging) or autocorrect helping them to forget how to spell. The upsetting part is that most

will claim that this is just where the world is heading and there’s nothing we can do to stop it.

So what is the word from the world of books? Three recent releases have served to form tribute to what may be a sad and fond farewell to penmanship and the decline of paper usage: Philip Hensher’s The Missing Ink, which details the

“The beautiful phenomenon of human personality is encapsulated in an individual’s handwriting” rather beautiful phenomenon of human personality being encapsulated in an individual’s handwriting, using examples of influential authors; Ian Sansom’s Paper, a tribute to “the technology through which and with which we have made sense of the world”, discussing how it has formed the civilisation

we now know; and John O’Connell’s For the Love of Letters, in which he looks into the emotion and character that can be discovered in the intimacy of letter writing.

Perhaps these writers will allow the world to see what an incredible institution writing truly is. Maybe, just maybe, we can hang onto it just a little while longer.

Exeposé

| WEEK EIGHT

books

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Friends, writers, countrymen, lend me your pens Azad Nalbandian discovers November is not just the month for growing facial hair, but also for novel writing

NOVEMBER is a special month for literature aficionados. Every year since 1999, a few dedicated penpeople (from 21 newbies in the year of the event’s inception to 200,000 official participants in 2010), have sat themselves down with a writing implement, a cup of java, and an

“People commit themselves to writing with the relentless and single-minded dedication only the truly insane can achieve” idea, and committed themselves to running that idea into the ground for the entire month, with the relentless and single-

Maus Art Spiegelman ANNE FRANK but with cats and mice.

That is the simplest way to describe Maus, Art Spiegelman’s Pulitzer winning graphic novel. That, however, would be a disservice to a work that stands tall with that most famous victim in its power and emotion. A less simple description would be that it is a harrowing portrayal of the Holocaust, made bearable only through the use of seemingly simple symbolism like cats and mice, devolving the events into a manner the mind can comprehend whilst simultaneously giving a nod to Hitler’s comment that they are ‘a race, but they are not human’. Underneath the stereotypes and simplicity however is a tale that is

My Mother She Killed Me, My Father He Ate Me Ed. Kate Bernheimer IN a bid to escape the ever mounting reading list, I recently returned to my first literary love – fairy tales. My Mother She Killed Me... is an exciting and contemporary new collection of forty fairy tales from authors including Neil Gaiman and Ly d i a Millet.

minded dedication only the truly insane The answer is yes because, for so many people, NaNoWriMo offers real incencan achieve.

You might be asking yourself why. tive and opportunity to finally get in gear What sort of madman churns out 50,000 and “work on that novel” so many say they’re writing but never do. words in a month? That time limit The project, in fact, is so can be daunting, especially large, and so prolific, that when we stop to consider Follow @ that it’s about the same exeposebooks in 2012 alone, according to the official website, length as Brave New and tweet us after only four days, World or The Great your progress nearly 500,000 words Gatsby. Is it really posduring have already been writsible to push oneself so NaNoWriMo! ten. That’s ten novels! It hard and still create somedoesn’t seem like much, thing of high quality? but considering it’s only just The answer to that quesbegun, who knows where that figure tion is yes, and not just because a dedicated, concerted effort is what it takes to will be later on?

The great thing about NaNoWriMo is achieve real skill. After all, this is what artists do, day in, day out, not just for a that it isn’t picky about what participants month; they work religiously, and pro- do, being a legally recognised educaduce content, irrespective of the quality. tional charity. Any genre, any language, uncomfortably human.

It is often said that one cannot truly imagine the horrors of the Holocaust - Spiegelman has ran with this concept and his understated portrayal is so vivid, so stunningly bleak, so real that you do almost forget that this is a real tale of real

“Maus is so vivid, so stunningly bleak, that you almost forget this is a real tale of real people suffering real atrocities” people suffering real atrocities.

All it takes is a picture of Spiegelman’s father, whom the tale revolves around, and is related by, to bring the The collection is dedicated to Angela Carter, and the stories certainly follow the same kind of approach to presenting the tales in their original forms, but through the mouthpiece of a modern writer. The short stories weave new – and much darker - stories from scraps of existing folklore from around the world. This is the biggest strengths of the collection, as too often books of fairy tales rely heavily on Grimm and traditional English tales. Instead Russia and Japan feature dominantly, with the witch figure cropping up again and again in different disguises. Interestingly many of the writers focus on the story of the brothers turned into swans, with the youngest left with one wing when the spell is lifted.

The stories don’t shy away from the type of controversial content that failed t o make the

stark reality crashing down again and bring everything into a dizzyingly unsettling perspective. Again, its simplicity belies what is truly one of the most powerful pieces of literature I have ever read. Just as powerful however is how it handles the aftershock of the war, the narrative jumps between Spiegelman’s father’s story, relayed in authentically loose English without a shred of embellishment or lyricism in sight, and Art trying to coax it out of him, all the while haunted by the spectre of his dead mother and fretting over his simplification of his history. These aren’t the terms Art wants to portray his tale in; they’re just the only way he thinks he can. His father’s story is scarcely believable such is the drama, it’s almost Hollywood. But Hollywood is never this grounded, peering up from the Disney version. Murder, cannibalism, incest, bestiality and death are weaved within the stories to create a world that truly is fantastical; one choice line is “Tacked to the wall of the barn that served as Lucia de Medici’s studio were 144 photographs of the artist having sex with her cat.” But the authors aren’t simply trying to shock the reader; the fairy tales are even more powerful for the way they use these terrible ideas as a way of telling the reader a lesson.

Familiar and not so unfamiliar faces, from Baba Yaga to Rumpelstiltskin, pop up in these fun and sometimes surprising retellings, whilst the large number means that there will always be a story (or five) to distract yourself with.

MeGAN FURBOROUGH

any type of fiction, from metafiction to fan fiction: the website’s FAQ says “If you believe you’re writing a novel, we believe you’re writing a novel too” and that’s the one and only rule. Your 50,000 words doesn’t even have to be a full novel; it could be just the first chapter and you’ll still have played your part! There are no rules about quality, either. Every participant is a winner, and with the help of publishers CreateSpace, every participant can receive a free, printed paperback copy of their manuscript when the project is over, meaning everyone gets to be a published author for a day.

It’s a great way to boost your self-esteem, get your creativity flowing, a n d help

muck of mankind’s lowest hour, not judgi n g , not commenting but simply seeing. And that is exactly what this does. It never glorifies its action, always emphasising that this journey is simply one of many. To his father there’s nothing special here, nothing

spread literary education across the world, through a charity. The Office of Letters and Light, the official name of the NaNoWriMo organisers, run countless programmes for improving literacy across the world, from the Young Writers Program to the Laptop Loaner programme, and by taking part, you can contribute to their successes while making your own too. You might even be one of the lucky ones, like Erin Morgenstern, whose manuscript The Night Circus ended up on the NY Times Best Seller List!

If you’ve had an idea bumbling around in your head like a mental dust bunny, and you’re desperate to make it go away, there’s no better way than NaNoWriMo to get you motivated. Give it a try - as a former and current participant, I can guarantee you won’t be disappointed by the results! worth telling, it’s just what everyone did.

The scale of Maus’ importance is clearest in the fact it won a Pulitzer Prize, a stunning achievement for a literary form as looked down upon as the graphic novel, and one that is as yet unmatched. Credited with heralding a more serious attitude towards graphic novels it has had a titanic influence upon its form, lending significant weight to the medium and helping to popularise and legitimise it as a whole. However ,this is a quiet victory, a humble triumph masking the epic tale within. A big story told in simple, real terms; it’s with good reason the Wall Street Journal called it the ‘most affecting and successful narrative ever done about the Holocaust’.

HUGH DIGNAN

AnyLastWords?

Which book do you wish you had written?

On The Road - the only book that has ever tempted me to sack it all in and hit the highway immediately to taste a bit of Kerouac’s quest for meaning MHAIRI COSGRIFF If I’d written The Crying of Lot 49, I’d be patting myself on the back every day... though certainly not using the postal service again.

CALUM BAKER The Bible, I’d like to see how different my life would be if everyone assumed I had a running correspondence with God. JON JENNER All My Friends Are Superheroes - because I’d love to write a novel that combines a relatively profound meaning with the tone and style of a particularly light episode of New Girl.

OWEN KEATING

The Gruffalo...because I do all the voices.

HUGH BLACKSTAFFE A Visit from the Goon Squad - because I’d love to take the credit for writing a chapter consisting entirely of Powerpoint slides.

LIAM TRIM I wish I’d written the Harry Potter series, because I’d be invited back to Exeter all the time for drinks with Steve and Floella.

JAMES CROUCH Catch 22 - how can such a funny book be so moving?

HENRY COULSHED The Catcher In The Rye, because it is such a perfect book and I would have liked to have been responsible for writing the words that have allowed every teenage reader (including myself ) to indulge in their angsty inner turmoil.

MEGAN FURBOROUGH

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Exeposé

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Arts

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Arts Diary Our regular Arts Diary column shows you all the important events going on in Exeter...

ARTS

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ARTS EDITORS

Clara Plackett & Emily Tanner arts@exepose.com JOIN THE FACEBOOK GROUP Exeposé Arts

They’re not a Rhum deal

Clara Plackett and Emily Tanner, Arts Editors, chat to Rhum and Clay at the Bikeshed around in the dark most of the time.”

However, the finished product isn’t necessarily solely an achievement of the four young men. They have been lucky enough to meet a number of individuals with whom they have been keen to work, including Exeter based illustrators, and as Matt comments “It’s great meeting someone who gets what you do, but brings something that you can’t.”

They are well aware, as Julian tells us with a smile, that the theatre world “is a lot bigger than actors.”

Art Neoreplicants: Digital Art Commission 2012 @ Phoenix 16 November - 19 January Poppies @ Northcott: 2-30 November

“It’s great to meet someone who gets what you do but brings something you can’t”

Collected Artists @ Northcott: 2 November - 9 December

Comedy Ava Vidal @ Phoenix: 24 November

Drama Shutterland @ Bikeshed 22 November Intro to Physical Theatre @ Bikeshed 24 November

Dance Freedom @ Phoenix 16 November Tango Motion @ Phoenix: 23 November

Art Attack

THIS week we discussed Monet’s Waterloo Bridge. Here, Monet restricts his palette to varying shades of blues and focuses on an urban landscape.

Does this effect work for you or does the fog make it confusing compared to some of his more well known works? Do you agree that the image conveys an atmosphere of tranquillity?

29

IN THE underground performance space of the Bikeshed we are met by Chris, one of the founders and performers of Rhum and Clay, who warmly greets us explaining that the other members are currently just coming to the end of rehearsal. Turning our eyes towards the stage we experience energy, movement and a surprising amount of noise from just three young actors. As the rehearsal finishes Matt, Julian and Daniel join us off stage to chat to us about the development of Rhum and Clay.

“Well we trained together for two years in Paris,” Matt explains, “originally to make some money for our second year of study but we found that it really worked and it turned into a constantly evolving process.” Matt goes on to explain that, as a company, Rhum and Clay do things that “tickle their fancy” and develop ideas that they are interested in and as a group of friends it is clear that, as Matt affirms, “ensemble is one

KRISSI HILL: I love the effect of the fog, it makes it seem so ethereal and the obscurity encourages the viewer to look more deeply at the painting.

Although the brightness is concealed by grey I think that Monet is perhaps pointing out how smog made cities into a grey, urban wasteland.

TOM BOND: It’s too drained of colour or detail to really mean much.

Other impressionist works like his

of the most important things.” A lot of their work seems to stem from objects they have found – the second show of the residency A Strange Wild Song was developed from some Parisian wartime photographs the company came across – and they will then “devise and improvise around these things,” and the ideas they have had. The process that Rhum and Clay employ in the development of their work makes their performances living pieces of theatre.

“Devising is scary. It’s a lot of mucking around in the dark most of the time” As a foursome they exude confidence but not arrogance. When we ask about difficulties they may have encountered as a young group of actors, they point out the obvious struggles: “space, logistics and money” but Matt comWater Lilies paintings at least have a strong visual impact. This landscape is engulfed in fog but rather than making it mystical it just seems a bit dead

LAUREN SWIFT: The way in which

the muted tone and grey smog pervade the whole piece could be a criticism of industrialisation. Whilst bright colours capture the beauty of nature in Monet’s Water Lilies this painting seems comparatively cold and dead.

ments that “it sounds really corny but you get treated the way you act. If you say you’re a student theatre company people will treat you like one, but we present ourselves as professionals and are treated as such.” Matt also explains that “there’s nothing worse than hearing people moan about being in a crap show”. Here Julian wryly interjects, “If you’re in a crap show – defend it!”

This is a group of young professional actors who do not doubt the quality of their work, and nor should they. The work they present is insightful, exciting and a refreshing look at modern theatre, and their recent Arts Council grant was clearly well deserved.

They admit that the pieces they present are not always what they began as. The period of development before a performance is a time of playing around with ideas and waiting to see what fits.

As Daniel notes this isn’t always easy: “Devising is scary. It’s a lot of mucking It’s also arguable that the grey smoke gives the painting life because it guides the eye to the chimneys and implies the presence of a hub of action in the background.

TOBY CRADDOCK: In agreement

with Cher from Clueless: After describing someone as a ‘Monet’ “It’s like a painting, see? From far away, it’s OK, but up close, it’s a big old mess.”

In their own words their performances are “highly physical, cinematic, really dynamic and engaging,” and the partnership of Rhum and Clay with Exeter’s Bikeshed seems to have been one made in heaven. The first show Shutterland is the tale of a man who fights against the system in an absurd and heightened way whilst A Strange Wild Song focuses on a childhood in wartime France. The practice of development and experimentation is an ethos similar to the Bikeshed’s own and the partnership of the two during the residency is set to be an exciting period. Matt explains that he thinks the “Bikeshed is unique because it is a space where you’d want to hang out too. All theatres should be like this! We make theatre that is accessible but that’s not dumbed down and the Bikeshed suits that perfectly, as it’s a place for theatre where you can come and have a good time.”

Where the future will take Rhum and Clay is yet to be seen but for now they are set in their aims on developing their company as much as possible, producing great theatre and enjoying their work.

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Exeposé

Corrupting the canvas Jess O’Kane discusses the problems with the increasing financial incentives in modern art THERE was something bemusing about Jonathan Jones’s recent article about the price of modern art ‘these days’. I read it with a slight sense of nostalgia for the chest thumping Hirst and Emin nay-sayers of circa 2006, or the guffawing European bankers who condemned Picasso’s work, or the clerics who declared Caravaggio as the anti-Christ. For while Jones seems to associate the lavish practices of the art world solely with the last half of the century, what he doesn’t acknowledge is that the art industry has and always will be based upon approval and prestige, financial or otherwise.

Think of it this way: art is a realm of opinions. Within that realm there are kings and queens, paupers and serfs.

The monarchs are the people whose opinions have gained the longest and most consistent approval – the dealers, the commissioners – Jay Jopling or Charles Saatchi, for example. That approval comes from those a few rungs

below on the ladder; people with money and wall-space to burn. Once one hedge-fund manager has bought in, the herd follows, adding approval to approval until we are left with an inflated monolith, squeezing champagne out of perfectly manicured nails. Then there’s the peasantry, who are often left, like Jones, annoyed and confused at this impenetrable power struggle.

“Some of the greatest art ever was done off the back of a healthy advance. I can’t see that stopping any time soon” The result is that modern art feeds itself. It is a capitalist venture like any other. Where there is demand, there is supply: new hot young things to fill that empty space. But my problem is this - why just apply this to modern

art? A quick history lesson will tell you anything you need to know about back-stabbers, fortunes, destruction and greed. Regardless of how highly we may view them now, artists are people, and people need to eat. From Shakespeare to Rembrandt, patronage and commission have run the art world for hundreds of years; both responding to and changing our tastes. We look back on our cultural heritage with rose-tinted glasses, seeing nobility where there was bribery and purity where there was a price tag. But the truth is that art has always been a rich man’s game; we are kidding ourselves if we think any differently.

That is not to say that noble and pure things can’t come out of art that is commissioned or made with an audience in mind; of course it can. But we need to understand art in essence as a social industry, made by and for the people it serves.

In amongst all that there are wonderful, fulfilling objects and people,

but the overarching forces that drive art forward are financial. This isn’t

“But the truth is that art has always been a rich man’s game and we’re kidding ourselves thinking anything different” necessarily a bad thing either; some of the greatest art ever created was made off the back of a healthy advance. I can’t see that stopping anytime soon.

All we can hope for is that in amongst this Gatsby-esque parade of meretricious beauty new talents are fostered, exposure is given to those who deserve it, and that perhaps a hedge-fund manager or two falls off the carousel.

Azad Nalbandian explains the case of art forger Wolfgang Beltracchi and its effects on the world of art 2012 HAS been an interesting year for art. Munch’s “The Scream” set a new bar for art sales at auction; the Olympics paved the way for countless new and controversial developments in the world of British art, not the least of which is Hirst’s Verity sculpture; and the Turner Prize’s 2012 opening generated the usual mix of vitriolic indifference and outright acerbic apathy among art critics at the Tate Britain that we’ve come to expect, albeit mixed in with some surprisingly high praise.

Post-postmodernism and the almost disturbingly nihilistic elements of popular Dadaism have taken an even more notable front seat in seminal arts culture, and exhibits such as the upcoming Picasso vs Duchamp in Stockholm look set to challenge even our most basic cultural assumptions on a field that has lain stagnant for decades, if not centuries.

“Where does the value lie, if not in the aesthetic appreciation of the art work? Does the painter’s identity matter?”

It’s easy to miss, then, underneath the veneer of self-absorbed egotism that art so proudly displays, the little things that make us wonder why names, art culture and the ubiquitous pushed envelope are so valuable and quality itself is so often ignored.

Where does the value lie, if not in the

aesthetic appreciation of the work?

Why does the painter’s identity matter so much?

Questions like these can give even the most educated art critics pause, and the Beltracchi art forgery scandal that rocked the European art scene this year demonstrates exactly why these plutocratic elements make something that should be so basic and intrinsic to our culture so aloof and complex to consume.

This year, one of the biggest art forgery scandals of the 21st century has brought this dichotomy of art values to light, with aplomb endemic only to the baby boomer generation.

Wolfgang Beltracchi (formerly Fischer), artistic virtuouso extraordinaire and genius forger, was imprisoned in 2011 for his on-again, off-again practice, persistent from his youth. Noted for his nigh-unmatched skill and the perceived authenticity of his work, Beltracchi was particularly notorious for the lies he told that so many art brokers fell for enthusiastically.

With the assistance of his wife, Helene, Beltracchi “forged” the Sammlung Werner Jagers, a priceless collection belonging to Helene’s grandfather Werner Jagers that had come into his possession from legendary German collector Alfred Flechtheim.

Supposedly containing a range of paintings from Heinrich Campendonk to Max Ernst, each of stunning technical quality, the Beltracchis used this front to sell their technically high-

quality forgeries to a wide range of art seekers, from comedian Steve Martin to corporation Sotheby’s, some (such as an imitation of Campendonk’s Rotes Bild mit Pferden) for up to €2.8m.

“Today 58 of the Belatracchi’s many forgeries have been identified, as the couple serve out their sentence in a minimum security prision, they are considered national heroes for spitting in the face of the high art community” In the end, it was that self-same picture that led to the eventual arrest and indictment of the two hotly-debated career criminals in Freiburg in 2006, when art experts Ralph Jentsch and Andrea Firmenich conclusively proved the paintings created by the two were forgeries, this painting in particular containing titanium white, a pigment not available at the time of the picture’s provenance in 1914.

Today, 58 of the Beltracchis’ many forgeries have been identified, as the couple serve out their sentence in a minimum security prison, considered national heroes for spitting in the faces of the high art community by the German public; the publicity has strengthened their careers, and a documentary of their lives is currently in the works.

Exeposé

| WEEK EIGHT

Tis Pity She’s A Whore Bristol Old Vic 24 October- 3 November 2012 It is truly surprising that Tis Pity She’s A Whore still manages to shock a 21st Century audience. Yes, Ford’s play may concern the controversial themes of incest, religion and murder but as I sat down to see Cheek By Jowl’s production I did not expect that, over the next two hours, I would feel physically sick at the unwinding of a coat hanger, cover

“Then through the silence all that is heard are blood curdling screams” my eyes as fake blood was spat out onto the stage or be silenced in utter horror at the dramatic climax. Yet this stunning production and the incredible cast made a play which seems so distant from our

Ava Vidal - Preview Exeter Phoenix 24 November 2012 It is not often that Exeter manages to attract the bigger names in comedy, and Ava Vidal is definitely not a comedienne to miss out on if you want to see some

Scarborough M & D Rooms 3 November 2012 While as teenagers we might have joked or fantasised about sleeping with our PE teacher, we had probably never considered the consequences had this become a reality.

Scarborough, explores two teacher-student relationships. Set in a double bedroom in Scarborough, Lauren Drennan and Henry Fewster first take the stage with a playful and innocent demeanour, which might lead you to believe these are two teenage lovers making the most of their two days away from school. Henry captures the immature yet caring and well-intentioned Daz with stunning accuracy. Fewster’s unaware and love-struck 15 year old is contrasted with Drennan’s older, paranoid character Lauren. With Lauren in a long term-relationship with her job on the line, the nature of her and Daz’s re-

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own world startlingly relevant to a modern audience.

Upon entering the Old Vic my eyes were drawn towards the single figure, the female protagonist Annabella – played superbly by Gina Bramhill – who sat reading a magazine on the luscious red bedding, the True Blood poster up on the wall and the hidden books beneath the bed. This could be the room of any modern 16 year old. There is nothing out of the ordinary here; the setting felt familiar, almost too familiar. As the first scene began, with a wonderfully lively piece of choreography, I soon became aware that Annabella wasn’t your conventional teenage girl; she was wealthy, spoilt and, most importantly, loved and adored by the men who surround her, especially her brother. We all knew it was not going to end well - as the two intimately declared their love to each other and immediately consummated their love passionately this was clearly a tragic tale of forbidden love

– yet the shocks which were to come would cause many to flinch.

Bringing the tale into a familiar setting created a significant impact upon the audience. The use of the two doors at the back of the stage was genius. What was arguably one of the most horrific moments of the production did not even take place on stage when Annabella’s husband enters the bathroom armed

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la’s brother Giovanni sits madly on the edge of his sister’s bed, covered in her blood and cradling her heart (yes, her actual heart) in his hands, I was struck by the pure horror but also delicate emotion of the play as a whole. Never before have I sat in a theatre and shivered in shock nor felt physically moved by what I have

seen. The truly inventive set, stunning direction and top quality acting are all to credit for what was an inspiring production of a thought provoking and controversial play.

Russell Kane

ism appears not to have quenched his thirst for emotional salvation.

As he raises “Ivan” on stage, he carries his audience through a smorgasbord of worry and angst about his own life, at times retreading the scarred ground of his own relationship with his now-dead dad. While this is itself doesn’t sound all that funny, Kane’s raw emotion in describing the emotional violence of his father, or the way he ran home crying after a catastrophic romantic episode, all the while punctuated with funny voices and heartfelt audience interaction, creates comedy through therapy. Out of nowhere, he drags us headfirst into his narrative; I’m certain I wasn’t the only man in the audience who has felt similar pressures to him, or even done similar things.

I found myself laughing not because it was funny (although it was), but because I was being implored to empathise with this spiky, increasingly vulnerable comedian. Kane emotionally eviscerates himself for his audiences; the least we can do in turn is be affected by it.

This was a set unlike any other I’ve seen. Despite occasionally patchy delivery and Kane’s tendency to dwell on the same anecdote for just a moment too long, Posturing Delivery manages to be simultaneously funny and formative. Amidst the innuendos, the puns, and the charming anecdotes about semi-contented domestic life, Kane not only aspires towards understanding his own role in society, but forces his audience to consider theirs.

EMILY TANNER ARTS EDITOR

“This stunning production and incredible cast made a play which seems so distant from our own world startling relevant”

with a makeshift weapon and slams the door excluding the audience from their spectator’s sport for this moment. Then through the silence all that is heard are blood curdling screams.

As the play concludes and Annabel-

sharp, edgy and most importantly hilarious comedy from the comfort of Exeter Phoenix.

Many will know her face from BBC2’s Mock The Week and Michael McIntyre’s Comedy Roadshow, but she has also had a sell-out run in the West End this year and been heard regularly on BBC Radio 4, as well as having had a half-hour Channel 4 documentary explaining her rise on the comedy circuit.

Her success comes from years of hard work after struggling to cope in various boarding schools, mustering the will to leave her extremely draining job as a prison officer later

on in life, and raising her two children single-handedly. It is hardly surprising that critics have described her style as “a refreshing change from all the feelgood crap”; there is certainly a lot to Ava Vidal and her work.

Vidal’s current show Ava Vidal Goes Dutch explores individual and communal approaches to life and asks some pertinent questions: “How much should we share?” and “would the world be a better place if we all were self-sufficient and just took care of ourselves?” She also discusses her own experiences touring in seemingly liberal Holland, family life and some more heavy going issues such as prejudice and racism, including the 2011 riots, with great comedic effect. It sold out on its first night at Soho Theatre, and Vidal has evidently been giving confident, emotive and engaging performances ever since, as she continues to storm the comedy world.

lationship is called into question.

Much of the play is underscored by acoustic and inoffensive indie tracks, which makes transitions between scenes and the passing of time seamless and smooth. It also makes the love sequences watchable and not cripplingly awkward as they are in many student productions.

The first 15 minutes of the play are repeated almost verbatim, with the genders reversed. Adam Browner and Imogen Gartside manage to keep this sequence from feeling dull, which is an incredible feat given that the audience have only just heard all the jokes, conflicts and character revelations. Instead, the pair make the scene engaging and exciting, even if this does fade towards the end of the scene. The repetition cements the nature of two relationships in the mind of the audience without feeling contrived or drawn out.

The couples occupy the stage simultaneously as the play escalates to its

conclusion. This is impressively done without looking clumsy or overcrowded, partly due to well thought out blocking and the actors’ commitment to their own partner. The final third is by far the strongest of the production, demonstrating the cast’s talent where before it appeared underutilised and lead to a lull halfway through.

The reality of their forbidden relationship dawns on the couples and a revelation of impending marriage leaves the students heartbroken and lost. While there’s genuine affection from the teachers towards their student, they readily erase any evidence of the relationship, fearing the consequences.

A story of lovers being kept apart by factors they can’t control is one often told. Yet, by the end of the evening, we’re left genuinely shaken and upset by a story told with passion, conviction and style.

CLARA PLACKETT ARTS EDITOR

MARCUS BEARD GAMES EDITOR

Northcott Theatre 4 November 2012 KANE is, as always, a joy to watch. As diminutive as he is engaging, he uses all of his boyish Essex charm to balance immense self-deprecation with absorbing, confident patter. He flits around the stage, pirouetting with bendy knees, never standing still, never letting you take your eyes off him. His jokes in themselves are funny, but it’s his mesmeric stage presence that really keeps you engaged.

As assured as he seems, the subjects he touches upon create an air of nervous energy around him; he constantly looks around, almost as if the problems he’s talking himself through are behind him, ready to creep up and drag him back into the introspection he’s using this routine to escape from.

“He carries his audience through a smorgasboard of worry and angst about his own life” When Kane isn’t poking fun at everything from The X Factor to the postcoital routines of Mancunian men, he’s raising a child on stage. Well, not his real son, obviously. As he tells us multiple times, Kane is a single man who has become painfully aware of the ticking of his biological clock. Broody and blue about it, he wants to settle down, if anything, he suggests, just to feel more normal. His adult life has been dominated by relationships where he gets far too involved far too fast, and nearly a year of salaciously described hedon-

OWEN KEATING SCREEN EDITOR

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Requiescat in pace, Ezio Auditore Dale James reviews one of 2012’s biggest games: is it the revolution that was promised?

Assassin’s Creed 3 Ubisoft Montreal Xbox 360, PS3, PC Out Now After three successful titles, developers Ubisoft Montreal have finally honourably discharged the most famous Italian in gaming since Mario: Ezio Auditore has left the building! After some necessary prologue exposition, Assassin’s Creed 3 picks up right where Revelations left off; with Desmond Miles and his assassin allies finding a precursor ‘Vault’ in North America, a place that contains knowledge about averting the imminent apocalypse.

Desmond is placed into the role of another ancestor and the new protagonist Connor Kenway, otherwise known as Ratonhnhakéton (Rah-Doon-A-GahTon), a young Native American who is inducted into the Assassin Order after his world is destroyed by overzealous colonists. The premise of Assassin’s Creed 3 takes players away from Renaissance Europe and plants them firmly in mid18th century North America, a time of revolution and massive global change. It takes a while to get going but the story soon picks up and follows the new assassin from a young age as he takes players in tow for his bloody romp through Colonial America during one of the most pivotal moments in world history.

Given the setting it would have been a real task for Ubisoft to remain impartial and not descend their latest title into an exercise of “America, F**K YEAH!”, but somehow they pulled it off. Templars are present in both the British and

Assassin’s Creed: Liberation Ubisoft Sofia PS Vita Out Now This game is a big deal for the Vita. Six months or so into its cycle, the console still isn’t selling particularly well, and in the run up to Christmas, the Vita is in desperate need of good software to sell some units. Assassin’s Creed: Liberation is one of a brave group of AAA titles championing the console’s cause this holiday. Thankfully, this game delivers on the Vita’s flirtatious promise of a console-quality experience on a portable device… albeit with a few hiccups.

Aveline de Grandpré is half-French, half-African, and definitely all woman.

Best of all, you’re not even remotely Desmond Miles; for the first time in the franchise’s history the protagonist is not an ancestor of the antagonistically dull character from the modern day. Instead, when starting the story mode, you are informed that the game is essentially a piece of Abstergo propaganda. “History

fruition. History buffs will appreciate the inclusion of key historical figures and events into the story (George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, and Samuel Adams), as well as the chance to partake in the Boston Tea Party and the Battle of Bunker Hill.

Everywhere you look in Assassin’s Creed 3, you’ll notice the new AnvilNext engine. While it allows for some breathtaking moments it also brings a fair amount of graphical bugs that (while not game breaking) can occasionally take players out of the experience. The mechanics in exploration and combat have been vastly overhauled as well. Gone are the days in which fighting was the only option once you were cornered; gone is the ‘magic medicine’ that served as the crutch for so many series veterans.

Connor is more agile than Ezio ever could be: he can vault over low-lying objects, climb buildings with staggering agility, and sprint through unsuspecting households to break away from his pursuers in ways that would have the Italian green with envy.

Better still are the much-welcomed changes to the combat system. In a fight Connor automatically goes into a defensive stance, and counter attacks are more varied and rewarding (being harder to pull off than in previous games). Staking an enemy with a rope dart and then yanking them into a tomahawk-clothesline in slow motion is jaw-dropping. In addition to a more complex set of attack methods, enemies can call for reinforcements, attack in groups, and co-ordinate attacks so keep on your toes!

The best addition to the game without a doubt is the ‘Naval Battle’ sidegame - it could be a separate game in itself. In these sequences Connor commands his own ship with control over navigation and cannons. It is here that the AnvilNext engine really shines; the

animations and weather effects during these parts are astonishing, the environments varied, and the atmosphere intense – think of that Master and Commander movie cranked up! At times the player will get the chance to play as Desmond himself as he goes out on missions in the modern day, these sequences are interesting but only constitute a small part of the whole package.

So, what’s the final verdict? Is Assassin’s Creed 3 the best entry in the series to date? With the graphical bugs and slow start aside I’d say it certainly is!

Where does the series look like it’s going from here? I’m not sure, but as long as there are stories left to tell then Ubisoft will do their best to deliver them!

is our playground,” the cold voiceover proclaims, a massive part of why so many people enjoy Assassin’s Creed in the first place. As you’d expect, Abstergo are lying to you as you play, and a mysterious hacker called Erudito interrupts the action to reveal the “truth”, and replays an event you just witnessed. It’s engaging, and a refreshing take on the series’ mythology, indicating that there’s a lot of life after Desmond.

Liberation plays as you’d expect an Assassin’s Creed game to play. The

storyline consists of various missions in which you sneak, run and jump over the beautifully realised city of New Orleans, finding people, tailing people, and finally assassinating people. The interface is in line with the improvements made in Assassin’s Creed 3, but the most interesting additions are specific to Aveline and the Vita. These include an Indianaesque whip, separate personas which dictate how you behave and where you can go, and my personal favourite, a gun disguised as a parasol. Jamelia Bond eat

your heart out.

Unfortunately, playing like an Assassin’s Creed game means it shares the fundamental problems that have persist-

and alive enough for you to forgive the occasional pop-in and texture problem.

New Orleans doesn’t have a lot of tall buildings, sure, but that’s history – don’t bitch about it. The more horizontal movement across the city is reflected in the Bayou, the swampy wilderness where you run through the trees and battle alligators. The story moves you between the city and the swamp often enough to stop you from getting bored of your environment, and side trips to exotic locales like Mexico reinforce the variety.

It isn’t perfect; but neither are the console versions. What Liberation has demonstrated is that console-quality experiences are possible on this platform, and that’s a fairly big deal. The Vita hasn’t introduced any new problems (barring some unnecessary touchscreen controls) and that’s an achievement in itself. Liberation is the full Assassin’s Creed experience… warts and all.

Revolutionary forces and it is the job of the assassins to eliminate them before their plans, whatever they are, come to

“Connor is more agile than Ezio ever could be; he can vault over low-lying objects and climb buildings with staggering agility”

“It’s engaging, and a refreshing take on the series’ mythology” ed since Altair took a Leap of Faith into gaming in 2007. The tailing missions are appalling. Desynchronising (dying, if you’ve never played) occurs for little to no reason, and sometimes the person you’re following - who doesn’t know they’re being followed - stops to wait for you. But worst of all is the control scheme, in which the R button controls running, climbing, and jumping. Three distinct methods of moving, triggered by one button. You’ll handle it, especially if you’re a veteran of the series, but the occasional moments where your graceful assassin will inexplicably mount a fence may well move you to tears.

The world around you is big enough

JON JENNER GAMES EDITOR

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The story of a Pokémon master

Matthew Robinson explains how Game Freak became the very best... of developers

1996

Pokémon Red & Blue

1999

Pokémon Gold & Silver

2002

Pokémon Ruby & Sapphire

2006

Pokémon Diamond & Pearl

2010

Pokémon Black & White

Professor Layton and the Miracle Mask Level 5 Nintendo 3DS Out Now PROFESSOR LAYTON and the Miracle Mask, the latest in the Layton series, offers the same old format as its predecessors with a few twists along the way. Different modes of gameplay keep the interest going beyond just logic puzzles, with minigames involving horseback riding, bunny training and a game that has you swindling shoppers out of their hardearned money, going on the concept that similar items stacked next to each other are impossible to resist. How immoral.

The logic puzzles have stepped up from being fairly standard “write the answer here” to being a little more innovative - sliding puzzles, stacking puzzles, slingshot-firing puzzles requiring more touchscreen interaction than before.

Whilst Layton will never feel like a fully-fledged game, being more plot-driven than action-driven, it’s certainly more concerned with the player’s involvement now than it has been in the past. The

NOW I’m sure if there is one video game series which has undoubtedly cemented itself within the annals of popular culture, it has to be Pokémon. Not only is Pokémon one of the all-time best selling game franchises worldwide, but it has also, over nearly two decades, developed into a multi-media phenomenon. The simple longevity of Pokémon is a testament to its popularity amongst people of all ages, easily making it one of Nintendo’s most successful products. Yet how much do fans of the series really know about its original developers, Game Freak?

It comes as no surprise to me that Game Freak may be largely seen as an afterthought when compared with the magnitude of Nintendo’s worldwide gaming empire. And whilst Nintendo is a multinational company which alone employs nearly 5,000 people, Game Freak simply operates out of the 22nd floor of the Carrot Tower in Tokyo, Japan, employing just over 70 people.

Truth be told, Game Freak started off a small and independent project and, despite working with numerous larger gaming franchises, has remained largely the same ever since. In fact its origins lie not in game and software development, but rather in publishing, as in the early 1980s Game Freak was produced as an amateur gaming magazine, chiefly by Satoshi Tajiri, with help from his friend Ken Sugimori. Game Freak was initially, like many other teenaged projects, entirely homemade, as for several years Tajiri wrote the magazine by hand, whilst Sugimori created the artwork. And, significantly, Game Freak wrote mainly about arcade gaming, which despite the development of several revolutionary consoles at this time, such as the popular Atari 2600 and the NES, served as the primary arena for youth gamers during the eighties.

By the end of the decade, Game Freak had gained in popularity and had become increasingly profitable, to the point where it was being printed and produced propuzzles feel shoehorned in at times, as the incredibly animated characters flap around excitedly before being suddenly reminded of a puzzle they once knew.

It can be slightly non-sequitur, but considering that you’ve likely bought this game for the puzzles, it shouldn’t matter.

Besides, Layton has been getting bizarre enough with its plot lines (Dinosaurs?

Really?) that an out-of-place puzzle or two doesn’t even faze me anymore.

“It sticks to the same formula as always murder mystery meets Mastermind - but with a little more gimmickry” As always, the 2D animation is amazing. The characters are quirky and original, with almost everyone sporting some kind of comedy nose, while the scenery is stunningly attractive almost to the point of distracting from the main action. This is somewhat let down by the 3D character animation, a new feature that unfortunately looks like anime being acted out by cardboard puppets wrapped in ham, but otherwise, the 3D

fessionally. This success proved to open doors for Tajiri who, by 1989, was able to fulfil a long time goal and produce his own video game, an action/puzzle by the name of Quinty (known as Mendel Palace in North America) under Game Freak Inc., now an official game development company. This debut gained positive recognition from both Nintendo and Sega, who recruited Game Freak to work on not only fresh, original games for the time, including the classic, Pulseman, but also (a little known fact) on titles involving established characters such as Yoshi, Mario and Wario.

“It developed into a multi-media phenomenon”

nal Gameboy, in North America and Europe in late 1998 and 1999 respectively.

And the rest really is history. What else can really be said of Pokémon other than its continued success to this day?

Having expanded out into the realms of anime, manga, film, card games and toy collectibles, Pokémon has evolved into an international company in itself.

The name ‘Game Freak’ may indeed ring a bell for some, but the fact of the matter is that the product which is generated by this small Japanese company is, and always has been, the creative genius behind the Pokémon series and the now 649 catchable critters within it. So much for the original 151, eh?

Not a bad start for Game Freak then!

The Japanese versions of Pokémon Red and Green were released on February 27th 1996, but only after several long years in development. In 1990, work commenced on Tajiri’s idea, at first known as Capsule Monsters, although it could be argued that the basic concept of Pokémon was born far before this. A little bit of research reveals that Tajiri’s favourite childhood hobby was hunting and collecting insects – sounds familiar, doesn’t it? Despite unique potential exhibited by the Capsule Monsters premise, Nintendo did not initially warm to Tajiri’s brainchild.

Game Freak struggled over an extended period to revise the product with limited finances as well as with copyright issues which made necessary not one, but two name changes. Nonetheless, with a new found confidence and sense of direction came an agreement with Nintendo to incorporate the newly christened Pocket Monsters for official development.

After huge success in Japan, Pocket Monsters was released as Pokémon Red and Blue versions, playable on the origieffect is surprisingly good. For you, dear readers, I braved the intense headaches and projectile vomiting that an hour’s play with the 3D switched on provides, and it was nearly worth it - never have I played a 3DS game where the 3D actually impressed me enough to risk the mind-numbing pain of being forcibly cross-eyed for extended periods of time.

Professor Layton will never be the most groundbreaking video game territory. If you’re looking for something similarly brain-busting but a little more game than story, then I would highly recommend Ghost Trick on DS, but if you’re

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Sandbox In Connor’s honour, if you could assassinate any game character, who would it be and why?

Callum McLean: Legolas from the LOTR games, if only by some voodoo logic I’d never have to see Orlando Bloom’s smug face ever again.

Rob Harris: Roman Bellic from GTAIV. “Nico, cousin, want to go bowl- *BOOM* NOT TODAY. Tom Bond: Jinpachi from Tekken 5. That energy-belching manbaby wandering around a wasteland resembling a post-apocalyptic Swindon used to haunt my nightmares. Just die dammit! And put some clothes on!

Kate Gray: Navi. Someone needs to kill that perky bitch. Maybe torture her a bit first.

Louis Doré: Slenderman. Someone has to kill that bastard so I can sleep again.

Play This Hotline Miami

a fan of Layton, then this game won’t disappoint. It sticks to the same formula as always - murder mystery meets Mastermind - but with a little bit more gimmickry to bring it up to the 3D standard (you will notice the characters doing that whole pointing-outside-the-screen thing to make the most of the fact your eyes are bleeding from the autostereoscopic setting). Some of it works, some of it is a little lacking, but overall, it’s just what you’d expect from a Layton game.

KATE GRAY

What is it?

A top-down Indie shooter set in an alternate 1980s Miami.

You take the role of a hitman acting from cryptic orders on his voicemail, and must chop, gun and otherwise brutalise your way through floors of enemies. It’s brutally difficult, ultra-violent and wrapped in layers of strangeness. But if you can handle that, the retro-style graphics and terrific synth-pop soundtrack will only to add to this uncompromising, must-try game.

Where do I get it?

The game is currently available on the Steam Store for £6.50 or at GOG.com for $9.99.

JAMES GREEN

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GAMES

12 NOVEMBER 2012 |

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Exeposé

Gaming on the go: The best of iOS Kate Gray has played loads of apps so you don’t have to. Here are the best...

Bastion

Worms 2: Armageddon

Cut The Rope

The Nightjar

Where’s My Water?

Supergiant Games

Team17 Software

ZeptoLab

Somethin’ Else

Disney

iPad £2.99

iPad/iPhone £2.99

iPad / iPhone £2.49 / £0.69

iPad / iPhone Free

iPad / iPhone £0.69

BASTION is an indie game that has done incredibly well through word-ofmouth; quite literally, because Bastion is narrated as you play by a silky-voiced stranger. The game is innovative, beautiful and gripping, and you’ll quickly forget that all you’re doing is poking an expensive piece of glass as you get immersed in the heartbreaking storyline.

NOTHING beats the feeling of blowing up a friend with a well-aimed grenade, and the classic carnage of Worms doesn’t disappoint in this version for iPhone and iPad. Find a like-minded friend that you’d quite like to destroy, or up to four players if you genuinely have that many friends, and blow off your essays whilst blowing each other up.

YOU may think that no iOS list is complete without a mention of our irate avian amigos, but I prefer Cut the Rope, a game in which it is actually possible to get the top scores without having to sell your soul to the devil and play until your eyeballs bleed. The visuals are cute, but don’t let that put you off the game itself; put aside your masculinity and give it a chance.

THIS one is quite experimental and a bit weird, the premise being that you are in darkness and have to use your ears to walk around, but you should download it mostly because it’s narrated by Benedict Cumberbatch, and as long as humankind has ears, we will always need more Cumberbatch.

DON’T be put off by the Disney label - this app is innovative in its gameplay, utilising the touchscreen capabilities to their full potential as you swipe through mud to make a path for the water that Swampy the crocodile needs for his bath. Obviously. It’s simple enough to get into quickly, but fun enough that you’ll be playing all the levels desperately trying to three-star them all.

Football Manager 2013 Sports Interactive PC/Mac Out Now THIS is more of a confession than a review. Football Manager is more than just a game. We’re not players, we’re bona fide managers in a different world. We live our dreams through FM, escaping the mundanity of degrees or desk jobs and replacing them with relegation dogfights and derby days. Since 1992, millions of people have poured hours into their games, sometimes at the expense of friends, career advancement, or even marriages.

The premise is simple; you pick a football team, you manage them.

In FM13 more than ever before, you choose your level of involvement.

There are two different ways to play the game: the full version, complete with astonishing detail and total immersion into the world of football management, or the newly created Classic Mode.

Ostensibly created for people with less time on their hands or less patience, but really for people with more friends, Classic Mode only skims the surface of management. There are no press conferences or training sessions: you pick a team, and away you go. A season will only take you a few hours, and you can dip in and out as you please, unemotionally attached to your rapidly assembled team. After all, if you fail, it’s only a few hours down the drain.

In a similar vein, Sports Interactive have also introduced Challenge Mode, which shortens the basic principles of Classic Mode even further - now, you can choose to try and save a team from relegation, or try and win the FA Cup only with youth team players. The game takes no time at all, yet you still get the thrill of managing your heroes.

There are even plans for additional DLC to be available; more challenges, more fun, less time commitment.

However, all of these features, slick and shiny as they may be, are totally meaningless to me. The only version of the game I will ever really play is the full one. Ever since I found a demo disc given away in a packet of Cheerios in November 2001, Football Manager and its predecessor Championship Manager have accompanied me through my adolescence. In what can be a difficult period for any teenager, there was a reassuring constancy in watching my teams perfectly execute the tactical system I’d slaved over. Every win is a resounding middle finger to both bullies and adolescent angst; your precocious left winger may be infuriatingly sassy and inconsistent, but he’s never going to throw your schoolbag out of the window. FM 1-0 real life.

Before you all (rightly) judge me for being a total oddball, you should know that I’m not even a startling example of FM fandom. Some people drop out of life due to addiction; I feel comparatively lucky that my worst FM-related trait is a pathological ha-

tred of Wolverhampton, solely because their team always beats me on FM. I’ve never even been there. To be honest, thanks to FM, I never want to go.

To be a football fan, you have to have a masochistic streak bigger than Piers Morgan’s ego. You willingly pay good money to sit in driving rain and watch your team play like they’ve never seen a football before, let alone each other. It can be agony.

Football Manager is no different; this is probably why we all enjoy it so much. I can’t even begin to describe how frustrating the game can be; slick interfaces and immense detail mean nothing when you lose 3-0 at home to Scunthorpe United. But, at the same time, it startles even me how much it means when things go right on the game. I could tell you now, in scary detail (don’t worry, I won’t), about seminal moments in my games through the years; last minute goals, cup wins, the whole shebang.

Everyone has a vice. Some of us hide it, while others carry it around like a disease. Some people love Facebook, and some people can’t live without falafel. My vice is Football Manager.

It’s so compelling that I’d probably be a very different person without it.

I don’t want your sympathy, and I don’t expect you to understand. I just want you to know that I’ll be okay. Unless I get relegated.

OWEN KEATING SCREEN EDITOR

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New Feature

In the Clubhouse...

In the Clubhouse this week Alistair Oakley, Secretary of Exeter Judo Club (University) chews the fat with Mike Stanton and Will Kelleher, Sport Editors STARTING a new sports club is certainly never easy, but a small yet passionate group of students are determined to meet the challenge and bring judo to the University of Exeter.

Exeposé joined Exeter Students’ Judo Club (University) as they hit the mats for the first time, to learn more about the sport and see just what it takes to get a new club off the ground at the University.

Judo (Japanese for ‘gentle art’) is one of the most widely practised martial arts in the world. Focused on throwing and grappling as well as pins and holds, judo looks pretty intense to the uninitiated, but any judo player (judoka) will tell you it has nothing to do with strength. Instead, players use techniques to turn their opponent’s momentum and balance against them and take them to the ground.

As one of the new club’s members puts it, “Judo will certainly keep you fit but you don’t need to be a natural athlete to become very competitive.

It’s what makes judo so popular and accessible, especially amongst women, it’s competitive but also great for self defence.”

“Judo will keep you fit byt you don’t need to be a natural athlete. It’s competitive but also great for self defence” Indeed, when we showed up at the new club’s first session there were more women than men in the class, with all sorts of shapes and sizes represented.

It is pretty surprising that a city the

60 seconds with...

Leo Rodrigues

George Lucas

Judo Club Captain

Judo Club Treasurer

What is the best aspect of Judo Club?

It is a friendly atmosphere and we are lucky to have very experienced coaching.

What is the best aspect of Judo Club?

Head coach, Dave Allen, is one of the best I have trained with!

He really addresses my needs as a competitor.

Best sporting moment?

I gained 4th place in the Team Nationals with my old club at home

Best sporting moment?

Team gold in the West of England Judo Championships with Somerset County fighters.

Sporting Hero?

Telma Monteiro- he is the number 2 world ranking judoka

Sporting Hero?

Masahiko Kimura - arguably one of the greatest judokas of all time he trained nine hours and completed 1,000 push ups a day.

What are your pre-match preparations?

I try and control my breathing and empty my mind.

What are your pre-match preparations?

I like to just chill out listening to my music while watching the other weight groups compete.

What are your goals for the season?

To participate in BUCS and to continue fighting in local competitions

What are your goals for the season?

To return to a competitive level, ultimately hoping to compete on behalf of the University of Exeter at BUCS

size of Exeter, let alone the University, has not had a judo club before now.

Judo is after all an Olympic martial art and a hugely popular sport, which features in BUCS. The next nearest club is in Exmouth which requires students to travel by train to reach classes. Many of the club’s experienced members admitted they had not brought any kit with them as they didn’t expect to be able to train at Uni. Indeed, trying to get the word out has been just one of many challenges faced by the new club.

For Club Captain Leo Rodrigues, getting judo off the ground in Exeter off the ground has been a real labour of love. With no AU funding, much of the cost of starting the club has come from his own pocket or having to rely on the kindness of others.

“I’ve had to do a lot of grovelling!”

jokes Leo, a postgraduate who regularly flies abroad to compete in his native Portugal. “Getting space to train, finding coaches and trying to get funding have all been difficult, as well as trying to meet AU regulations. A lot of people have been very supportive. Ultimately I do it because I love judo.”

Along with Uni Director of Sport Phil Atwell, the biggest support has come from Coach Dave Allen, Western Chair for the British Judo Association and internationally renowned instructor who is giving his time to the club for free. The club is also free to join and run strictly at cost. Members split the cost of room hire between the people at the session and all other costs are paid by the committee or donations.

Their ultimate aim is to gain AU membership with the funding and security it brings. With a two year wait-

ing period, most of the current members won’t be around to see it. “It’s my last year and my last chance to get a club going” says Leo. “We know it’s an uphill struggle and there’s a lot against us, but ultimately we can say we’ve tried.” With this group’s passion for their sport, don’t bet against them.

“Coach Dave Allen is an internationally renowned instructor who is giving his time to the club for free” Exeter Students’ Judo Club (University) trains 7-8pm every Friday at the Sports Park. Membership and your first class are free. For more details on how to get involved or when to turn up to training email judo@exeter.ac.uk Photo: EJCU

38

SPORT

12 NOVEMBER 2012 |

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Exeposé

Heartbreak as EUAFC lose out in EURFC 1st XV 25 epic match against Gloucestershire Cardiff Met 1st XV 31 Photo: Josh Irwandi

Football

Will Cafferky Reporter

THE freezing conditions at Topsham weren’t enough to choke a fiery contest between the league leaders Gloucestershire and 2nd placed Exeter.

Whilst it was in open play when they showed the most promise, it took a set piece from captain Pete Beadle to open the scoring. The referee somewhat controversially awarding a free kick to Exeter for what was deemed to be an over zealous attempt to gain a free ball from Gloucestershire’s Connor Trotman.

From the kick Beadle smashed his attempt against the top of the opposition wall, causing the ball to loop teasingly over the keeper and into the net.

From this point onwards Exeter looked poised to grab several more, showing incredible hunger going forward with the right-back Nick Thompson frequently exchanging passes with the central players, working plenty of space down the right hand side.

Gloucestershire’s best chance of the half came as centre-forward Phil Veale nicked the ball from the toes of Jim Mickelson only to drag his effort wide of

the left post.

The beginning of the second half mirrored the first, Exeter eventually adding to their lead from open play, as Matt Langley weaved his way between two defenders, rounded the goal keeper and pulled back the ball for Marriott to smash the ball into the open net. Exeter did not rest there, immediately adding a 3rd to their tally. Marriot again working tirelessly down the left hand side, beating the right back in typical style then seeing his deft shot batted away by the opposition keeper only as far as Mike Dale who, whilst falling under a challenge, managed to sneak his shot into the bottom corner.

Gloucestershire responded throwing large volumes of men forward, causing inevitable defensive chaos. Most notably they utilised long throw-ins, which repeatedly unsettled the back line.

There was an uneasy sense of déjà vu as Gloucestershire were awarded a soft free-kick in the Exeter half. Sure enough, as the ball was looped over the top, keeper Ash Wilson rushed from his goal to claim the ball, only to watch in anguish as opposition substitute Tom Boxer’s header looped over him and bounced into the goal. Gloucestershire were given a new lease of life and began to exploit

some uneasy defensive ball control to create chances in the opposition half. A second free kick heralded a second goal for substitute Boxer, this time scoring directly, as he snuck the ball over the wall, wrong-footing the keeper and finding the bottom corner.

The visitors were in full swing and it didn’t take long for them to complete an impressive comeback as the ball floated in from the left hand side. None of the Exeter players could connect with a clearance, the ball eventually being bundled through the sea of legs for the equaliser.

Entering the final 10 minutes, the temperament reached boiling point, with challenges flying in across the park, met by fervent appeals from both benches. It seemed that the scrappier style was much more suited to the away side however, as they reaped the benefit from a long throw-in from the right hand side. The ball hung in the air just long enough for contact to be made, sending it through the crowd via a series of deflections, most notably a last ditch attempt from Mickleson to clear the ball from the line.

There is cause for optimism, but consistency will be needed if they’re going to challenge at the top of the league.

Final score: Exeter 3 – 4 Gloucestershire.

All going swimmingly Swimming

Anne-Marie Clifford Swim Club Secretary

UNIVERSITY OF EXETER Swimming Club’s BUCS Squad had a successful weekend away at the BUCS Short Course 2012 Championship in Sheffield with outstanding swims across all events. The men’s freestyle relay (Callum Bailey, Chanil Patel, Parco Lau and Ilya Skliarov) gained 26th position out of 70 teams. With such strong competition the team was a razor tight 1.2 seconds off from making the final. The women’s freestyle relay (Phoebe Weaver, Becky Grey, Hilary Davey and Laura Froshaug) all swam strong PBs to come 32nd out of 65.

Similarly, the men’s 200m medley team (Daniel Crawford, Ilya

Skliarov, Parco Lau and Callum Bailey) performed well with Daniel on the backstroke leg leading out in a one second PB to help the team come 29th, missing the final by a mere 1.3 seconds. The women’s 200m medley team (Phoebe Weaver, Emily Curtis, Rachel Laurence and Laura Froshaug) performed exceptionally well, with Laura Froshaug swimming the fastest she did over the weekend in her freestyle anchor leg to secure the team’s 31st position out of 65.

There were many individual highlights over the weekend, including Emily Curtis in the 50m breastroke to finish 28th out of a vast 167 competitors. First year Rachel Vaughan swam exceedingly well in the women’s open 200m breaststroke heats, placing 20th with a superb time of 2:57:91.

Callum Bailey and Parco Lau competed

in the 50m Butterfly finishing 31st and 34th respectively out of 185 swimmers, both only 0.4 seconds from qualifying for the rapid semi-final. Women’s club captain Laura Froshaug swum a very strong 100m freestyle in a time of 1:03:53 to finish 45th out of 156. Other superb performances came from Ronny Tang, James Marshman, Timo Tolppa, Adele Marsullo, Vicky Dewar-Fowler, Christine Howie and Sarah Crisp.

Men’s club Captain Ilya Skliarov commended the team’s performance by saying “Everyone swam remarkably well, especially as it is so early on in the season. I was impressed with how everyone stepped up when they needed to; and the teamwork shown in all the relays was outstanding. We can definitely look forward to our other BUCS competitions to come”.

Rugby Union

James Tapp Reporter

EURFC 1st XV were unlucky to lose out to Cardiff Metropolitan 25-31 at Duckes Meadow last Wednesday.

Exeter answered an early Cardiff penalty with a turn over and a long drive that put the visitors firmly on the back foot. This was greatly appreciated by the large home support that had turned up for the e. It was not hard to imagine that the home fans had purchased the entire stock of port that the Exeter shops had to offer.

Their chanting and shouts of support for the home team were loud and impressive, so much so that they disturbed the play of the women’s lacrosse game taking place one pitch over. It looked promising for Exeter and they thought they had a try early on. Fraser Gillies believed he had scored but unfortunately the ball was touched down by Cardiff hands first so a 22 metre drop out was awarded.

Soon after, Mike Pope was shown a yellow card for what I would call “enthusiastic encouragement” for the opposition to stay on side and keep their hands out of the ruck. With a man down Exeter still scored a well earned try that was unfortunately left unconverted leaving the score line 5 - 3 to the home side. The game was a battle of the breakdown and the boys in green found themselves down by two men due

to a blood injury. Cardiff capitalized on this advantage, scoring a converted try.

Another 7 points followed for the Welsh and it looked as if the game was slipping away from Exeter. Step forward Mike Pope, making up for his sin bin as he scored an inspirational try just before half time. With the conversion missed the score line at half time stood at 10 - 17 against Exeter.

Not content with his redemptive try, Pope drove over the line again for Exeter again, closing the gap to 15 - 17. EURFC were right to think that they were well in the game at this point. Unfortunately for the home side, Cardiff had different ideas. Two tries for the away team shifted the score to 15 - 31.

From here on in the men in green did themselves proud. Connor Hartley’s fresh legs allowed Exeter to make impressive runs. Undeterred by a referee who seemed adamant that he would dampen their chances at every move, Exeter marched forward, scoring an impressive try that was ably converted and alongside a nicely kicked penalty the score board read 25 - 31 in favour of the Welsh side.

Unfortunately Exeter’s valiant efforts were not enough and the referee blew the whistle to end proceedings..

Mike Pope on reflection commented that, “although we didn’t get the result we wanted it was still some of the best rugby we have played this season” following with “I can’t fault the boys with their effort”.

EURL’s first win leaves Bath in the cold Rugby League

Billy Glover EURL Team Member

EXETER’S young Rugby League team made another step forward on Wednesday, recording their first win 2824 against a strong and determined Bath side. It wasn’t all plain sailing, however, as the game swung between the two sides throughout the second half.

The day started ominously when Exeter’s experienced stand-off Faolon Lidston pulled up injured in the warm up. Despite this Exeter got off to a flying start, with strong running from centre Alex Mills-Baker and wing Xander Seddon causing the Bath defence problems. Dave Dwyer capitalised after picking up an excellent offload from Captain Hugo Fraser to score in the left corner. Bath then equalised soon after, when the Exeter defence failed to deal with a grubber kick into the goal area.

The Bath try seemed to catalyse the Exeter effort. The new half back pairing of Franky Kibble and John Hodgson began to dictate the attack, resulting in Seddon scoring in the right corner. Fraser soon followed, stepping back against the grain of the Bath defence to score near the post.

Half time seemed to come too soon for Exeter, who had spurned several scoring opportunities. Bath, however, started the second half as a different

team. The increased tempo from the men in blue led to the inexperienced Exeter forwards giving away penalties, and within 10 minutes Bath had scored twice, bringing the score level.

Bath then scored again, pulling ahead by six points. The Exeter forwards, however, began to dig deep, Tom Shopland in particular seemed to be enjoying the defensive effort involved, roaming the middle of the park looking to make game changing hits with a smile on his face.

The Exeter forwards were not content with just defending though. Prop Ali Haberfield took the ball from dummy half and crashed over the line, taking several Bath players with him. Hodgson kicked the conversion, bringing the scores level. This try brought new energy into the Exeter team, and with four minutes remaining Fraser scored an outstanding solo effort from halfway to take Exeter into the lead. With only a few minutes to play the Exeter team managed to keep possession, playing sensible rugby with the ball and putting in huge tackles to dislodge it in defence.

The final whistle brought a visible reaction of both joy and relief from the Exeter players, as well as the realisation that they still had a lot to work on.

Despite the mistakes, this win, avenging last season’s close varsity defeat, gives the team something to build on.

EURL next game is against Oxford at Duckes Meadow on 17November.

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39

Crossword No. 40 by Raucous

Lax women thrash Southampton

Women’s Lacrosse Sophy Coombes-Roberts EULC Team Member

AFTER reaching the BUCS semi-finals last season the Exeter Ladies Lacrosse 1st team have a point to prove this year.

Having started the season strongly they have only lost one match to date, made even more impressive by their 1010 draw against Cambridge, last year’s victors in both the Southern League and in the BUCS championships.

This week, the girls continued their impressive streak by demolishing Southampton in a one-sided game displaying both their skill and discipline

on the pitch.

Exeter looked formidable from the start, denying Southampton any opportunity to find their rhythm. Within the first ten minutes six goals had been scored, and this set the tone for the entire match.

Exeter dominated at both ends of the field making for a decisively onesided first half. With a lucky goal from a Southampton attacker, the half-time score stood at 11-1.

Eager to rack up a big goal difference, the second half was just as impressive as the first. Impressively, a large proportion of the team were able to find the back of the net, from freshers to

fourth years, which really demonstrated the depth the team has this year; made even more commendable considering the vast number of graduating players the team lost last year. After putting on her pads for the first time in years at the beginning of the season, goalkeeper Immi Bodimeade was a force to be reckoned with, letting in only two goals throughout the entire match, leaving the final score at 21-2.

One hopes this goal difference will help place them above Cambridge in the later stages of the league. If they continue to perform at this level, their goal to replicate last year’s success is most certainly within grasp.

EUWHC 2s held to Cardiff draw

Down

1. Mary Anne Evans’ pseudonym (6,5) 8. & 9. Across. Christian Democratic Union leader (6,6) 9. See 8 Across.

10. A group of seven (6) 13. Comedian; Webb and Coren’s partner? (5,8) 16. Exclamation (6) 19. Malcolm X’s slave name (6) 20. Money (slang) (6) 21. Rap group featuring Chuck D and Flavor Flav (6,5)

2. The E in ELO (8) 3. Try again (9) 4. Suez Prime Minister; Garden (4) 5. South American people (4) 6. Oklahoma city (5) 7. Non-practising Catholic (6) 11. Talk show host; Tent realm (anag.) (9) 12. African capital (8) 14. Detest (6) 15. Flower (5) 17. Wild guess (4) 18. Douglas Adams’ meaning of life? (4)

Photo: Nicklas Rahmel

Women’s Hockey Grace McGeehan

Promote your society here. E-mail editors@exepose.com

EUWHC Team Member

ON Wednesday 7 November, Exeter Women’s II team had their toughest match of the season, against Cardiff Met, the current leaders of the league.

It was a particularly important game for the team, as they needed the points to progress at this stage of the season.

The squad was a little reduced this week due to injuries and illnesses. Nonetheless, this was hopefully not going to detriment the overall result.

The vibe was tense yet exciting. It was clearly an important match, where both coaches and players expressed their hunger for success. Concentration levels were soaring, it was clear that each team member had their game face on from the start.

Exeter began strongly and confidently. They were very attacking in the first ten minutes, and delivered a number of superb passes, which Cardiff could not defend.

As the game developed, it became a far more thrilling match, with both teams producing outstanding play showing great determination. Exeter had many shots on goal and short comers, but it was only in the latter half of the first 35 minutes that they were able to score a goal – scored by Charlotte McWhirter.

Across

The second half became simply about which team wanted it more.

Cardiff came out hard, they rained down shots on goal and were far more attacking However, with a couple of incredible saves from Exeter’s goalkeeper, the girls in green maintained the lead.

Both teams fought well in the second half and the players were clearly tiring rapidly. Cardiff managed to sneak a goal from Exeter, which was extremely disheartening. However, with very little time left, Exeter just aimed to attack, and keep it out of their

No more goals came in the final minutes of the game. The final score was therefore 1-1, an excellent team performance by Exeter.

40

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Exeter Fleet Racing team win silver at BUCS Nationals

Sailing

Tamsin Davies EUSC Secretary

THE Fleet Racing team won Silver and Bronze BUCS medals and took second place in the overall team prize to mark a successful first weekend of competition for Exeter’s sailors.

BUCS Fleet Racing Nationals took place on the weekend of the 3/4 November and a 15 strong team travelled to Plymouth to compete. With 103 boats and 180 sailors competing, Exeter had strong entries in the Firefly, Laser and Slow Handicap classes.

Each race consisted of two laps of a windward-leeward course and Day One saw the completion of two races in the Firefly and Laser classes, before the wind hit 30 knots and a massive squall came through, taking out half the fleet.

At the end of sailing on the first day, Exeter were placed in second in the Fireflies with two good races from Jason Saints and Lucy Goff.

Unluckily for Martin Evans, he was forced to retire from Race Two following a breakage. Just as racing had been stopped for Day One, Angus Mayhew and Izzy Quicke joined the numerous

boats taking a dip in Plymouth Sound.

It obviously had some appeal as Jason and Lucy followed suit by capsizing themselves!

Over on the other course, Exeter’s two 420s faced strong winds and an hour postponement between races as their course was changed due to incoming ferries. When Race Two eventually got underway Nia Jones and Freya Adams had a fantastic race, leading by twenty boat lengths at the windward mark, only for the race to be abandoned as conditions were deemed unsafe.

“Exeter were placed in second place overall, narrowly missing out on the overall team prize to Plymouth” Despite this and with only one race sailed, the Exeter still finished day one in second place, thanks to Ed Riley and Meia Harnett.

Exeter had high hopes for more success as they entered day two of racing with their leading boats hoping to retain their positions and others aiming to move up the rankings.

However, difficult conditions con-

tinued on Sunday morning with the first race for Fireflies and Lasers being abandoned due to light winds. This was much to the frustration of the two leading Exeter Fireflies and to Martin Evans in his Laser, who was hoping to complete four races to allow him to discard the score from the race where he was forced to retire.

Luckily, by midday the wind filled in and switched 180 degrees for what was to be the final race of the day. Exeter did particularly well in the Firefly class, with Jason and Lucy finishing fifth. They were followed by strong competition from Louise Latham and Tamsin Davies, who finished only a few places behind them in 8th.

In the Slow Handicap, the early light winds gave the Finn an edge over the 420s, despite the hard work of both boats in difficult conditions.

Bronze BUCS medals were awarded to Nia Jones and Freya Adams in the Slow Handicap and Jason Saints and Lucy Goff won silver in the Firefly class.

The team prize was close, and with a 2nd, 3rd and a 4th place, Exeter were placed in second place overall, thus winning valuable BUCS points, but narrowly missing out on the overall team prize to hosts, Plymouth.

Intramural Tables >> As

of 6.11.12

Netball League 1

6 a side Football League 1