Issue 669, 22 May 2017 by Exeposé

EXEPOSÉ

ISSUE 669 22 MAY 2017 exepose.com @Exepose

THE UNIVERSITY OF EXETER’S INDEPENDENT STUDENT NEWSPAPER SINCE 1987

Student support: who joins up the dots? Individuals have raised concerns with regard to the signposting of services for those reporting assault and harassment to the university CN: Some discussion of sexual assault

Susannah Keogh & Jessica Stanier News Team

EXCLUSIVE

IGNPOSTING of safety and support services for those who allege assault or harassment has been criticised by young women currently studying at Exeter, who have shared their concerns with Exeposé. It was stated that current procedures did not make it clear where to turn following their allegations of sexual assault, harassment, or bullying. One has said she was advised not to pursue the formal complaint procedure by the University on the basis that it would be too traumatic. The students speaking to Exeposé claimed that the University has not responded to their reports satisfactorily, not necessarily due to poor services but due to ineffective signposting and lack of training. Exeposé has investigated how these concerns are addressed by current policies and future policy changes. We have also clarified the remit of relevant support services with the University [see page 5]. One student, Beth*, said she was referred to the Wellbeing services after she confided in a staff member. “You’d never look to find these [support services] out until you need them”, she said. She continued to highlight the lack of communication between parties involved in her case as a key issue.

Beth* said she wasn’t offered a Welfare case worker or made aware that the Students’ Guild Advice Unit could have helped her with mitigation. “There was no one to walk me through the mitigation process and it was horrible - I didn’t know I could email.” “If I had someone to help me through then maybe they could help tell the relevant parties. I don’t need pity, I need [the University] to actually protect me. I’m so angry because I know it isn’t my fault.” Beth* said she has found herself being approached by those in her friendship circle for advice. “I don’t want to be this ambassador for it but that’s what I’ve become. You’ve got to tell them to go through the process because it is ultimately helpful, but you also know that it’s going to be painful and they may not get what they need from it.” She was reliant on a departmental member of staff who sympathised but had not been trained to guide her to the relevant student services. “Pastoral care wasn’t her job but knowing she was in the building somewhere meant that she ‘got it’. The people who helped me the most shouldn’t have had to.” Beth* said she would have particularly beneﬁted from more available trained staff. “You need a person for the next year [after an assault] at least, even if it’s just someone who works on the same corridor - someone with whom you don’t have to ask if you can see them.” Beth’s experience is not an isolated case. Other students told Exeposé that they also feel current services

are not being signposted sufficiently. Daisy* said that everyone she spoke with was “very supportive” and “incredibly nice” when she was seeking help with mitigation. However, she said she ended up repeatedly explaining her circumstances which made things difficult: “By the time I had been referred to a welfare officer, I had spoken to three different people, outlining my situation three times, which was not helpful in my situation at all.” The second time Daisy* needed help with mitigation she ended up relying on a friend to help her through the process of applying. “I didn’t know who to contact for which problems, so I was relying on another student who had already figured out the system to help me,” she said. “[This student] also explained to me how the mitigation process works and encouraged me to apply, because I did not realise that I was eligible.” While it worked out well for me, it certainly would not have had I not had a friend to guide me through all the paperwork,” Daisy* said, reflecting on the current signposting of support services. “People who are looking for support for the first time would have a hard time finding it. There are many options, but you have to look for them and contact a lot of people before you know where you have to go.” “She told Exeposé that she was not aware of “most of the services. available” prior to requiring mitigation, including Welfare Caseworkers and the Students’ Guild Advice Unit, and was unclear on the role of her personal tutor.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 3 *Names changed to protect anonymity

MUSIC

ARTS + LIT

Local festivals take centre stage PAGEs 22-23

EXEPOSÉ urges anyone who has been affected by sexual assault, harassment, violence or bullying of any kind to seek support within the University and the Guild as well as with the police. A list of services and contact details can be found at the end of this article.

Interview with Julia Samuel

Image: Max Pixel

PAGE 18

Image: Owain Evans

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UCU condemn University cancellation of Term 2 Friends of Palestine event

Summer days, drifting away

As Term 3 staggers forward and exam season peters out, it seems like everyone is struggling. Freshers aren't feeling all that fresh any more; second years are realising just how frantic life is going to be between committee positions and dissertations; and as for our third year friends... well, we'll save their post-dissy dignity by keeping quiet. If you really want the full debrief, you'll ﬁnd it on page 8 of Comment, where three of our writers have shared some of 16/17's highs and lows. At this point in the year, it's essential to care for yourself - and no, we don't mean with the Google-fuelled hypochondria Science discuss on page 28. Make time for the things you love; Exeter's cultural scene comes to life in late May. Between Poltimore, Exefest and Campus Cinema's Exeter Student Film Festival, there's a creative diversion for just about everyone. See page 24 of Screen and pages 22-23 of Music for more information. Going a little further aﬁeld, Arts + Lit are planning a quintessentially British summer with weather-proof options at the Hay Festival and the RSC (page 19). Lifestyle are determined to eek out that Term 3 payment of your maintenance loan as they daydream about ultimate summer destinations (page 14) and offer some tips and tricks to make summer getaways that bit more feasible (page 15). And if football is your thing, on the back page Sport takes a peek at why local

side Exeter City are heading to Wembley. Not a spectator, more of a player? Touch Duckes is coming up fast too. Back to a healthy dose of reality, Features are examining the current political climate ahead of next issue's political pullout for #GE2017. An interview with Alan Sked (page 11) and an analysis of Labour (page 10) demonstrate the dramatic shifts at play in political parties at both ends of the British spectrum. Change is in the air - but will it be for better or for worse? Last, but by no means least, our front page story - written by two of our predecessors from the 16/17 Senior Team - explores difficult but crucial issues regarding the policies which guide the University's responses to students allegations of sexual or physical assault. The students we spoke to were specifically concerned about the signposting of services; hopefully this article, alongside Comment's piece from the head of Wellbeing (page 9), will help our readers to know where they can find help when it is needed. This story has taken an incredible amount of work, and we are immensely grateful to Susannah Keogh and Jessica Stanier for their dedication in researching and writing the report. It is truly heartening to observe the measures being taken by the university to improve signposting for support processes, including a weighty investment into pastoral training for all staff members.

PAGE 4

COMMENT First, second and final years in review PAGE 8

Image: Wikimedia Commons

FEATURES Farage, farewells and the future: interview with Alan Sked PAGE 11

Image: Wikimedia Commons

SCIENCE

Image: Wikicommons

Lifestyle Editors Print: Lauren Geall & Barbara Balogun Online: Bethan Gilson & Melissa Barker lifestyle@exepose.com

Editorial

NEWS

Google doctor? PAGE 28

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Worldwide university news Cyberattacks on Asian Universities

Yale Dean’s remarks deemed offensive

EVERAL Asian countries, China in particular, have been recently affected by cyberattacks, something that could cause consequences for research and personal data at universities. The attacks wereby ransomware WannaCry; hackers demanding the equivalent of $300 to unlock data encrypted as a result of the attack. Reportedly over 4,300 education institutions in China were infected by the malware; Bejing News informing people on Sunday that students at several universities had their dissertations blocked, a pop up demanding $300 for access to them . China’s top institutions, Peking and Tsinghua were both affected, however due to an immediate security action they were able to prevent a large-scale infection.

HE Dean of a college at Yale University has been criticised for posting Yelp reviews deemed “demeaning and offensive” by students. The reviews, obtained by the Yale Daily News, included comments such as “if you are white trash, this is the perfect night out for you!” and “I guess if you are a white person who has no clue what mochi is, this would be ﬁne for you”. They were posted in and have since been deleted, but were preserved in screenshot form by the Yale Daily News. June Chu, the Dean of Pierson College, apologised for the remarks, writing in an email to students: “My remarks were wrong. There are no two ways about it. Not only were they insensitive in matters related to class and race; they demean the values to which I hold myself and which I offer as a member of this community”.

Canadian University to Facial recognition in increase females' salaries Beijing dorms

ILFRID Laurier University, Canada, has announced it will increase wages for female professors as a way of eliminating the gender pay gap; 33 full professors by 3.9 per cent and 119 associate professors by 3 per cent. A committee established to analyse gender-based salary differences recommended these changes. Deborah MacLatchy, president of the university, stated that gender equality that takes into account wages is “an important principle that Laurier must actively support to achieve its goal of enhancing and sustaining diversity within our community”. This decision is similar actions being taken in some UK universities, including the University of Essex and LSE. Photos: Left - Wikimedia Commons Right - Wikispaces

ACIAL recognition software has been installed in a dormitory at Beijing Normal University. The University cited security as an important reason for installing the software, the dormitory in question being all-female: “We couldn’t prevent strangers from entering before, but now the monitoring system will alert if any strangers follow the students when they enter the building”, the Beijing Daily News was told. This new technology will also alert the university if a student is away for more than 24 hours. Students will be greeted by a message saying “welcome home” when entering the building, and will be told by the machines to “be pretty” as they leave. Natalie Keffler and Megan Davies, Print News Editors

News Signposting for support services CONTINUED FROM FRONT

Like Beth*, she also suggested that staff training could help improve the signposting of support services: “If you don’t know about any of the services, your personal tutor would probably be the first person to talk to, and if they could direct you to the relevant service that would make it a lot easier to navigate through the system. Also, welfare workers could be introduced to students during the year, so that we know who they are and how we can contact them, as personally I didn’t even know such a position existed.” Exeposé has been informed by the University that staff are receiving training so that they can make students aware of all services available to them.

...staff are receiving training so that they can make all students aware of all the services available to them One student expressed concern over communication regarding the safety of others as she said she remains unaware of whether the University has acted on her reports of a student perpetrator. “I feel extremely disappointed in the way they channelled me into processes that I had no interest in,” Anabel* said. She stated her worry that other students are being put at risk. Although the Students’ Guild Advice Unit can offer support to students and liaise with the University, they are not able to start disciplinary action against an alleged perpetrator. This can only be prompted by the University. Another student, Clara*, claimed that in her first year at Exeter posters were put up in her halls with a picture of her saying “Reward: if found she’ll let you finger her.” She did not feel supported by the University throughout her case, adding “the institution seems oblivious that cases of bullying happen frequently, especially in Freshers halls.” She said she was advised by the University not to go ahead with her formal complaint, “because it would be too traumatic.” “I was told that without giving evidence in front of the accused in a court-case-like scenario, I would not be able to get them expelled. Instead they were fined £80 each.” Wellbeing services provided by the Guild and the University are intended to support those dealing with the aftermath of a sexual assault, and to guide them to external services with specific expertise in these issues. In cases like this, a Dignity and Respect Advisor can provide informal support and mediation after a student reports their concerns to ensure their mental wellbeing and safety are protected. They can then pursue a formal complaint through Student Cases. The Student Advice Unit at the Guild can also provide mediation, as well as helping with mitigation *Names changed to protect anonymity

processes and liaising with relevant parties. On the Dignity and Respect section of the University of Exeter’s website, it is noted that the University can, in “exceptional cases”, take action to ensure “the safety of all staff and students” even if the alleged victim does not report their case as a formal complaint. In 2015, UK Universities ran a taskforce to examine violence against women, harassment and hate crime. Over 60 universities, including Exeter, are due to review their policies. Universities Minister Jo Johnson has said he “expects universities to take a zero-tolerance approach” to sexual violence and harassment. During the 2015/2016 academic year, Exeter convened its own sexual harassment and violence taskforce to make recommendations on awareness raising, dealing with disclosures, internal investigatory and disciplinary procedures, and data capture and management. The taskforce was made up of University staff members, the Guild/FXU, the police, and local community organisations. It was recommended that a Universitywide approach to dealing with sexual harassment and violence should be introduced, alongside training opportunities for staff so that they can adequately support students who confide in them. As a consequence, the University wrote the Sexual Assault Support and Investigation Policy in November 2016. The policy looks into supporting students of both parties if necessary, giving victims access to immediate support and direction whilst encouraging referral to the support of the University Welfare Caseworkers. Following the taskforce, the University is working with the Students’ Guild to ensure that if a student experiences any form of assault or harassment they will be signposted swiftly to a single point of contact. Exeter has also received £16,500 from the Higher Education Funding Council to fund a ‘Safeguarding Against Sexual Violence’ project, in order to implement their recommendations. Another student, Emily*, said she felt “for the most part” supported by the University services when she re-

ported her experience of a sexual assault. “I struggled with PTSD and the University funded a therapy course for me privately through occupational health as the local NHS services were overwhelmed. That was great for me and really helped, but I often wonder how differently things may have turned out had I had a bit more support in those first few weeks.” Fee Scott of Devon Rape Crisis was involved in the Exeter taskforce and spoke to Exeposé about provision for victims of sexual assault at the University. “First responses to a disclosure of sexual violence really are crucial and can make the difference between students feeling empowered to make the right decisions for them or compounding shame and doubt and self-blame. We know that getting the right support really early on is vital to help students cope with and recover from the impacts of sexual violence. Knowing what services are available is key to this and we’d expect staff at the University of Exeter to be aware of what these are and how to access them.”

The welfare, wellbeing and safety of students is the University’s highest priority University spokesperson

The ‘Sexual Assault Support and Investigation Policy’ which resulted from the taskforce is yet to be fully implemented, although Devon Rape Crisis has delivered two pilot courses of training on dealing with first disclosures, covering both knowledge and attitudes. “Obviously, it is imperative that all staff members who have direct contact with students know about all available services, both on and off campus, and the policy could be considered effective when a comprehensive training programme is in place.” A spokesperson for the University said: “The welfare, wellbeing and safety of students is the University’s highest priority. Cases of sexual assault and harassment are thankfully rare but are treated with the utmost seriousness and sensitivity when reported to us. Victims of sexual assault, harassment or any other violent

or distressing incidents are supported through our Dignity and Respect Advisors, the Wellbeing Centre and the Welfare Caseworkers. “The Wellbeing service helps around 1,700 students a year with issues such as exam stress, bereavement, organising how to study, to anxiety and depression and serious mental health problems. It has consistently positive feedback from students. We treat all cases absolutely confidentially and therefore do not comment on the circumstances of individual students, but we would want to hear from those who feel they need further support. “We are concerned by reports that some students were unclear where they could go for help and advice. It is important that everyone who works with students – including academic tutors – is able to direct people towards support services available both at the University and elsewhere. We consistently work to review and improve the support offered and so we are introducing new training for tutors and other frontline staff. We also set up a sexual violence task group during the last academic year and have implemented new policies for the support and investigation of sexual assault. “Following the taskforce report, we are working with the Guild to make sure that if a student experiences any form of assault or harassment they are swiftly signposted students to a single point of contact. We have recently secured external funding to support our efforts in this area. “The University fully understands how distressing and traumatic incidents of this kind can be, and we will do everything we can to support and help students who find themselves in such a deeply upsetting situation.” Not all students who are affected by these issues wish to make a report to the police. The Advice Unit Student Support Manager explained what steps are meant to be taken when a student informs them of harassment or assault: “The University has a Sexual Assault Support and Investigation Policy and the Advice Unit would support students to make contact with the University’s point of contact

NEWS EDITORS: Natalie Keffler Megan Davies

for these matters. The Advice Unit can provide supplementary support to students in these situations through the provision of advice and information relating to funding, accommodation and academic related issues that may be impacted by the student’s situation.” Alec Jones, VP Welfare & Diversity, was involved in running the #NeverOK campaign against sexual harassment within the Guild this year. “When a student reports a case of sexual harassment, it is vital that they get the support they need,” he said. “We have to work within the legal framework that operates but we will always seek to make sure a student is supported. I would always recommend going to speak to the Advice Unit, who can offer impartial and confidential advice and discuss the options available to the student; supporting them in whichever steps they wish to take thereafter.”

É Support Services: Students’ Guild Advice Unit: 01392 723520 advice@exeterguild.com Wellbeing: 01392 724381 wellbeing@exeter.ac.uk Nightline: 01392 724000 exeternightline@gmail.com Samaritans: 116 123 jo@samaritans.org Devon Rape Crisis: 01392 204174 support@devonrapecrisis.org.uk Survivors UK: 02035983898 info@survivorsuk.org

Photo: Niklas Ramel

For more information on the university’s Wellbeing service, see page 9 of Comment

NEWS

BEEHAVE up for award

EEHAVE, the aptly named computer model that studies the activity of honeybee colonies under different conditions, has been nominated for an award. The team are now ﬁnalists for the 2017 BBSRC Innovator of the Year award in the “social impact” category. The model simulates the effects of different “stressors” on the health and development of bees, and it even features a mobile app that tracks nectar and pollen resources. The model is already being used by farmers, agrochemical companies, regulators, and the European Food Safety Authority. Team leader Professor Juliet Osborne said, “We’re delighted that our work translating fundamental research into practical, user-friendly tools has been recognised in this way”. The winner will be announced on May 24. Deepa Lalwani, News Team

Ideal leaders look like us

CCORDING to a new study, employees will look for an ideal leader who looks exactly like them, not one clad in designer gear. Academics from the University of Exeter Business School and the Bradford School of Management conducted a study in order to work out whether people judged the qualities of their bosses based on their appearance. The participants were asked to think about two excellent, two average and two poor leaders they had worked with, and then describe their appearance. After this they were given ﬁfty photographs - half male, half female, in various forms of attire and physical descriptives. The results found that people subconsciously draw on their own self-image: in other words, when the idea of what a leader should like was absent, participants simply reverted to describing themselves. Theo Stone, News Team

Royal Society visit

HE Vice-President of The Royal Society, Professor Alex Halliday FRS, made a special visit to the University of Exeter, in which he praised researchers for their “energy, commitment and enthusiasm”. As part of a three-day visit, he was shown facilities on both campuses. Halliday, himself from Penzance, has been Geochemistry Professor at Oxford University for almost 13 years. The leading scientist paid tribute to the research carried out by the University of Exeter: “We need universities with a vision for research and education and a commitment to beneﬁt the world more broadly. Exeter is doing an impressive job at rising to this challenge.” Hannah Stevenson, News Team

22 MAY 2017 | EXEPOSÉ

Academics slam Uni FoP decision Owain Evans Editor

HE Exeter branch of the lecturer’s union, UCU, has hit out at the University for its cancellation of the Friends of Palestine ‘Mock Israeli Checkpoint’ event last term, passing a motion of condemnation at its AGM. The motion which was passed unanimously, claimed that there was “considerable further evidence to suggest that the ban...was a result of external pressure” and that “the ban represents a dangerous curtailment of the freedom of expression that a University should be upholding.” Plans for the event would have seen a mock checkpoint set up in the centre of campus, as part of the Friends of Palestine Society’s marking of ‘Israeli Apartheid Week’. However, ﬁve days before the event was due to take place, committee members from the society were contacted by the University’s registrar, Mike Shore-Nye, announcing a decision by the University Event Referral Panel to cancel the event. The letter outlined the position that “the University is not seeking to judge opinions or beliefs being expressed openly within our academic community, providing they do not stray into anti-semitism or other forms of unlawful discrimination and har-

rassment”. An appeal against the decision was dismissed by Janice Kay, Provost, who stated that “as the nature of the event is to engage with students and staff, it will potentially affect any access, regardless of location.” Professor Richard Seaford, one of the academics behind the UCU motion, told Exeposé: “The checkpoint, which was to be held in the large area outside the Great Hall, had been cleared by the Guild Health and Safety Ofﬁcer, who has 14 years of experience. Nevertheless, it was banned, and at the same time IAW events - despite

being held for many yeras without incident - were banned in several other Universities. “We now have a paper trail that lays bare what happened. The paper trail helped to ensure a unanimous motion at the Exeter AGM of the union of academics condeming the ban.” The paper trail referenced by Seaford includes a statement from the Board of Deputies of British Jews, claiming that their talks with several Vice-Chancellors and the Universities Minister, Jo Johnson, ended up leading to a situation where “a number of events have been signiﬁcantly

Photo: Owain Evans

amended or cancelled.” A further letter, sent by Johnson to Universities UK, warned of the risk of antisemitic incidents occurring as part of ‘Israeli Apartheid Week’, whilst calling on universities to “discharge their responsibilities fully.” “All these documents are available for general circulation,” Seaford commented. “In my 38 years at Exeter University, this is the most blatant, politically inspired suppression of freedom of expression, and does much damage to the credibility of the management. Given that the University has a legal duty to uphold freedom of expression, it may also be illegal.” This comes as Exeposé learns that Vice Chancellor Sir Steve Smith’s controversial visit to Israel has been cancelled due to the forthcoming General Election. A University of Exeter spokesman said: “The University of Exeter is committed to free speech within the law, and to allowing legitimate protest to take place. The Friends of Palestine Society has held a number of events on campus during the past academic year. The University has suggested that the society consider alternative locations and approaches to enable us to consider giving approval for the event to be held in the Autumn. We are still happy to have discussions with the Friends of Palestine society about their future plans.”

Exeter drops to 13th in Guardian league tables Graham Moore Copy Editor

N 16 May the release of the Guardian University League Tables for 2018 occurred, and the University of Exeter’s results tell an exciting story. Whilst we still place in the top 20, the University has slipped out of the elusive top ten, down two places to 13th (the same decrease as last year). Yet although our overall score may have seen a slight drop, the likes of UCL (surpassing us in ‘Guardian score’ just this year) may soon be staring at their London rent fees regretfully, dreaming of sunny Devon: our course and teaching satisfaction are back on the rise, both at 89.8%.

21 of our courses rank in the Guardian’s top 20 per subject The subject tables, as usual, are infinitely more exciting. Congratulations to our St Lukes students, as both Medicine and Medical Imaging soar (up five to 5th place and nine places to 6th respectively), joining our already stellar Sports Sciences

course, which itself holds fast at 5th. However, Drama steals the show with a rise from 22nd to 6th, securing a 99% course satisfaction rating just for good measure. In total, 21 of our courses rank in the Guardian’s top 20 per subject, with three of those holding top five positions, and eight securing a place in their top 10s. Deputy Vice Chancellor Prof. Tim Quine asserted that these results – which also place Exeter 7th in the Russell Group - confirmed “[the University’s] commitment to high-quality education, world-leading research,

and outstanding student support”. However, not all subjects performed quite so well. Amongst the more minor fluctuations (Languages – which the Guardian ranks as one subject - unfortunately dropping out of the top 20, for example) there are a few more shocking figures. Philosophy went from 9th to 25th, whilst Physics dropped an astronomical 20 places from 13th to 33rd. These numbers are surprising, particularly when compared to the subjects’ individual data; whilst their overall score may have taken a long walk off a short

Photo: University of Exeter Business School

pier, course satisfaction for both Physics and Philosophy was barely impacted. Indeed, the exact reasons for these decreases are hard to determine from the Guardian’s tables, and comparison with the Complete University Guide provides further reassurance – Physics only dropped three places (to 12th), and Philosophy just one (down to 6th). Indeed, other subjects performed more favourably here than in the Guardian tables, with History up two (as opposed to down three), and Sports Sciences sitting pretty in 1st position. Besides, university league tables have a negligible impact on the everyday aspects of our university educations and lives. Whilst the year’s trend may not be an overwhelming increase for Exeter, it’s fair to say that we’re holding a happy position in the UK’s top 20 - and as for next year, the top 10 is calling.

If you are experiencing issues with your course, then discussing these issues with your lecturers, tutors, or Guild and SSLC representatives is the most productive path towards helping yourself and others improve the University.

Professor nominated for literary awards thing that will be revealed later this month, then they won’t be the ﬁrst for this novel; it won the OCM Bocas Prize for Carribean LiteraEI Miller, a profesture earlier this month. sor in creative The novel is set writing, in Jamaica, 1982, has had his novel telling the story Augustown shortof a small comlisted for the munity, and how Royal Society a single day in of Literature history, when Ondaatje Prize, a preacher said who commend he was going to the book which ﬂy, had an impact best evokes the Credit: University of Exeter on everyone’s lives. spirit of a place. Speaking about the It has also been shortlisting of these prizes, shortlisted for the Green Professor Miller said “It is wonCarnation Prize, that rewards the best writing by an LGBTQ author. derful to be recognised by so many prestigious organisations. I’m thrilled to be shortlisted for their prizes.” It is wonderful to be Miller has previously been awardrecognised by so many ed the Forward Prize for Poetry for prestigious organisations. his collection, The Cartographer Tries Kei Miller To Map a Way To Zion in 2014, a collection which was also shortIf these prizes are won, some- listed for the Dylan Thomas Prize.

Natalie Kefﬂer News Editor

NEWS

Reith Lectures set to bring Exeter into cutting-edge cultural conversations Emma Bessent Editor

CCLAIMED author Dame Hilary Mantel will be giving this year’s Reith Lectures, the fourth of which will be given at the University of Exeter on 6 June, 2017. The series is entitled “Resurrection: The Art and the Craft”. The lecture given in Exeter will be “Can These Bones Live?” and will entail discussion of how ﬁction can be used to “resurrect” times gone by.

.... put[ting] the reader in the moment, even if the moment is 500 years ago. Hilary Mantel

The event will be held in the Forum’s Alumni Auditorium. Reception will take place from 6pm with the lecture itself commencing at 7pm. Sue Lawley, who has present the Reith Lectures since 2002, will lead a Q&A

session afterwards. The session will be explore how authors can work to “put recorded and later broadcast on BBC the reader in the moment, even if the moment is 500 years ago”, ensuring Radio 4. that historical heritage does not only The Reith Lectures are a series of annual lectures established in 1948 as undergo archival preservation but experiences a rich, creatively engaging a mark of respect for Sir John Reafterlife. ith, first director-general Sir Steve Smith, of the BBC, and Vice Chancelhis outstanding lor of the contribution University to public of Exeter, services said of the through event: “Hithe means lary is an of broadhonorary cast. graduate Manof Exeter tel is the University and latest in a has close links long tradition to the region. We of prestigious inCredit: Flickr are always pleased to tellectual and culturally welcome her here at Exeter. I significant individuals to present the lectures as between 1948 and know that, as on previous occasions, 2017, only the year 1992 failed to see students and staff will be enthralled to hear her talk, with the vivid powers of the Reith Lectures broadcast. She will draw on her background description she uses to bring historical as a bestselling historical novelist to fiction to life.”

Annual Exeter Community Survey It’s raining dogs Graham Moore Copy Editor

ARTICULARLY in times like these, when one can so rarely see past even the end of a library desk, it can be hard to remember that we as a university are part of a larger community. When life is just something that happens between making cups of tea and staring blankly at recordings of a lecture you definitely went to, it can be easy to forget that there’s a world outside your window. Yet we all live in this city, and even if we only step into town proper in order to show off our (personally very shoddy) moves in Arena, we are all part of the wider Exeter community. I bring this up because it’s that time of year again, when the University runs its annual Community Survey. If you haven’t heard of it before, this survey is a chance for all community members – student residents and local residents alike - to voice their opinions and concerns, producing feedback which will influence University policy regarding community integration. The survey (available via the ‘University in the

Community’ section of the website) is intended to advise the University’s role in the relationship between its students and the city as a whole. Does this matter, I hear you say? In fact, it does – these types of changes to University policy directly affect the student experience. Positive

Credit: Mike Smith relations between city and university communities make the community of Exeter as a whole a more enjoyable place to be, and to this end I strongly encourage any of you who have the time to fill out this survey. The influence of last year’s Community Survey

can be seen in the University’s (also excitingly titled) Community Engagement Plan, and there’s more to it than just rhetoric and good PR. Target areas range from the admittedly predictable (‘domestic noise issues’, we meet again) to items that directly affect students on a day-to-day basis, such as tenancy rights, landlord accreditation, and crime prevention. Rory Cunningham, the University’s Community Liaison Officer, told Exeposé: “Your opinion is extremely valuable to us and we hope you can take around 10-15 minutes to complete the attached survey. The deadline for responses Monday 3rd of July and we are giving away x3 £50 Amazon vouchers to randomly chosen responders”. Indeed, the only drawback I can suggest to the Community Survey is that the lack of publicity around it. It will take a few minutes, and after the results come out in August you’ll be able to see your feedback positively affecting the lives of the over 127,000 people who share in our community. So, this is your public service announcement: have your say, and make the Exeter experience more cohesive, secure, and enjoyable for everyone - students and non-students alike.

Megan Davies News Editor

TUDENTS were delighted to see guide dogs come to campus on Friday 12th May. These were a part of a Guild event aiming to help students destress during Credit: Flickr the stressful exam period, and simultaneously raising money for the Guide Dogs Association. Students were given a brief talk about guide dogs, before meeting the dogs and their trainers. Student DivaDaria Drissell told Exeposé: “we got to meet the dogs for ﬁfteen minutes whilst their trainers talked about what the dogs are like and their duties. I really enjoyed the event as the dogs were friendly but calm as trained to be more passive than the usual the dogs you meet”. Participation was at the cost of a suggested £2 donation, which went to the Exeter branch of the Guide Dogs Association. The Guide Dogs Association supports people with sight loss,

both with the help of guide dogs and by investing in research and campaigning for the rights of people with sight loss. Alec James, VP Welfare and Diversity, told Exeposé: “I was really pleased we were able to make this event happen, to raise awareness of mental health issues and to raise a great amount of money for a brilliant charity. Thank you especially to all the volunteers who made it possible”. Students were impressed both by the dogs and by the work done by the charity: “I had already ﬁnished my exams when I met the dogs so felt a bit like I was stealing stressed people’s potential happiness, but the guilt didn’t last long when I saw all the dogs. It was a great way to help both students and charity, and it was interesting to ﬁnd out how much money and time is needed to train a guide dog. A very worthy cause!”, said student Harry Williams. Another student, Phoebe Davis added: “I feel like it was a really lovely way of helping with student wellbeing, as well as supporting local charity work. “I was sitting in A and V for most of the day and everyone who saw the dogs was smiling - which was really lovely to see during exam season”.

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Great pay, flexible hours, fantastic team, free biscuits and interesting work. Contact DLHE@exeter.ac.uk for further information.

JUST SOME OF OUR AMAZING GRADUATESâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; DESTINATIONS

Description of duties: Manages a rainwater harvesting project in South East Madagascar aimed at ensuring children receive clean drinking water. Course undertaken at the University of Exeter: n M ENG Civil and Environmental Engineering.

Name: : Jade Ainsworth Employer name: Jadegreenvegan. com (self-employed) Job title: Blogger and clothing line founder Description of duties: Writer, editor and designer of lifestyle blog - jadegreenvegan.com and founder and designer of clothing line. Course undertaken at the University of Exeter: n BSc Accounting.

Name: Eleanor Gooch Employer name: Deloitte Job title: Forensic Analyst Description of duties: Analysing and reviewing confidential financial data within investigations regarding financial crime. Course undertaken at the University of Exeter: n BA Russian and Spanish with proficiency in Portuguese.

Name: Benjamin Yexley Employer name: Botswana Predator Conservation Trust Job title: Field Research Assistant Description of duties: Collects behavioural data on the large carnivore guild in the Okavango Delta - lion, leopard, cheetah, African wild dog and spotted hyena. Course undertaken at the University of Exeter: n BSc Zoology.

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22 MAY 2017 | EXEPOSÉ

Comment

HE idea of uni is built up from a young age, watching films with wild college parties, older siblings telling tales of drunk nights out and schools spouting how important it is to get the grades for that all-important next step in life. Before I came to uni, I was sure it would be the start of a new phase in my life. Leaving the nerdy, awkward, teenager behind I would become a new, sophisticated and independent young adult. I’d cook the food I wanted, it would be homemade lasagne with a side of garlic bread and mac ‘n’ cheese every day. I would wear trendy clothes and dye my hair blue or purple with no parents to tell me I look like a clown. I would reinvent myself and why stop there? I could change my name to something cool like Razor. I would get new hobbies and join cool societies. Everyone would want to be my friend, I would be the socialite on campus. Going out partying every night, staying out till the early hours of the morning as well as having the massivest house parties. I would balance my work load and stay super motivated doing a subject that I love whilst achieving a first in every assignment. My friends at home wouldn’t even recognise me when I returned. Oh how wrong I was. It took me no longer than 3 days to realise that for one thing I can’t cook, and for another I am way too lazy to spend time planning meals or looking at recipes. I live off the three C’s; crisps, cookies and chips. After a few weeks of putting effort into my appearance, my flat mates soon got used to my dragged -through a-hedge-backward, spotty and always wearing pyjamas self, and soon after that the rest of campus did too. Sophisticated and independent were also a bit out of my reach. I did join societies but repeatedly slept through the classes, and never went to the socials. My favourite subject at school has now turned into the bane of my life. After reading the first of many 60 page academic articles, I found that I could spend 3 hours re-reading the same sentence and still not understand any of the words. House parties are out of the question with way too much tidying up after and not enough friends to invite. My uni life so far can be compared to that of a hermit. So what would I do differently? Be more productive? Maybe. Become more of a social butterfly? Maybe. Learn how to be a Michelin star chef ? Maybe not. But honestly? I’d change absolutely nothing at all.

Alicia Rees Malcolm Wong

Second time lucky

First year frivolities Romy Ashmore-Hills Contributor

COMMENT EDITORS:

Hannah Stevenson Contributor

N a transformation so miraculous it is worthy of David Attenborough narration, your time at university will see you turn from an overly-enthusiastic Jägerbombfuelled fresher, pulling innumerable all-nighters in TP; into a hard-working americano-fuelled final year, pulling endless all-dayers in the library. But in this (admittedly reductive) generalisation, we often overlook second year, as potentially the most personally significant and most enjoyable of your student life. In a lot of ways, second year is a

bit of limbo. Whilst you’re not quite expected to be pulling the long shifts in the library just yet, operating as a functional human being after two nights out in a row becomes less of a norm and more of a superhuman feat (although you will probably refuse to concede to old age, and attempt Cheesy Tuesdays and TP Wednesday in the same week more than once). You will see freshers in the Lemmy and wonder if you were ever like that on a night out (you were). And, perhaps most devastatingly, you will find that the phrase “down it freshahhh” is no longer acceptable unless used ironically (and even then, the fact that you aren’t a fresher any more will make it very unfunny indeed.)

Nothing will make you love student life quite like second year If that doesn’t sound like much fun, that’s because sometimes it isn’t. Not only does the work you produce start to count for something, but besides that, you are living in a proper *adult* house for the first time. This means you will have to face leaking

Photo:University of Exeter

ceilings or dodgy meter readings or a family of slugs invading your living room at night (yes really) with Bear Grylls-esque tenacity and resourcefulness. Unless you’ve gone for somewhere with bills included, you will realise you didn’t know what cold actually felt like until second year (do run to Primark and buy every piece of fleecy loungewear on offer; don’t: consider burning your contract for warmth out of anger at your landlord for apparently not insulating your house). But do you know what? It’s all tremendously character-building. And whilst your first year experiences teach you how to “be a student”, nothing will make you love student life quite like second year. For one, your social circle expands tenfold. This is mainly because this is the year that you throw yourself into societies with earnest, owing to the fact that the workload isn’t completely crazy, and that you were actually selective about the societies you joined at the Freshers’ Fair (which you walked round repeatedly telling yourself that you really didn’t need any more free pens). And so, you find that you always have some-

one who’s up for grabbing a coffee from Pret mid-library sesh or a cheeky night at Unit 1, even a spontaneous beach trip (all of which you can definitely justify, because it’s only second year, right?). Also, because you’ve now officially conquered Exeter, and know where to find everything in the city - from the aesthetic cafés that pop up on your Insta feed, to the best places to satisfy your food cravings after a night out (Raj India ftw)- you can finally go to all those places in the big ol’ West Country that you didn’t get round to visiting in first year. If you bat your eyelids enough at your friend who has a car, they will definitely take you to Dartmoor or Topsham or even Torquay. It is a truth universally acknowledged that the phrase ‘work hard, play hard’ was created as a philosophy for student life (or so I keep telling myself as I take my third, or more likely fourth study break in an hour.) However, I really do believe that nowhere do the two – work and play – meet a more perfect balance than in second year: a slightly odd relationship with a very real, but incredibly brilliant limbo.

Third time’s the charm Anna Bonet Contributor

OMEHOW I’ve ﬁnished my degree. I’m not quite sure how this has happened because the last time I checked I was a bouncy fresher, badly decorating my tiny Lafrowda bedroom and joining an unnecessary number of societies. Now I’ve handed in my dissertation, done my ﬁnal exams and successfully grown into a haggard old lady wondering where on earth the time has gone. Unfortunately, I can’t rewind the clock, but here’s what I would have done differently if I had my time again.

Photo: Google Images

Made the most of first and second of lecturers are actually very willing to year: Probably both obvious and cliché, give quite a lot of help when you ask but I wish I’d properly appreciated not for it. being a final year when I wasn’t one. Done a year abroad: So many of my Third year is as hard as they make it out friends have been living it up across the globe while I’ve been slogging away to be so relish every day you in the library. How I wish I’d have until you get to that joined them. stage. Spent more time explorGone to more ofing: I can almost count fice hours: I’m the number of days I aware this regret have left in Exeter on makes me sound two hands but the list of like the ultimate things to do and places to geek but I wish Photo: Google Images see before I leave could be I’d started going to bound into a hardback book. office hours sooner. It Fully appreciated how much turns out that the majority

holiday we get: Did you know that most full time jobs only offer 20 days of holiday a year? This only just dawned on me. After having three months off at summer, a month off at Christmas and a month off at Easter, totalling around 150 days of holiday a year, I think this is going to be hard to get used to. Said yes to everything: (Within reason.) Sometimes it feels as though coursework and exams are the be-all and end-all, but before you know it, the degree is over and you have to leave Exeter forever. So you might as well go for that whole pizza in Firehouse, agree to pints in The Black Horse, and yes, even regularly attend the Lemmy.

COMMENT

So close, yet so far Anonymous Contributor

ELATIONSHIPS. Tricky situations the world over. They can be sunshine and smiles, rain and frowns, a mixture of both. For me, a mixture of good times and bad is key to a healthy relationship. The ability to be able to express your true feelings, to tell your partner when somethings wrong is vital. It’s how they deal with that, which determines the lifespan of your relationship. Most of us at university are inexperienced and probably immature in the love department. God, I know I am. Knowing when immaturity transgresses into repetitive hurt and tears is an art, not mastered until your midtwenties. The warning signs are obvious: everything is your fault, they’ve got excuses for when they mess up, something unchangeable about you ought to be changed and the likelihood is your family dislike them. For me, every grievance I had was either a) because of a previous mistake on my behalf or b) a huge indicator that I was a “psychotic bitch”. Him having traits of Asperger’s was used as a

shield for every cruel word. Whilst I understand that those with Asperger’s and other conditions aren’t always aware that what they say or do may be harmful, I had been told very clearly that he meant every word ever said. What needed to be changed, though ironically unchangeable, was primarily my ambition. To be a jour-

nalist (what a surprise) in a big city was too far-fetched. I was required to sacrifice my degree, move home, get a car and be at his disposal. The worst thing is how many times I considered it. My friends also needed to go; they obviously don’t care about me as much as he did so I was better off without them. Out of a group of

about seven, one made the cut. She was the prettiest. I was also oblivious to the fact that I hated my mother and that the woman who single handedly raised me didn’t care either. Don’t get me wrong, there have been times where I have uttered the words “oh my God, I hate you” to my mother, but I’m a

Photo: Pexels

We can help

teenager, what am I without a bit of angst? There’s no truth in it. Quite the opposite actually. Naturally there was no love lost between the pair of them. From day one she disliked him, urged me to stay away, and of course I ignored her advice. C’est la vie. Looking back is hard. It’s not long gone. We had some good times and I miss them with every fibre of my being. There are times where I regret my decision to end it, would do anything for one last phone call to the point where I convince myself it is my fault. Maybe I should’ve considered him when picking a university; maybe I could do with shifting a few pounds after all. Perhaps it was my Marlboro habit that made me so disgusting to him. I think, for now at least, a part of me will always wonder if I could have done something differently, done more. I’m not trying to say I was the perfect girlfriend; I’ve got one hell of a temper (with added sarcasm) so arguments were never easy. I guess what I’m trying to say is go with gut instinct. Even if it’s not yours at first. My friends and family could all see what I couldn’t. That guy just wasn’t good for me. One day, with a bit of luck, I’ll find one who is.

Following on from our front page, Wellbeing encourages students to reach out for support Mark Sawyer Head of Wellbeing

NIVERSITY is often fun, but always challenging. It is a time when students can immerse themselves in subjects they love, have new experiences and make good friends along the way. But I know, as head of Wellbeing and a counsellor for 25 years, that life at university can also, at times, be stressful. It is normal to worry about ﬁtting in, not being able to cope, and being as good as your friends. It is also normal for students, often leaving home for the ﬁrst time, and living in a new place with people they have never met before to feel a little overwhelmed. The leap from school to university is a big one. From organising your workload, to motivating yourself to get on with your studies, dealing with peer pressure, and new relationships, everyone may at some point feel as though they need some support. We in the Wellbeing Centre are here to help you navigate your way through

university life. We have offered a large range of workshops this year on topics from sleep disturbance to exam anxiety. Our team of caring, dedicated professionals, including counsellors, psychologists, occupational therapists and psychological wellbeing experts, work all week, including some evenings. Last year we dealt with 1,750 student inquiries, with a range of concerns including exam stress, relationship problems, coping with pressure, loss and bereavement and serious mental health problems, including severe depression and anxiety.

We are a busy service, but we try to ensure the correct support is given, not matter what the issue. Any new student approaching the service will get a personal phone call from a counsellor or psychological wellbeing practitioner, who will look at what support is best for them. There will be students, and thankfully they are few, who will have had particularly traumatic experiences, or ﬁnd themselves facing a serious mental health crisis. They should not suffer in silence. Our counsellors are here as a ﬁrst port of call for these students. And we can refer them to professionals from the

NHS, and other appropriate counselling and support services. We work closely with the NHS student health centre, which is located directly opposite us, to provide care including for students in crisis. Where a problem is beyond our reach and expertise, we will do our best to put students in contact with professionals better placed to meet their needs. Where we can’t provide the programme of specialist therapy required and we believe that other local services would be better placed to help a student we will signpost and refer on to people who can offer

Photo: Niklas Ramel

more tailored support and advice. The Wellbeing Services team are committed to ensuring the correct support is given at the right time. When we can – and where it will help – we provide counselling and other talking therapies to help those in distress, and provide support for people going through a difﬁcult time.

We are here to help you navigate your way through university life We are pleased by the consistently positive feedback from students we get, including ﬁve star-ratings for our telephone support. Of course, we can’t always get it right and we welcome any constructive ideas and opinions from students in this regard. Students, from school-leavers to mature students, are absolutely central to the development of provision. Here in the Wellbeing Centre, our greatest reward is to see students who have come to us, thriving and enjoying university life.

22 MAY 2017 | EXEPOSÉ

Features

FEATURES EDITORS:

Losing Momentum

Oli Weaver discusses the woes of the Labour Party and its future after the General Election

ITH more electoral factors to consider than varsity reps on Forum Hill, the dogged presupposition of a Conservative landslide should be cautioned. However, it would be an insult to the evidence to suggest that the British Labour Party is facing anything other than an extinction-level event (once again). The current polling average suggests a 6.5-point swing from Labour to Conservative since 2015; The Guardian projecting that this puts at least 60 Labour seats in ‘the blue’. In perspective, this makes 229 seats more like 169 - the lowest result in 82 years. The pressure is on. A poll released on earlier this month predicts the ﬁrst Tory majority in Wales for 150 years; a country that, even just ﬁve years ago, was considered a Labour heartland. The Telegraph is also predicting a severe haemorrhaging of Labour votes in its Northern heartlands to the Tories, based on strong Leave support there, as well as the party’s confused communication of its Brexit strategy. Conversely, the situation Labour faces in predominantly southern metropolitan areas is exactly the opposite – there, ‘remain’ voters are still suffering from a referendum hang-over, demanding an explanation for Jeremy Corbyn’s lacklustre campaign. Akin to a whisper in a hall of mirrors, his reluctant defence of the European Union was so mute it needed relaunching and a rebrand. As

such any questions on the EU he will likely avoid answering. The lightspeed car-crash the Labour Party is heading toward come 8 June will only be the latest tragedy to befall the party. 18 months of trailing in the polls will ﬁnally culminate in a deserved loss of seats to the Tories, and the new moderates of British politics, the Liberal Democrats. This will make the case for Corbyn’s critics in the party to demand his resignation.

Even in a ‘1983 scenario’ Jeremy Corbyn may still refuse to stepaside Even in a ‘1983 scenario’, Jeremy Corbyn may still refuse to step-aside, despite an ultimatum by the recently re-elected Unite the Union leader, Len McCluskey, to prove his ability to convince the British people of his message and worth. In his 5 Live interview, McCluskey suggested ﬁfteen months in which to do this; a general election however is perhaps the best road-test for any party leader. A rejection at the polls will be a fair indication of Corbyn’s stuff. Assuming Corbyn decides to capitulate, and that he either retains or increases the number of MPs ideologically in support of his leadership, and at least a dozen anti-Corbyn MPs lose their seats, a Corbyn-esque hard-left candidate, perhaps from his own Shadow Cabinet ranks would have no difﬁculty attaining the backing of 12% of the Parliamentary Labour Party. Crunching the numbers quickly, and working on The Guardian’s projection of 169 seats, a candidate would need to receive the support of just 20 MPs. This is opposed to the 50 needed currently to challenge the leader, and 27 in the case of their vacancy

Image: Emma Woolf

(resignation). Though this number is predicted to fall to just 37 after the election, if Corbyn did stay on as leader, he would seek to lower these thresholds further. True, he has resided over some of the lowest national polling in 30 years, had the worst leader perception since Michael Foot, and has proven that he has contempt for tradition and good practice, but can the blame for Labour’s demise be wholly placed on Jeremy Corbyn? Perhaps, as his supporters would say, he is the symptom of crisis in the party, not the cause. A common retort from any Corbyn supporter, to the problem of perception, is the ‘media bias’. Jokes soon turned to jibes on his election in September 2015. He was quickly caught-out for the language he used to describe Hamas, a Palestinian group considered to be terrorists by the EU and US; calling them “friends”. The sentiment however, was taken out of context. The portrayal of politicians in cartoon form is always a fair indication of the impression they make on the press; if not completely satirised. The Times and The Telegraph

depict him as ‘Comrade Corbyn’, a thin scrawny socialist, Russian star cap and all, whereas The Guardian opts for the classic, ‘Confused Old Man’ look, fumbling from one crisis to another. Cruel, but remember The Guardian’s red-faced, crimson-tinted, condom that was David Cameron, and his gimp companion, Osborne? Politicians need thick skins. A former Labour Party member, a student who quickly fell out of love with Corbyn after his election, expressed their view that Corbyn is to very much to blame. They say, “It’s a joke ... all he does it preach to the converted, which is great for them, but not those who need convincing. His entire leadership has been one long preface for the book How Not to Do Politics Politics. When quizzed on the media’s treatment of Jeremy, they argue that “it’s right they pick him up on his shortcomings. I don’t buy into media bias with Corbyn – if anything they’re just doing their job. Corbyn often cites his mandate from the membership: receiving 59.5% in 2015, and then 61.8% in 2016. What is more impressive however, is that in 2015, the ‘hard-left’ vote for Mr Corbyn and Andy Burnham totalled 79%. The latter was more willing to hold-back his rhetoric to build bridges, although some critics argue that he was actually forced leftward by Corbyn’s appeal. They cite Burnham’s adoption a policy of renationalisation for Britain’s railways, for example. More importantly, however, he wasn’t ‘radical’ in the same way Corbyn is; though he and Jeremy could still be comfortably placed to the left of Ed Miliband. Whether in reaction to New Labour, or a product of the coalition government’s centre-right appeal, the party has been moving slowly leftward. In recent years this has been driven by a shift

Photo: pri.org

James Angove Isabel Taylor

in party membership, or as critics would call the past two years: ‘entryism’. The frustration of the General Election defeat in 2015, coupled with the popular wish to distance the party from centrist-Blairism and red-Toryism, left a directional hole in the party’s fabric. This opportunity has been capitalised on by the hard left, disaffected moderates, and experimenters; the former emerging after twenty years in the long grass.

His entire leadership has been one long preface for the book How Not to Do Politics Fundamentally, this was in line with the cyclical nature of party strength and factional control. New Labour was an impressive and robust machine, which had a great capacity for delivery. Most importantly for disaffected Labour voters today, it knew how to communicate itself effectively, and to reach voters who voted Tory and Liberal Democrat in previous elections. It recognised the demands of voters and their problems, but it also put forward viable solutions that could work. This is something the party today confuses. Similarly, the Conservative Party went through a cool-off period and reimagined itself during Labour’s 13 years in power. That modernisation and experience in opposition – trying out new leaders – meant the party eventually built itself a strong enough platform to be elected government, albeit in coalition. Labour however, are struggling to keep it together. After seven years out of government, it ought to be consolidating its narrative, and proving itself as a ‘government in waiting’ by providing effective scrutiny of the government, and winning seats! Sadly, in electoral terms, this hasn’t been the case. Local elections are always a good indication of the opposition’s performance, and as a rule of thumb the opposition should always win local election seats from the ruling party. Again, this simply has not materialised. Even Michael Foot, Labour’s worst performing post-war leader, made a net gain of 988 local seats in 1981. Corbyn made a net loss of 18 in 2016, and 382 in 2017. That simply does not happen. Perhaps Tim Farron had it right when he passionately asserted that the legacy of this Parliament will be the “absolute and abject failure of Her Majesty’s Ofﬁcial Opposition to hold [the] government to account.”

FEATURES

"We're rats leaving a sinking ship"

Jack Morgan Jones talks to Alan Sked, founder of UKIP, about Farage, the General Election and the collapse of the EU

LEAK. That’s how Alan Sked, founder of the United Kingdom Independence Party and an academic at the London School of Economics describes the future of the EU. Despite Macron’s recent election and the likely re-election of Mother Merkel he believes the EU is unlikely to “survive the medium-term.” For anyone unfamiliar with Professor Sked - don’t be put off by the fact that we owe him UKIP. Sked has long since disassociated himself from the party, resigning his leadership in 1997 when right-wingers began to threaten UKIP’s liberal geneses. UKIP’s flagship policy has always been to leave the EU, but, as Sked insisted during our interview, under him it never had the policies it has today: “we never bothered with immigration”. I asked Sked whether he trusted the Conservatives to deliver the Brexit that he wanted, the Brexit which restores sovereignty to parliament. “Yes, yes I do. Not that I have much choice. The Tory party has become the party of British sovereignty and Brexit. The Conservatives are the only party that can sell itself as a party of government right now.” I asked him whether the then rumoured (now dead in the water) alliance of the Labour party, the Green party, the Scottish National Party, and the Liberal Democrats could possibly present a unified progressive opposition. He corrects me. “Not that it would be progressive, they all seem to live in the past in their different ways. Most of the parties apart from the Conservatives lack gravitas and lack credibility. Corbyn has no credibility, the Greens have no credibility, and Farron just looks a flyweight politically and intellectually. The only party that can sell itself as a party of governance is the Tory party.”

We won the referendum in spite of Farage not because of him Professor Sked seems happy enough that the likely Tory majority on 8 June will settle his anti-federalist dream. His desire to put the EU issue to bed takes priority, even, I suppose, if it comes at the cost of illiberal Tory social policy. Brexit is the issue of our day and age, and as Sked said: “The feeling is that the vast majority of people want to make a go of it.” Lord Ashcroft’s recent polling data support this view. Sked’s happy with where our gradually unifying country is heading; but what does he think about how we got to this point in the ﬁrst place? “I was quite happy with the ofﬁcial Leave campaign. I thought Michael Gove did a wonderful job and Boris Johnson

was good. I’d given them the advice that they should keep Nigel Farage out of the picture and as far away from the centre of events as possible. He alienated more people than he attracted.” I feigned surprise at this (I knew Sked held this view and found it strange that he did). I asked him, with practiced incredulity, if he really believed Farage was more a hindrance than a help. He did. “I think we won the referendum in spite of Farage not because of him. The Leave vote would have been higher if he’d have gone on holiday for six weeks. I think he was toxic. Anyone with political intelligence would have nothing to do with him. All he’s interested in is anti-immigration. He’s never had an idea in his head [and] I’ve known him for twenty-ﬁve years. He’s as thick as a plank.”

The rise in the UKIP protest vote is really due to Clegg and not Farage Many people voted Leave because of immigration. The demagoguery of a narcissistic showman is exactly the kind of thing that wins votes. It seemed, and still seems to me, obvious that Farage was pivotal in swinging the vote. Sked is of a different opinion – the decisive referendum ﬁgure being Boris Johnson whom he called “an attractive ﬁgure, probably an egomaniac in his own way, but basically intelligent and articulate.” It’s understandable that Sked refuses to acknowledge Farage given the bad-blood between them. Sked tried to oust Farage from the party before he litigiously crept back and turned UKIP into what it is today. I hadn’t asked Sked to give credit to Farage. I merely wanted him to admit that Farage achieved the ends they both shared, even if by vastly different means. Sked did not entertain the possibility. “You must remember,” Sked argued, that “up until a couple of years before the referendum most British people didn’t care very much about the EU. UKIP making nasty noises about race [under Farage] didn’t get them anywhere.” He continued to list Farage’s lack of interests which included “policy” “party democracy”, “candidate selection”, and “professionalising the party”. Then he pointed out to me that it was only after the EU changed its European Parliament election system in 1999 to 2% turnout that UKIP became a protest party in public view. “But it still didn’t get anywhere. Right up until the 2010 election they were still hitting just 2% or 3% in opinion polls and by-elections. It was not the default protest party. The UKIP protest vote only went up after the Lib Dems went into coalition. The rise in the UKIP protest vote is really due to Clegg not due

to Farage.” What next for UKIP – should it disband? “It should dissolve itself. The mission I laid down for them was always to get into parliament with a majority or convert the Tories to taking us out of the EU. We got the referendum from Cameron. Mission accomplished. I think UKIP voters should just support Theresa May in this election.” And what of our relationship with America? What of Trump? “Clearly we should be friends with Trump. At the same time, we should try and get him to (he pauses and chuckles) support rational policies.” I chuckled myself. “Rationality and Trump in the same sentence?” I query. “Yes, well, you know. Fate deals people very strange cards. [Theresa May] has to get them to support NATO, get them to be tough on Russia, get them not to destroy the international economy with outrageous protectionist policies, get them to be nice to us once we’re out of the EU and sign a very good free trade deal with us.” This is too sycophantic for my taste. Winston Churchill once said, “If Hitler invaded Hell I should make at least a friendly reference to the devil in the House of Commons.” When it comes to the EU and the Presidency of Donald Trump, it is conceivable that Sked and I disagree on which is the obviously greater evil and which warrants the friendly reference. Yet the feature of this EU debate, mostly for Leavers but also for Remainers too, is that one cannot help but make unsavoury associations. If you do not wish the EU well in its future, then it’s hard not to bring up, as Sked did, the fascists in Europe. “The Five Star movement is about eight points ahead in the opinion polls. The anti-European vote looks like it will win. This will create chaos. The Italian banking system is too big to be bailed out in the way Greece was bailed out.” Sked thinks that the only way the EU can save itself from oblivion is “the mutualisation of debt” and “a common fiscal policy.” And yet reform is an illusion. “The fundamental problems are not being solved – the Germans have just posted a trade surplus the equivalent of 9% GDP. Proportionally it’s bigger than the Chinese surplus” Germany needs inflation, but Germany doesn’t want inflation. This is the EU’s insoluble problem: that without public appetite for the political integration needed for economic reform, political moves towards economic solutions wil only cause public unrest. The illusion is that the EU can save itself. It can only choose the manner of its death: a spasmodic political one, or an abrupt economic one. To use Sked’s words: “They’re screwed. They think we’re rats. Well that’s fine, we’re rats deserting a sinking ship.”

Leave and let die

Graham Moore, Copy Editor, satirises the death of the United Kingdom Independence Party

Y friends. My fellow citizens. My fellow voters. (Register, you bastards) We gather here today to commemorate – nay, to over-publicise – the passing of that most successful, respected, and indeed cross-demographically attractive of political parties. Dry your eyes and consider new ways to institutionalise any thinly-veiled post-colonial anxieties, for today we mourn the demise of that so venerated political entity, the United Kingdom Independence Party. Oh, the tribulations brought upon us by this snap election. We must Remain both strong and stable in these troubling times. We have lost our faith in Diane Abbott’s mathematical capabilities, and we must ensure that any questions pitched to our Prime Minister have first undergone enough background checks to earn their own DBS certification. What's more, to add insult to injury (it's only a flesh wound!), so many of us will be deprived the opportunity to support the true people’s party. With UKIP fielding 40% fewer candidates than in the previous election, how will the British electorate vent its faux-patriotic paranoia? By voting for a party that can noticeably focus on more than two policy areas? A party that might actually manage to sustain a presence in the House of Commons? Blasphemy. No – the loss of UKIP is a loss unto us all. The disenfranchised must

find a new outlet, a new box to tick so righteously on the voting form, for what place would UKIP have in our new world? The glory days, those halcyon days - when Nigel Farage could be seen down the local in the midst of a beer-fuelled tirade against the EU, when 51.9% was just a twinkling in the Euro-sceptic eye, and when there was the inkling that the Leave campaign had a coherent long-term plan – they have passed us now. This is the new age. Douglas Carswell, UKIP’s singular productive attempt at constituent legitimacy, has defected. In an election where even Tony Blair threatens to return to the political scene (hide your oil reserves), Paul Nuttall – a politician so irredeemably uncharismatic that even his support for the use of waterboarding, or suggestion that Nicola Sturgeon be thrown in front of a charging horse, fails to make him even vaguely worth talking about – remains leader of UKIP. At least Farage had presence. Amongst the tired and uninspiring arsenal that is British politics, UKIP is now a particularly damp squib. So, as the final nails strike into that obscenely yellowish-purple coffin, adorned with the symbol of the very currency it cast into uncertainty, let us say a final prayer. Ashes to ashes, dust to dust; Brexit means Brexit, we’re all fucked anyway. So long, and thanks for all the memes – let’s go get drunk.

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ARTS + LIT

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Travelling in style on a student budget

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CULTURE VULTURES: POST-DEGREE ANTICS

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LIFESTYLE EDITORS Barbara Balogun Lauren Geall

ARTS + LIT EDITORS Mubanga Mweemba Maddie Davies

MUSIC EDITORS Alex Brammer Maddy Parker

SCREEN EDITORS Ben Faulkner Fenton Christmas

STUDY BREAK Puzzles by Alfred 22 MAY 2017 | EXEPOSÃ&#x2030;

lifestyle

Dreaming of summer M

Four Lifestyle writers share their perfect summer destinations

Y favourite place to go in the entire just the house and mountains themselves. We world is my family’s house in Neder- often make the 30 minute drive down to Boulland, Colorado. It’s a domed house in der, a relatively rich and relaxed city. There, you the mountains above Boulder and it is just such can find a pedestrian street which runs for four a joyous and peaceful place for me. The views blocks and as a kid, my brother and I used to refrom the house are spectacular and our near- fer to this as the ‘street of magic’ because there est neighbours are a mile away. I've been going was always buskers and performers scattered there since I was a few years old. As a kid, we along. At that time, it felt like anything was possible: is this really the true American Dream? used to build tree houses and go swimming Finally, the food. Burgers, burgers, and in the lake nearby. Around the dome, more burgers. I don’t think I’ll ever there’s this beautiful redwood be able to get over the ridicudeck where we can sit and eat lous portions the Americans our breakfast or read a book in serve but I’m not complainthe glorious heat. Every day, ing. This place just symbolises at around 1 o’clock, it pours a care-free childhood for me with rain and even lightning. and happy memories from One time, lightning struck the past. We have some family near the house and the whole friends over there and it’s always dome went completely white for great to see them. I can’t wait to go the fraction of a second, followed by Gabriella Scobie this summer. the electricity shutting down. I understand that this isn't necessarily an incentive to Gabrielle Scobie go but it has only happened once, and, to be honest, it was actually really cool. I remember that it was in Colorado that I discovered my love for the smell of rain on the hot ground. Whenever I smell it now, it takes me right back . When you’re there, the rain isn’t an irritation and it even feels like a sort of release. The rain puts an end to the sweltering heat. It’s not

REECE is the ultimate European summer destination with its delicious cuisine and historic architecture. It is home to incredible Mediterranean beaches which emanate a relaxed, authentic summers vibe. The Greek Islands provide an escape from chaotic cities. Santorini is incredibly versatile. On one side of the island lies Fira, home to luxurious resorts with pools overlooking mountainous which would appeal to students. People will either be sunbathing, diving into the cliffs, bright white and Persian blue crystal clear waters, sipping their churches. It is the desired destivividly colourful cocktails, or ennation for honeymooners or gaging in an energetic dance. students eager to ‘treat themExpect the cocktail bars to be selves’, overlooking mesprojecting upbeat tunes to morising views of warm Oia heighten your zestful mood sunsets whilst sipping their even more. fruit-infused cocktails. Forget London this sumPrepare your taste buds mer because Greece has called. because Greek cuisine is diSo rummage through your closet verse and flavoursome. The GreFlickr for your summer dress or shorts, cian diet is nutritious; centred around aubergines, courgettes and juicy tomatoes. flip flops and bathing suit. Sun block, a wide However, you cannot venture to a traditional brimmed hat and your sunglasses are also vital Grecian restaurant without indulging in warm to protect you from sunburn. Do not forget to pita bread smothered in tzatziki and accompa- pack your appetite for both food and the aunied by juicy meat and a feta dominated salad. thentic Grecian culture. If you are deterred by Santorini is also perfect if you are seeking a their unique language, trust me, it will constirelaxing escape. Perissa and Kamari are beach tute no barrier. When in doubt, take a shot of ouzo and say Opa! towns which provide many leisurely activities. Harriet Iles The beaches emanate a dynamic vibe

RAKOW, one of the oldest cities in Poland (and also perhaps advantageously out of the Eurozone). Poland’s culture capital offers everything needed for a summer getaway. Retaining its old-world ambience, charm and stunning scenery in the summer sun, the atmospheric Old Town and Kazimierz’s streets in the Jewish district are crammed with galleries, cafes, pubs, history and tradition. Krakow offers a mixture of history, Emily architecture, tradition and culture. Allegedly with the highest density of bars in the world, you’re never short of something to do in the evening. Added to this are its countless affordable pubs where a beer will not set you back more than £1.50. The chance to try Polish vodka in the motherland in addition to some of the best cocktail bars in Europe, Krakow makes for a fantastic student summer

holiday getaway. What’s not to love? Krakow is also quite literally bursting with history. As the largest market square in Europe, Krakow’s main square acts as the hub of the city. Stunning Wawel Castle and the equally beautiful neighbouring Wawel Cathedral, which dates back to the 1300s give a great insight into Poland's history. Just outside Krakow in nearby Wieliczka is Wieliczka Salt Mine, a great day trip destination. A labyrinth Stearn of tunnels and galleries 327m underground, everything including altarpieces, underground lakes, works of art and even a chapel has been carved by hand from salt blocks. However, it is Krakow’s twentieth century history that is most compelling. From the site of the Plaszów Concentration Camp to Schindler’s factory or a visit to the sites where the film Schindler’s List was filmed, they all serve as a chilling reminder of Krakow’s past. For a truly sobering experience, the Auschwitz I and Auschwitz II-Birkenau camps are just ninety minutes from Krakow. If in Krakow, both camps are a must visit. However, nothing can prepare you for an incredibly insightful experience of the horrors which occurred. Emily Stearn

After tracing the very steps of the most influential individuals in the history of France, entry to the gardens is definitely worth the €8 fee. Undoubtedly, these grounds are one of the most stunning public gardens within the entirety of Europe. The warmer summer months are definitely the best season to visit: infused with blossom, gold encrusted sculptures and scenic views, the garden even posICTURE France and its immense land- sesses its very own lake, where you can pay a small fee to row across at your leisure. marks and what do you envisThe “dancing” fountains are sure to age? The Eiffel Tour, the be a particular highlight of the Mona Lisa and the Arc de Triomvisit, as authentic seventeenthphe are just a few clichés that century music accompanies may spring to mind; yet one various displays throughout of France’s underrated gems the gardens. The home of the has to be the Palace de Verinfamous Marie Antoinette is sailles. also another treat available to Once home to King Louis explore on the grounds, having XIV, the seat of political power a whole home to herself, the intein seventeenth-century France Jade Beard riors of the house enable you to imagremains infused with the history of ine just what kind of woman made the not only the old regime but the Revolution which would dissolve the absolute rule of notorious declaration: “Let them eat cake”. You could almost get lost in the vastness France’s reigning monarchs. Free for those under twenty-six residing in of the Palace and its incredible grounds. Yet, the EU (Brexit hasn’t hit quite yet), the estate of you’re sure to come away with a mesmorising Trianon and the Palace itself are a must see for impression of the vast richness of a culture student travellers looking for a dash of history which you have to see to even possibly begin with an abundance of stunning architecture; to imagine France’s powerful, magnificent and Jade Beard the Palace holds numerous stunning designs. extensive history.

EXHIBIT

LIFESTYLE

EDITORS: Barbara Balogun & Lauren Geall

22 MAY 2017 |

Student friendly travel

Lauren Edwards gives us her tips for student travelling.

N the age of "do it for the 'Gram" and social media influence, it’s hard not to be disheartened by all the perfect looking travels photos seen on the accounts of those you follow. The realities of student living means we tend to have more money to spend on ourselves, and we benefit from student discounts.

use goeuro.com: enter your start and end destination and it will tell you whether it’s cheaper to go by bus/train/plane as well as comparing all the different companies’ prices and times.

you’ll both end up gaining travel credit you can use when you next book. •You don’t have to pay for washing your clothes. On a long trip? There’s going to be at least one point when you’re going to have to do this, and this way you get privacy and security.

going to monuments. •Remember your Student ID. There are discounts almost everywhere for students so don’t leave home without it.

BUDGETING MEANS YOU FACE THE REALITIES AND WORK OUT YOUR PRIORITIES

Accommodation: Hostels : •Airbnb is becoming more •Hostels offer meal deals and breakfast deals popular and hostels are becomwhich aren’t there to rip you off (most of the ing more like hotels (in a good time) but actually save you time and way). Yet, here I’ll point out Lauren Edwards money in searching for something the cost benefits of both so Flights and transport: •Free City Tours are FREE if you want them to yourself. In a hostel in Paris, it you can decide: • TravelSupermarket.com & Skyscanner.com be, they work on the basis of you paying as costs 6€ for breakfast where I are great comparative websites, but I recently much or as little as you like so they tend to be could eat as much as I wanted, Airbnb: discovered TravelRepublic.co.uk. If you’re not pretty good, giving you a quick bearing of the compared to 7€ I’d spend on •You can end up paying too strict about which dates you want to fly city you’re visiting. a coffee and croissant alone. £20/30 over an entire weekout it shows you the cheapest times and days •Find out the local drink so when you go on "YEAH" hostel in Barcelona end instead of £15/20 a night over a three-day period around a date of your a night out you don’t end up spending a ludid a three-course meal every in a hostel. Plus the larger the choice. dicrous amount of money on a vodka night for 10€ with meat group, the cheaper it’s going to •The cheapest days for flying tend to be and coke when you could have had and veggie options. be- girls or guys holiday anyone? Wednesdays and Tuesdays so keep that in Lauren Edwards a beer for 1€. •The prices are not going to rise as dramind when planning a trip. The cheapest •It’s a simple concept and may Handy Tips: matically during peak season. times to book these flights known to be late seem daunting when you’re •Use TripAdvisor’s ‘cheap eats’ •Self-catering: use the facilities to have breaknight on a Tuesday. planning out a long trip or filter to find delicious food fast and dinner, then whilst you’re out during •Bus = Cheap. Unless you’re travelling incredholiday, but budgeting means at a cheap price, tastes even the day you can treat yourself to the traditionibly long distance they really aren’t too bad. you face the realities and work better when you didn’t have al foods of the place you’re visiting without the Specifically talking Europe: FlixBus has the out your priorities. Nobody to spend all your money on it. fear of spending too much. monopoly and offers a great five destinawants to get somewhere and real•Invest in a guidebook (if you’re •Travel Credit benefits: if your friend doesn’t tion ticket - go to any 5 places you like over a Lauren Edwards ise they can’t afford particular events in a city) you’ll feel like you’re gethave an account, send them an email and get 3-month period all for just 99€. The best way and will have to deal with FOMO. ting so much more out of it than just them to book the next place on theirs and to check for transport best suited for you is to

Eating all over the world

Lifestyle Writers reveal the best meals they've ever had

HE best meal I have ever had was in a restaurant filthier couple of years ago, after interrupting my first university AST summer, I undertook the RAG Machu Picchu chalthan most of the student houses I've seen. I sort of wish course, I was lucky enough to spend two months living lenge. I was told by endless people to enjoy my guinea pig I was joking, but then again, at least the place had a and travelling in India. Aside from it being an amazing whilst I was out in Peru. In the end, I didn’t indulge in any distinctive ambience - completed by the fish tank behind me cultural experience, how could I not want to talk about the guinea pigs. There was a point on a tour of various cultural sites which was stacked high with stinking turtles. It was the sort food? Our British perception of “Indian food” is pretty different where our bus pulled over and our guide grabbed a skewered of place where you begin to think that, actually, drinking the from how it is actually cooked and presented in India – “curries” guinea pig kebab from the side of the road and raved about how vino out of your sweaty tourist shoes would be more hygienic from Indian restaurants in England tend to be a lot heavier and delicious a delicacy it was but frankly, it was rather horrifying than using the murky glasses on the table (potentially creamier than home-grown Indian dishes I really seeing a body pierced onto a stick… Anyway, what I washed in the turtle tank). loved the street food in India – particudid try was alpaca. Our team had finished our trek I was on a sixth form trip to Rome; tired, dilarly some of the Tibetan influenced and we entered a beautiful restaurant to celshevelled and bloody hungry after fighting with snacks in the north of the counebrate. I wanted to try something that oozed the crowds at the Vatican. I honestly don't think try such as momos, a type of Peruvian culture, hence why I ended up with I've ever seen or smelled anything more heavSouth-Asian dumpling, fairly these quaint alpaca rolls. I only have one word enly than the mountain of bruschetta which the similar to Japanese gyoza. Trato describe them; salty. The flavour itself was waiter deposited on our dubiously smudged ditionally filled with minced scrumptious but the saltiness means I would red-and-white checked tablecloth. meat, momos can also be filled probably never have it again. In the end, I manI used to be quite a fussy eater, and always diswith vegetables (increasingly popuaged to have a morsel of guineapig and honestly trusted raw tomatoes, but I couldn't stop myself delar), cheese or potato. The dough is rolled, it just tasted oddly like chicken. The amazing thing Tash Ebbutt Bea Fones vouring these offerings. Balsamic vinegar, olive oil, garlic shaped, filled and then steamed or fried, and usually about travel is the ability to try new things and the trip and basil; perfumed and softened to heaven, I have never served with a spicy dipping sauce to Peru was an indubitable success in that light. Other quirky eaten anything so purely, unapologetically Italian in my life. FolBeing a solo budget traveller, I pretty much lived on street foods included purple corn (boy, it was strange seeing violet lowed by a bellyful of penne arrabbiata - hot, sharp and fresh, I food a lot of the time, so momos, with a portion at just 40 rupees sweetcorn), Inca kola which was unbelievably sweet and finally could almost taste the sunshine that ripened the tomato base (40p), became a favourite of mine. And being veggie, the fact the infamous Milo- a hot, chocolatey drink that kept most of us - it was almost as much of a spiritual experience as walking that vegetarian is the default for a lot of snacks and street foods warm on the trek itself. Peru has so much to offer on the food around St Peter's Basilica that morning. in India was an added bonus. I first tried the dish in a mountainscene - I suggest you check out some of its more unusual dishes! side café with some pretty sweet views! Tash Ebbutt, Deputy Editor Bea Fones Emma Bessent, Editor

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arts + lit

Life, death & surviving Maddie Davies, Arts + Lit Editor, discusses Julia Samuel’s recent visit to Exeter

N 8 May 2017, Julia Samuel MBE came to Exeter Waterstones to discuss her book Grief Works. Here she discussed how she never intended to write a book on the experience of feeling grief. However, as a psychiatrist who has seen patients so ignorant to the taboo of grief over the last twenty-five years, she felt that a book like hers was needed to fill a very pertinent hole in the market.

TWO WORLD WARS LED TO THE UNITED KINGDOM HAVING A STIFF-UPPER-LIP For Samuel, her desire to enter the field of psychiatry was determined by her childhood; she was brought up by parents who grew up in the Second World War and they were brought up by parents who survived the First World War. She found this somewhat problematic as everyone who experienced the First World War had lost a son, a father or a husband and yet

could not discuss grief, the feeling that whistles through your system once the inevitable happens. She also discussed how this widely contrasted the way the Victorians dealt with grief. For example, Queen Victoria seemingly glorified death, wearing black to each of her daughter’s funerals and discussing their death in social events. However, the events of two world wars led to the United Kingdom having “a stiff-upper-lip”, and only to remember the deaths of millions on Remembrance Day. A member of the audience questioned Samuel on her title Grief Works, asking what it meant to her. She answered that it has three meanings to her. Firstly, it relates to the Freudian term that “grief is work” and feeling it is definitely part of the healing process. Secondly, grief acts as a process - if we allow it to. Akin to an iceberg, the part of our being that is revealed may indeed cause people to say, “you are doing so well,” compared to the remaining two-thirds of us that is submerged; hidden and struggling. However, the two-thirds gradually becomes smaller and eventually becomes part of you.

Finally, Samuel’s book features different stories of her actual patients; therefore the book refers to physical works of grief. One thing she mentioned that really stuck with me, is that “we understand ourselves through stories,” whether it be a story of fiction or non-fiction, the therapy of a story always allows a mutual connection. She said, “If we have a language for [grief ], then we are winning,” which is exactly what her book provides us with.

THIS BOOK WAS WRITTEN WITH PRINCESS DIANA’S DEATH IN MIND Finally, Julia Samuel MBE was the psychiatrist that supported the royal family following the death of Princess Diana, and is supporting Prince Harry’s campaign to get people (particularly young men) to discuss mental health. Additionally, she was also the psychiatrist for Rio Ferdinand and his children, following the death of his wife. Samuel advised Ferdinand on

his TV documentary Rio Ferdinand: Being Mum and Dad earlier this year, encouraging him that it was a sensible and really productive thing to do. She really emphasised that changing attitudes towards mental health are being led by our generation, and it is wonderful that we finally have young men discussing grief and mental health in the media and society. For Samuel, this book was written with Princess Diana’s death in mind and she was very humbled by the fact that so many people have thanked her for publishing such a therapeutic piece of work: “And then I remembered,” she said, “of course my book was going to be widely accepted – everybody experiences grief at some point in their life.” Samuel emphasises how important literature is as a form of understanding our feelings and ourselves. Grief Works is a piece of work that is worth celebrating, whether you are grieving or not. For those who have not read Grief Works, I would highly recommend it as a segment of perspective, clarity and fulfilled understanding of life itself.

...and interviews her about her best-seller, Grief Works

ADDIE Davies speaks to Julia Samuel on her first publication ‘Grief Works’ and discusses her transition from psychiatry to a successful writer. 1.Why do you think that grief is still a taboo issue in society today? There are many reasons - historically the Victorians were very good at death (bad at sex) and Queen Victoria was the poster queen for grief and made it fashionable, and then the two world wars and modern medicine meant that all the rituals of mourning were wiped out. Death became hidden in hospitals and mortuaries, which meant we imagined it and that is more frightening than the reality. Also, because we all have a kind of magical thinking, if I do not think about it - it will not happen, and if I do, maybe it will hasten my or my loved ones death.

EVERYONE EXPERIENCES GRIEF DIFFERNTLY, DESPITE IT BEING UNIVERSAL

ART IN THE NEWS

2.From your experiences, do you believe that everyone uniquely experiences grief? I think everyone experiences grief uniquely, and it will be affected by the personality that they are born with, their culture, their upbringing and their experiences. And yet there are norms which are universal across all people, and that is that grief is painful, and often chaotic and has a natural process of its own. Those that are most adaptable, can support themselves to adjust to the new reality tend to fare better.

accesses our embodied feelings and embodied intelligence that we often can’t access through our conscious thought. However, I have always encouraged patients to engage with literature.

THERE IS SO MUCH LITERATURE THAT DEALS WITH GRIEF WELL

3.Do you agree that literature is a good form of therapy?” Literature is a wonderful form of therapy, we learn about being human and about ourselves through literature. It can be integrated with my pillars of strength, particularly finding ways of supporting/comforting yourself.

5.Have you found a piece of literature that deals with grief well? Gosh; there is so much literature that deals with grief well, memoirs and novels. Recently I loved Keggie Carew’s memoir Dadland - but the classics Dickens, the Brontes, even Evelyn Waugh’s The Loved One and Accidental Tourist by Anne Tyler.

4.Likewise, your work discusses Eugene Gendlin’s form of therapy. Would you say that this is similar to a form of escapism that literature provides? No I would not, the Gendlin Focussing

6. What is your favourite piece of art or literature? This is a tough question! I have so many favourite books that I have read on several occasions, but it is probably Little Women.

The 57th Venice Biennale transports

National Portrait Gallery

German Artist Anne Imhof wins

spectators around the world

launches slave portrait appeal

the Absolut Art Award 2017

EXHIBIT

ARTS + LIT

22 MAY 2017 |

EDITORS: Mubanga Mweemba and Maddie Davies

Walt the (Whit) Man th

Beth Atkinson looks back at the legacy of “America’s Poet” in response to the 198 anniversary of his birth

AVING not experienced the joy that is reading Walt Whitman in my secondary school years; I was first exposed to the poet when I saw the iconic 1989 film Dead Poets Society, starring the late Robin Williams. It is the tale of an eccentric English teacher in a boarding school, and his students who navigate their coming of age through poetry. I fell in love with this story and was entranced by its complexity, and the beauty of the poetry chosen. It is not a surprise that two of the most memorable poems from the films- ‘O Captain My Captain’ and Verse 52 from ‘Song Of Myself’- were written by Whitman himself.

WHITMAN’S POETRY IS FOUNDATIONAL, [IT] TRANSCENDS TIME His influence on the verse mentioned in the film is a testament to the ongoing legacy of the poet, who would have been celebrating his 198th birthday on 31 May.

cal period. As the president of the Exeter University “O Captain My Captain” is perhaps my Dead Poets Society 2015/16, both the film and favourite Whitman poem. As a nonits poetic content have affected the O CAPEnglish (although admittedly way that I have viewed the creTAIN! MY CAPTAIN!O Humanities) student, my ative form over the last two CAPTAIN! MY CAPTAIN! O CAPTAIN! study of poetry has not years. Whitman’s legacy MY CAPTAIN! O CAPTAIN! MY CAPTAIN! O been an intricate one. is one that is not CAPTAIN! MY CAPTAIN! O CAPTAIN! MY CAPTAIN! O CAPTAIN! MY CAPTAIN! O CAPTAIN! MY CAPTAIN! O However, the revperhaps as wellCAPTAIN! MY CAPTAIN! O CAPTAIN! MY CAPTAIN! O CAPelation of Whitknown as Byron, TAIN! MY CAPTAIN! O CAPTAIN! MY CAPTAIN! O CAPTAIN! MY man’s political Shelley, Larkin, CAPTAIN! O CAPTAIN! MY CAPTAIN! O CAPTAIN! MY CAPTAIN! O or Duffy-- as falls CAPTAIN! MY CAPTAIN! O CAPTAIN! MY CAPTAIN! O CAPTAIN! MY leanings, writon the GCSE CAPTAIN! O CAPTAIN! MY CAPTAIN! O CAPTAIN! MY CAPTAIN! O CAP- ten about the English sylla- TAIN! MY CAPTAIN! O CAPTAIN! MY CAPTAIN! O CAPTAIN! MY CAP- assassination President bus-- however TAIN! O CAPTAIN! MY CAPTAIN! O CAPTAIN! MY CAPTAIN! O CAPTAIN! of it is certainly MY CAPTAIN! O CAPTAIN! MY CAPTAIN! O CAPTAIN! MY CAPTAIN! Abraham LinO CAPTAIN! MY CAPTAIN!O CAPTAIN! MY CAPTAIN! O CAPTAIN! coln as a Unionone that should MY CAPTAIN! O CAPTAIN! MY CAPTAIN! O CAPTAIN! MY CAPist, is subtle. His be. Compared TAIN! O CAPTAIN! MY CAPTAIN! O CAPTAIN! MY CAPTAIN! choice of using the with Byron and O CAPTAIN! MY CAPTAIN! O CAPTAIN! MY CAPTAIN! O CAPTAIN! MY CAPTAIN! O CAPTAIN! MY CAPTAIN! metaphor of a ship Shelley, Whitman’s O CAPTAIN! MY CAPTAIN! O CAPTAIN! MY and its captain (America poetry is not merely imCAPTAIN! O CAPTAIN! MY CAPTAIN! and Lincoln) is powerful; it pressive and fascinating, it Photo: wikicommons O CAPTAIN! MY CAPcould be assigned just as easis foundational; a modern voice ily to the Battle of Waterloo, helping and style that in a way transcends his students studying the poem on both sides of time but still remains a product of that histori-

the pond to apply the poem to contemporary and familiar histories. Such a rallying cry for unity and mourning of the political instability that lay with the assassination, is disturbingly relevant today, as the United Kingdom faces a time of turmoil.

IT IS DIFFFICULT TO CONDENSE AND DEFINE WHITMAN With so many to choose from, it is difficult to condense and define Whitman by simply one poem. However, as ‘O Captain My Captain’ became so famous, it is perhaps fitting that it is this poem we celebrate on his birthday. It is a poem that does not adhere to his usual style, evoking imagery that cannot be unseen. It is a poem that has been universally recognised and it is only Whitman’s frustration at the poem being so popular that seems to mar its image: “Damn My Captain...I’m almost sorry I ever wrote the poem.”

Freedom with a capital Culture

VEN with exams over, I’m still not entirely sure if I’m free. I still have to work to pay for my next year of study (yes, I am doing a Masters, I am a masochist, I am sorry), and multiple other responsibilities to perform. Nonetheless, I might as well put my feet up for a bit. In doing so, I will inevitably reach for John le Carré. Whilst others might go for the more riveting fantasies of Fleming and Ludlum, le Carré’s plotting and riveting attention to detail has gripped me like no other author has. After a long, irritatingly stressful, period of thinking and overthinking oneself into oblivion, the fact that you can have somebody who does the thinking for you, who appreciates the value of care when constructing suspense is a wonderful release. It feels less like a novel and more like a direct account of one’s history; an enviable gift if there ever was one. Alternatively, I head up to the Hay Festival to find material there. I’ve been going there since my first year in Exeter, and each visit has provided me

with a fantastic opportunity to try out new genres and voyage into writers unknown. It’s where my fascination with Isaiah Berlin began, and where I fully realised the brilliance of David Mitchell (the author, not the comedian, sorry Peep Show fans).

A DIRECT ACCOUNT OF ONE’S HISTORY; AN ENVIABLE GIFT Each year has provided something different, something unique, when it comes to helping me find new ways to curl up with a nice book, and it is an experience that I would recommend above all others if you’re on the lookout for reading material. After all, where else can you leave with copies of The Double, The Bone Clocks, Metamorphoses and The Jungle Book, all for under £7? It is an event well worth your money and welll worth your time. Theodore Stone

spend the majority of my time at university pouring over Renaissance playtexts. Shakespeare, Jonson, Marlowe: I’ve lost track of how many essays I’ve written about their plays. You’d think that as soon as term ended, I would be desperate to swap Shax for trashy television and angsty YA novels. Not so. Although my holidays are always dotted with easy reads and watches, I will always choose an afternoon at the Globe over another month’s Netflix subscription. My parents have been ferrying me back and forth to Stratford-Upon-Avon and London since I started secondary school. Now, on a student budget, I’m still working my way through Shakespeare’s plays. I’ve seen A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Romeo and Juliet (ick), Julius Caesar, King Lear, Twelfth Night, The Taming of the Shrew, As You Like It, A Winter’s Tale, The Tempest, Richard III and more - I consider myself both incredibly privileged and ridiculously obsessed.

Photo: wikicommons

Photo: Hayfestival

Theodore Stone and Emma Bessent, Editor, share with us how they will be relaxing in the post-exam season

Shakespeare’s contemporaries are experiencing a staging revival at the moment, too; the RSC are particularly keen to lead this trend. Their production of Ben Jonson’s The Alchemist wasn’t much to write home about, but the Globe’s 2011 Doctor Faustus was incredible. One day I’ll get to see some Marlowe play or other live. This summer, I’ve got tickets to see Pericles in an outdoor production. The company producing it are - quite incredibly - amateurs, and they stage one full-scale Shakespeare play every summer in the grounds of Hatherop Castle. I’ve been for the last three years with my family, and each time it’s gotten better, genuinely rivalling RSC productions in my eyes. I’m also hoping to see The Tempest at The Globe and, if I’m really lucky, maybe my fairy godmother will even get me a seat for Antony and Cleopatra at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre. I really just can’t get enough. Emma Bessent, Editor

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music THE HOOSIERS

The Hoosiers: primary school disco staple, winner of NME’s Worst Band award in 2008, and performing at our very own Exefest. One could presume they’d fallen off the face of the earth with the rest of the mid-00s indiepop brigade, but one would be mistaken, so, what have they been up to over the last decade? More than you’d think. They’ve released three more albums after 2007’s The Trick to Life, the latest of which came out in 2015, so it seems that their Exefest set might not just be ‘Worried About Ray’ on a loop. Unfortunately. According to their Wikipedia page, the main changes to the band include developing a more synthesised sound and drummer Alfonso’s decision to go back to using his given name, Alan. Exciting stuff, I think you’ll agree. So, what can we expect at Exefest? Fun, mostly. The artist FKA Alfonso and co.’s newer offerings may not quite have the nostalgia factor of ‘Goodbye Mr A.’ et al, but more recent singles, like ‘Choices’, are still upbeat, pop fuelled, and harmless. They’re not Cascada, but they’ll do. Emily Garbutt, Online Arts + Lit Editor

MEET THE HEADLINERS

PRIVATE AGENDA

Following their disco dazzling performance at the Poltimore Festival Launch party in January, Berlin based duo Private Agenda are bringing back their synthesizers and showmanship to perform at Exefest and you won’t want to miss it! Their brand of 80s techno-pop is often described in terms of a kaleidoscope but that doesn’t even begin to do the band’s sound justice. Whilst, you can’t help thinking in neon as lead vocalist, Sean Phillips decked out in florals, delights in delivering melodies that dance across the stage – the band is more than their dedication to technicolour debonair resonances. Private Agenda give you free, fearless and feel good in their creations and the atmosphere they allow to you experience them in. Their slick, synergistic wonder vibrates across their whole discography. Yes sir, they can boogie and make you boogie too. As they state themselves on Déjà vu, which was premiered on BBC1xtra “it always seems like the hardest thing to do is turn away” and at Exefest you won’t be able to. Issy Marcantonio

CASCADA

FLYTE

The band Flyte is akin to that kind of weather that from outside your window, looks like summer, but once you’re outside, in the middle of things you realise there is an unexpected chill in the air. The boys of Flyte— Will Taylor, Sam Berridge, Jon Supran and Nick Hill— are not just likeable, but endearing, and after hearing them support Bombay Bicycle Club back in 2014, I’m glad to see them back again. The band is unabashed in their ‘pop’ status—a rarity in the “it’s cool to be unpopular cause I’m #deep” generation I am haplessly a part of. Borrowing not just the sound but the sincerity of pop music of the 80s and 90s, their bold, colourful and minimalist aesthetic is treated to delightfully sentimental lyrics: “Sooner than later we’ll get steady jobs/And forget what we came here for”, from Chasing Heaven, a better epitome of student life I’ve never heard. They’re honest and talented individuals and I predict this will make them a favourite at the festival. Slot them in somewhere next to Noah and the Whale and Demarco, with the melancholy folk sound of Simon and Garfunkel and a touch Brit-pop by way of The Kooks. But ultimately, they do their own thing, and very well I should say. Their catchy but unclichéd sound is universally enjoyable; I defy you not to include them in your playlist this summer. Mubanga Mweemba, Arts + Lit Editor

EXAMPLE

If you don’t know Example (aka Elliot Gleave; his stage name was created from his initials - EG) from his EDM-inflected rap music, you might be aware of his 2010 viral video ‘The Nando’s Skank’. Having fought (and won) his first rap battle at 12, he was more than qualified by age 27 to write the songs that brought him to fame – ‘Won’t Go Quietly’ and, appropriately, ‘Kickstarts’. Listing his interests as “Nando’s, trainers, haircuts, Xbox, rum”, Example is just as relatable as he was in 2010, but brings with him another three albums worth of club bangers. Make sure you catch him at Exefest because it could be your last chance - Example threatened in 2013 that he only had about five years left in music before he’d like to give it up and go into film directing. I for one can’t wait to hear a live performance from the lyrical genius that brought us “chicken, chicken wings, they’re my favourite things and I love to sing/chicken, chicken wings, if you give me them I will eat them things”. Maddy Parker, Music Editor

WHEATUS

It’s hard to find someone who doesn’t know Wheatus’ 2000 hit ‘Teenage Dirtbag’ but fewer people know that they have been steadily releasing music ever since. What’s more, they’re heading down to Devon for Exeter University’s very own Exefest for a headline performance sure to bring out your inner angsty teen. Sakshi Raizada

Any complaints about Exeter’s music scene – or lack therof – will finally be quashed once and for all this June. Yes, Cascada are coming to Exeter. The staple of every noughties school disco will be hitting the first ever Exefest. The electropop giants confirmed their spot on the bill and frontwoman Natalie Horler has even recorded a Facebook shout-out to our sleepy south-western enclave. Cascada became a Europe-wide phenomenon with their 2006 single ‘Everytime We Touch’. Dance vibes and electronic euro-pop, the track became an instant sensation and has become a nightclub legend, standing tall next to other cheesy classics like Basshunter and O-Zone. Naysayers may have thought the band a onehit-wonder, but oh, how they were proven wrong! 2009 brought Cascada’s next big hit ‘Evacuate the Dancefloor’. Not only did the track make it to UK number one, but it beat Michael Jackson to the top in the week following the King of Pop’s passing. They competed together on German television to represent the country at the 2013 Eurovision Song Contest. With their song ‘Glorious’, the group beat off tough competition like singing priests and a brass section with a song about nudism. Despite being a favourite, Cascada came in fifth from the bottom, but they avoided the dreaded ‘nil points’ and produced another dance classic. This year sees the release of a new single, Playground, alongside their European tour. Cascada have stayed in their lane. They do europop and electronic clubbing music, and they have never strayed from this winning formula. But when your first hit is as classic as Everytime We Touch, you need do nothing else. Katie Costello

EXHIBIT

MUSIC

EDITORS: Alex Brammer and Maddy Parker

22 MAY 2017

Poltimore festival preview

Alex Brammer, Music Editor, gives us the run-down on the South West’s biggest student-run festival

TTENDING Poltimore Festival is something like being in an advert for Urban Outfitters, all flower crowns and Insta filters to make your mates jealous, except it doesn’t have that weird shimmer of unreality about it that an advert does – it has a real air of authenticity about it. Maybe that’s down to the fact that it’s hosted in a derelict building, a stately home named Poltimore House which the festival makes feel like a Shoreditch pop-up constructed inside a set from The Road. Needless to say, it is very edgy.

IT HAS A REAL AIR OF AUTHENTICITY ABOUT IT That’s not to say it’s going to be packed with insufferably pretentious hipsters, though. Far from it. Poltimore is for the people, and not just the ones with specific tastes in craft beer. Even if you don’t like live music (to which I ask,

how?), there’s all kinds of stuff going on across the day, from exhibitions of photography to spoken word poetry to people wandering around giving out temporary tattoos. Art and culture is just as much of a concern of the Poltimore organisers – headed by the incumbent VP Activities and Exeter’s number one Leonard Cohen fan, Tristan Gatward – as the music.

POLTIMORE IS FOR THE PEOPLE Oh, and what music it is! This year’s lineup is headed by Matthew and the Atlas, a folk group who deserve to be the biggest on their label, and, given that they’re signed to the same label as Catfish and the Bottlemen, that’s not a small claim I’m making. Their sound is pure indie-folk with a pop angle – think Mumford & Sons, but actually good. If that’s a bit too pop for your liking, why not check out Poltimore’s elec-

tronica acts? Highlights include hometown heroes Delmer Darion and CharlstonRay, coming fresh for their debut live set on the back of the success of their EP NMSLND. Trust me, even if you hate acoustic guitars with a fervent passion, Poltimore will have you musically served. Poltimore might not have the big-name draw of ExeFest or Hijacked (I mean, who can top Cascada? The woman’s an icon), but if what you value in a music festival is its attitude, the feeling you get even just wandering around the site seeing what’s going on and the ability to discover your new favourite band, then Poltimore is sure to be the best ticket for you this year.

CATCH MATTHEW AND THE ATLAS AND MORE ON 28 MAY

Old dog, new tricks?

Rob Westlake examines the new album from multi-instrumentalist Mac Demarco MAC DEMARCO This Old Dog 5 May

AAAA

AJOR 7th guitar chords play very slowly. Washed out Yamaha DX100 synths flesh this out – almost sounding like a warped VCR. A drum track - around 70BPM per minute - keeps the pace. And Mac Demarco sings tender deep, heartfelt song about his significant other/loved ones/ how life inevitably passes us all by. Sound familiar? Probably. Does this matter? Not really. Yes, the album follows formulas. This doesn’t mean the album is formulaic – at least, not if you pay attention to the details.

MOVING AWAY FROM THE REVERB-DRENCHED CHORUS SOUND This Old Dog follows in the footsteps of 2012’s Another One by moving even further away from the reverb-drenched chorus sound that characterized his earlier records – a sound which sparked a million and one “how do I get Mac Demarco’s guitar tone?!” kind of threads. Many have sought to replicate this kind of sound – just see, for instance, the Bane’s Worlds and Peter Sagars of the scene. These are the kind of artists who will come up on your YouTube if you leave it on autoplay - an army of near-clones with the same “chill” or “good BBQ tunes” vibe.

That’s not to say This Old Dog is some sort of watershed. Demarco has perhaps been smart here, however, not to simply rehash this same aesthetic over and over by switching to something more traditional and bringing his song writing to the forefront. Small changes can actually turn out to be pretty big ones for artists who take a “less is more” approach. So when the album decides to lead things off with a CR78 set to cruise, things do feel somewhat fresh. An acoustic guitar becomes Demarco’s go to on this album - only two tracks are furnished with an electric. Yet every note, every chord change, every chorus – they’re all still exactly where they need to be, measured, and leaving absolutely nothing to chance. Just when you think the sentiment is getting a little tired on ‘One Another’ – the line “Hey kids, everyone’s prone to some mistakes”

sounding all far too patronising – the shift comes, and the song quickly changes

tack with a far more wistful chorus which resolves back to its start just a few bars later. Similar enough to be familiar, but just different enough to keep things interesting. After a very strong start – the deeply introspective ‘My Old Man’ and the eponymous second track followed by a solid run of three – things dip off briefly. Not all of the thirteen are perfect, no, and the album definitely could have been a little shorter. Songs like ‘On The Level’ might seem like a bit of a regression – a bit “Mac-by-Numbers” perhaps, or a sin-retread of earlier works – capitalising on the strange mini-cult which formed around Salad Days’ ‘Chamber of Reflection’. Yet Demarco undoubtedly demonstrates a solid understanding of how to build and adapt on This Old Dog. By launching straight into more expansive tracks – ‘Dreams From Yesterday’, ‘One More Love Song’, and the seven minute ‘Moonlight on the River’ – a certain kind of ebb and flow is retained. The album sandwiches and bookends slightly weaker songs, placing them appropriately next to tracks which almost completely abandon his notorious quirky shtick - something Demarco occasionally still feels the need to fuel with stunts like a request for an assistant “proficient in dank memes”, but something clearly no longer necessary to underpin the most important thing – the music.

THIS OLD DOG IS OUT NOW

REMEMBER THIS? THE BUENA VISTA SOCIAL CLUBL Rhythms Del Mundo 14 November 2006 Cast your mind back to Boxing Day, 2004 - what should have been a day of leftover turkey and chocolatey decadence, interrupted by shocking news of a tsunami in the Indian Ocean. Two years later, with several more natural disasters displacing millions around the world (including Hurricane Katrina), a charity project emerged out of a two-year germination. Rhythms del Mundo: Cuba, a non-profit album featuring the musical talents of the Buena Vista Social Club, blends Caribbean and Latin American musical styles with an absolutely stellar line-up of collaborating artists, ranging from Radiohead, Jack Johnson and Franz Ferdinand to The Arctic Monkeys and Dido. All profits from the album went – and indeed, still go – directly to the charity Artists Project Earth, an organisation focused on using the arts to further climate change awareness and contributing funds to global natural disaster relief projects. Not only is listening to Rhythms del Mundo good for your ethical karma, it’s also fantastically easy on the ears. Particular favourites include the thoroughly summery version of the Kaiser Chief’s ‘Modern Way’, and a rendition of Franz Ferdinand classic ‘The Dark of the Matinee’ sung entirely in Spanish (save for the inescapably English name-dropping of Sir Terry Wogan). Full of blasts from the past and guaranteed to put you in a summery mood, Rhythms del Mundo is the perfect accompaniment for that post-exams mojito (or seven). Graham Moore, Copy Editor

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screen Pitch perfect

Exeposé Screen takes a look at some favourite film scores and soundtracks

MOON, (2009)

HE multiple award-winning directorial debut of Duncan Jones (Source Code, Warcraft) is a veritable, minimalist masterclass. With a budget of $5 million and a cast consisting of little more than Sam Rockwell and a disembodied Kevin Spacey, Jones creates atmosphere in abundance, and this is aided in no small way by the stellar Clint Mansell soundtrack. Eerie and tense, Mansell’s reverberating and piano-focused score teases out emotion. It’s perfectly crafted; always illuminating but never overshadowing. Sometimes, the best soundtrack is one you can almost forget is there. Here, the music integrates so beautifully that film and score are practically inseparable. A story of isolation and humanity, Moon and Mansell are the perfect marriage. Sam Rockwell’s stellar performance and expertly tight direction lead Moon to remain a largely undiscovered gem. A superbly understated score for a criminally underrated film. Graham Moore, Copy Editor

WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE, (2009)

could’ve selected an array of films to write a love letter to here, and I certainly racked up more time deliberating over my choice than I did with my module selection. But, alas, I chose to give an eye-opening amount of praise to Karen O and The Kids’ lively, unapologetically juvenile original soundtrack. It’s a horribly under-appreciated film, and the catchy, folky melodies work as a sharp, yet outstanding contrast to the dark, unsettling tone of the film. Spike Jonze wanted “simple melodies that were emotionally complex” and Karen O and The Kids delivered, with a youthful cocktail of boisterous, noisy tracks (‘All Is Love’) and slower, murkier numbers (‘Food Is Still Hot’). It’s raw, acoustic, and a perfect counterpart for a film about the sensitive, unrefined nature of child emotion. The soundtrack helps in contributing to the film’s juvenile disguise, which is simply a red herring for its underlying, dark examination of how children explore their mental state. Ben Faulkner, Screen Editor

LIKE CRAZY, (2011)

USTIN O’Halloran’s piano-focused score for Drake Doremus’ film usually makes me bawl my eyes out. O’Halloran’s light touches flow across an audio-visual barrier, capturing the instants of Anna and Jacob’s naive romance with staccato fragments of the film’s exploration of inquisitive first-love in ‘Campus Walk’. Yet, such moments of idealism are balanced with sonic anxiety, followed through in ‘We Move Lightly’, as ethereal strings gradually increase their power, and the stability of love is questioned and interrogated. Each track flows seamlessly and interweaves itself into the visual-diegetic moments. O’Halloran’s style, reminiscent of classics such as Debussy, captures the nuance-beauty of love and those fragile moments in the film when such love is never enough. The final track ‘Opus 37’ is utter tragic-perfection, speaking, in tearful volumes louder than the film’s dialogue, of the harsh reality and unidealised bitter-sweet love.

FORREST GUMP (1994)

N Robert Zemekis’ classic, the combination of post-classical score composed by Alan Silvestri, and the iconic rock soundtrack by music supervisor Joel Sill, cannot be overlooked. Not only does the extra-diegetic music follow the emotional arc and fit the timeline of the historical milestones that Forrest’s life intersects, they play on our nostalgia through the direct diegetic role they take on. Elvis comes to stay at Mama Gump’s house and the character of Forrest has an active involvement in developing Elvis’ dancing style. Additionally, Jenny’s character covers Bob Dylan’s ‘Blowing In the Wind’ in a men’s club covered by nothing but her guitar. In each of the cases, the songs are incorporated in a displaced fashion contrary to popular associations. Here, the possibilities of soundtrack can allow an insight into the tensions between the conservative values and counter-cultural struggles that unwind throughout the plot.

Molly Gilroy, Online Screen Editor

Kate Israel

A dark night for superhero ﬁlms Graham Moore, Copy Editor, questions the longevity of the current superhero trend

T seems you can barely move for superhero films these days. Every other trailer has a snarky Robert Downey Jr. and every other poster a rather glum Henry Cavill. Certainly, since 2000’s X-Men proved to the world that superhero films had more to offer than spandex and hammy dialogue, the genre has been on the up. But, in the words of MLK: “Where do we go from here?”. Have we hit market saturation? Can comic book universes like the MCU and DCEU keep expanding, without compromising their structural integrity? Does anybody give a shit about the newest iteration of X-Men films? If comic book adaptations are falling prey to any one thing, it’s the medium itself. Much as with novel adaptations; major problem is posed: hundreds of pages of story, and yet only two hours to cover it. This is further complicated

by the need for exposition, as we mere casuals aren’t expected to have any prior knowledge. To this end, studios have resorted to rushing their way through lengthy story arcs, glossing over that which could be far more interesting.

THE CURRENT ‘VILLAIN-PERMOVIE’ STYLE IS CERTAINLY UNSUSTAINABLE On top of this, acting contracts provide a foreseeable end-point for beloved characters, whereupon audiences are liable to lose interest; I for one can’t imagine the MCU being anywhere near as compelling without its core cast members.

This provides a bizarre quandary when coupled with the fact that nobody ever seems to die - except for Uncle Ben, that is. Indeed, the only ones who never stick around are the villains. The current villain-permovie style is certainly unsustainable, even when coupled with an overarching ‘Big Bad’ like Thanos or Darkseid . If the likes of Ultron couldn’t hold their own for one film, what will it be like when we’re really scraping the bottom of the barrel? There will inevitably come a time when the shared-universe adaptations collapse under their own weight; carcasses ready to be plundered for the inevitable reboot. But these universes are not the genre. The truly worth-

while superhero films are memorable because they can stand on their own two feet. It’s the same with every genre; no matter the saturation, a truly good work will, usually, manage to stand out. Right now, superhero films are in vogue; they sell tickets, they keep Kevin Feige sleeping on a bed of oversized cheques at night. Ultimately, this will prove to be a good thing. Now that superhero films have been proven to make money, studios will invest more into their production. Although we may be inundated with a hundred Iron Man 2s, there will now be the funding available for those truly great films that would never before have seen the light of day. Maybe, just maybe, we’ll even get a Dredd sequel.

EXHIBIT

EDITORS: Fenton Christmas and Ben Faulkner

SCREEN

Spinning out of control Emily Garbutt, Online Arts+Lit Editor, scrutinises the culture of spin-offs

ECENTLY, it was revealed that Game of Thrones would be receiving not one, not two, not even three, but four spin-off series. There could definitely be potential there, but four separate projects? HBO is going to need a lot of objectified, unnamed female extras. It’s also been announced that a Big Bang Theory spin-off series about Sheldon’s childhood is in the works. As if the world hasn’t suffered enough lately. So, when it comes down to it, do we ever really need spin-offs? In an age where TV is arguably overtaking film in terms of quality, why do networks feel they have to keep revisiting the same characters? Indeed, the spin-off is arguably a harder feat for television, as more content is needed for a dozen or so episodes than for a two hour film, which is perhaps why they’re more often seen on the big screen (looking at you, Marvel).

DO WE EVER REALLY NEED SPIN-OFFS? Considering the offerings that have thus far been laid at our feet -usually akin to a cat proudly presenting its owner with a dead mouse

– it would seem that prequels work better than sequels. They can add more to a story and fill in gaps; by delving into a fictional past, screenwriters can produce more content without stretching a plot to breaking point, as most character backstories have usually already been written. This would explain the success of Better Call Saul, the most recent creation from the brains behind Breaking Bad,, and the crash-and-burn of Joey, the lacklustre attempt at a Friends spin-off. There are exceptions to the rule, and much of this is also down to the quality of the writing; if Vince Gilligan was in charge of Sheldon’s spin-off I might be more inclined to watch it (don’t hold me to that). And, when it comes to films, there’s a difference between a stand-alone spinoff film, such as Rogue One, and a five-part bonanza concerning, say, beasts of a fantastic nature. The first instalment of Eddie Redmayne gallivanting around New York in a long coat was fun, and the story is obviously veering closer to JK

Rowling’s original series with the introduction of Grindelwald, but sometimes isn’t it just best to quit while you’re ahead? When it comes down to it, studios are afraid to take risks. When there is so much good content that can be enjoyed without leaving the comfort of your own home and spending an arm and a leg on a cinema ticket, viewers themselves are less likely to take risks with what they consume, and the cycle continues to self-perpetuate. The same applies to TV; audiences have so much to choose from that they’re not going to settle for anything. But, what’s the solution? I don’t know, but I think cutting down on Game of Thrones spinoffs might be a start.

NEWSREEL

Y T

HE 2017 TV Baftas took place last week, with Adeel Akhtar becoming the first non-white winner of the best actor award. Elsewhere, Netflix’s The Crown, failed to pick up any honours despite being heavily nominated, whilst the BBC’s Happy Valley took away both best drama and best lead actress for star Sarah Lancashire.

Fenton and Ben give their weekly recommendations Fenton’s ﬁlm of the week

Layer Cake, 2004 Ben’s ﬁlm of the week

Foreign ﬁlm of the week

IVERTING our attention away from Hollywood, we’d like to bring attention to the first ever Exeter Student Film Festival, hosted by Campus Cinema. Taking place at Streatham Campus on the 26th and 27th of May, the festival will showcase short films of all genres and styles. Showcasing the works of both Exeter students and award-winning short films from across the country, it’s the University’s first celebration of amateur filmmaking. The evening will also include a talk from an Exeter alumna. Exeposé Online will be covering the whole event; a preview of the programme will be published next week, followed by a review of the event after. On the 26th May, there is also an open-air screening of Pan’s Labryrinth, the Guillermo del Toro’s cult classic from 2006 (and, unco-

incidentally, our foreign film of the week). The screening will take place at the Ram at 9:30pm, with doors opening at 8pm. Unfortunately, only limited tickets are left on the door, so make sure to get there early to avoid disappointment.

Pan’s Labyrinth, 2006 Director of the week

Coming Up at Campus Cinema Tuesday 23rd May - Hidden Figures Sunday 28th May - The Lego Batman Movie Tuesday 30th May - Logan Sunday 4th June- Get Out

What To watch

Office Space, 1999

HE Emmy-award winning actor Powers Boothe, star of Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D has passed away at the age of 68. He was also known for appearing in Sin City, Nashville and 24. Actor and friend Beau Bridges tweeted that he was a “great actor, devoted father & husband.”

ET another comic book adaptation will be appearing on our screens, with Judge Dredd soon getting its own television series. It’s unclear whether this series, entitled Judge Dredd: Mega City, will link to the cult 2012 film Dredd starring Karl Urban. There is no release date and filming will start in the UK later this year.

22 MAY 2017

Michael Mann

22 MAY 2017

EXHIBIT

STUDY BREAK

STUDY BREAK CROSSWORD # 99

SUDOKU # 36

Across Dick - UK satirical/current affairs (7,3)

Faint (4,3)

Beast of Burden (3)

Unskilled (anagram: pier next) (8)

riddle me this

Down

Most cap me (anagram: a substance

Assail (6)

produced by a spiritual medium) (9)

Public showing (4)

Chance - UK general interest 19 (8)

Desire - pine (5)

Opponent (of something) (4)

Moist (4)

Whole (6)

Kingdom - UK ﬁlm 19 (6)

Origin - UK photography 19 (6)

Relating to one ear (anagram: or manual)

Cipher (4)

Periodical publication (8)

Justiﬁcation for an actio (6)

Watcher - “The” UK conservative 19 (9)

Arc of light (a pot of gold is at its end) (7)

Annoy - insect (3)

Skin design (6)

Crawl out of (anagram: a trial place) (5,2,3)

Because of (3,2)

Rim - UK video game 19 (4)

Celebrity (4)

(8)

1. I go in hard, I come out soft, you blow me hard. What am I? 2. What has a Heart but no other organs? 3. You can see me in water, but I never get wet. What am I? 4. What is 3/7 chicken, 2/3 cat and 2/4 goat?

ANSWERS

5. You throw away the outside and cook the inside. Then you eat the outside and throw away the inside. What am I?

5 Corn. Riddle Me This: 1 Gum, 2 A pack of cards, 3 A reflection, 4 Chicago, to, 20 Edge, 21 Star. 7 Empire, 12 Monaural, 13 Excuse, 15 Rainbow, 16 Tattoo, 18 Due Down: 1 Pass out, 2 Inexpert, 3 Attack, 4 Expo, 5 Yearn, 6 Damp, Court of law. Entire, 14 Source, 17 Code, 19 Magazine, 22 Spectator, 23 Bug, 24 Across: 1 Private Eye, 8 Ass, 9 Ectoplasm, 10 Prospect, 11 Anti, 13

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22 MAY 2017 | EXEPOSÉ

Science

SCIENCE EDITORS: Leah Crabtree Luke Smith

Searching for healthcare

Theodore Stone looks at Google’s venture into the world of medicine

OOGLE has recently announced that it will be embarking on its ﬁrst voyage into the world of healthcare. ‘Project Baseline’ - the survey in question - is described by Verily as “an effort to map human health”. The study wants 10,000 people to take part, which will include wearing heart rate monitors, sleeping monitors, and your bog-standard text-based surveys. Participants will report to either Duke, Stanford, Google, or a private clinic in LA every year for a series of blood tests, genome scans and imaging sessions. The claim is that the data will provide them with brand-new information on the causes of certain diseases and how to combat them.

The data will [inform] them on the cause of certain diseases and how to combat them The lingering question, however, is who it will beneﬁt? Will it be you, the person who amasses the data? Google, who will be behind the survey and col-

lects the data? Or will it merely be a third party unbeknownst to anyone?

Great news for those who want to monetise your data Now, we should not forget that large health studies have revolutionised medicine in the past. For example, the Framingham Heart Study, which was established in 1948 in the eponymous Massachusetts town, established that smoking, high blood pressure and a lack of exercise could lead to heart and lung problems. 5,209 people, a number that later expanded to their children and grandchildren, were subject to biannual medical examinations to establish these conclusions. This study, anonymised the data collected. The participants were de-identiﬁed and their names were wiped from the board. The only data that was collected for long-term used was the stuff

that mattered - blood glucose levels, heart rate, etc. Their name and address were long-gone. Today, it’s harder to remain anonymous. Because of overlaps in voter registration and census data, alongside ones personal health record, coders are often able to quickly de-anonymise data in a matter of minutes. Great news for those who want to monetise your data, but bad news for the individual. When signing up to Baseline, you sign a consent form allowing them to use your anonymised data for research. Perhaps, further down, there’ll be a section that

consents them to use your data in sales to clients of both the commercial and academic strands. You’ll also notice that you’ll be signing up to Baseline with your Google account. Thankfully, it’s unlikely that Baseline and Google will sync your genetic data with your Gmail account. On the upside, The Baseline FAQ says that participants will get to see some of the data. Stanford and Duke will be the ﬁrst to receive the data before it’s opened up to other medical researchers two years later. It’s a form of longitude dataset, a deep dive into the habits and lifestyles of a population the size of which has never been collected before. It explains why Alphabet - the company that was Google but now owns Google - is involved. It’s the most powerful data brand on the planet, and one of the few with the resources and know-how to make the project a success. However, Alphabet remains a for-proﬁt company. It would like

something to sell. Last year, Alphabet’s DeepMind partnered up with our NHS to share the collected data in exchange for an app and AI Brainpower to treat acute kidney injuries. Nonetheless, DeepMind were unable to get full consent for data sharing, and it remains unclear what the long-term intent is.

Google; the most powerful data brand on the planet The interesting thing is that Google has every chance of buggering this up. The US National Children’s Study, a long-term initiative that was designed to follow the progress of 100,000 children for 21 years, fell to pieces at the ﬁfteenth and $1.3 billion in, thanks to confused goals. Project Baseline has no long-term goal in this sense. It’s simply a ruddy large survey. One that will have your biodata on ﬁle for years to come. Still want to get involved? Actually, you probably still do. After all, you’re not only the customer you’re also their product.

The ﬁght for HIV continues

HE now-infamous AIDS epidemic was first reported in June 1981. The Centres for Disease Control and Prevention reported an astonishing 774,467 cases of AIDS within the US between 1981 and 2001, with a mortality rate of over 50%. Despite this clear global health issue, progress was slow. Funding into scientific research was limited, and it took three years for the World Health Organisation to recognise this global situation. Nonetheless, advances were slowly made. It was discovered that AIDS results from infection by the HIV virus. The virus enters specific cells in the immune system, called CD4+ T cells. It hides inside these immune cells, making copies of itself before spreading even further within the immune system - destroying the CD4+ host cells in the process. Eventually the amount of CD4+T cells becomes so low that the immune system shuts

Hannah Kitt reviews efforts of combatting AIDS

down, making the body vulnerable to any number of infections. The fact that the virus hides within our own cells makes it so difﬁcult to kill and develop an effective treatment.

Donor immune cells attack the recipients immune cells Since these initial discoveries, scientiﬁc research has advanced in leaps and bounds. From 2008, a 20 year old patient with a low viral load treated with antiretroviral therapies (ATR’s) has a life expectancy of 78 years, only just falling short of the average life expectancy. These therapies are not perfect, though. ART’s must be taken daily over the course of a lifetime, and can have serious side effects which vary between drug combinations, but can include: diarrhoea, vomiting, anaemia, and muscle aches.

Ten years ago, the ‘Berlin patient’ appeared to have been cured from HIV in a stroke of serendipity. The Berlin patient underwent a bone marrow transplant (BMT) to treat his cancer. The donor bone marrow originated from a person with a genetic mutation in the CCR5 gene, which makes immune cells resistant to HIV. This was thought to explain how HIV was eradicated from the Berlin patient. However, six more individuals who had BMT’s to treat cancer appear to be cured from HIV. Of these six patients, only one received bone marrow from a donor with this CCR5 mutation, suggesting there must be another explanation. What all six patients have in common with each other, and with the Berlin patient, is that they all suffered from the same side effect of BMTs: graft vs host disease. Graft vs host disease is a dangerous complication of BMT’s where the donor immune cells attack the re-

cipient’s immune cells. The recipient’s immune cells consequently die, along with the HIV hiding within them. Although inducing graft vs host disease is not a viable option, especially in people with a life expectancy of 78 years, research into these six BMT patients will provide more insight into the mechanisms of HIV. A trial taking a different approach started three years ago. Now, ﬁve of the participants involved have undetected levels of the virus in their system. Although they cannot be ofﬁcially declared totally cured until more time has passed, it certainly looks promising. The participants were given two vaccines, with booster doses, and additional doses of romidepsin. The vaccines lead to production of proteins found in all differ-

ent variants of HIV. The immune system develops the ability to recognise and destroy these proteins, so when the romidepsin flushes the dormant HIV out from the CD4+ T cells, the immune system can destroy the HIV. This vaccine trial, if successful, has the potential to be applied on a much larger scale. And if successful, once again, science will have drastically changed the fate of a HIV positive diagnosis.

Nothing beats a good brew

SCIENCE

Tash Ebbutt, Deputy Editor, delves into the science behind a cup of tea

F you don’t like tea, you should probably stop reading. Who doesn’t love a good brew though? The readers I just lost clearly. Tea is a wonderful beverage, afﬁxed to the English culture (ironic really seeing that tea doesn’t even originate from here) with the power to amend many situations. With so many varieties of the stuff, it is no surprise that it is extremely popular. And there’s good news for tea fans, recent research has determined what gives tea its tasty ﬂavour.

It is no surprise that tea is extremely popular Tea derives from the leaves of the Camellia sinensis plant. The Camellia grouping contains over one hundred species but only Camellia sinensis can create tea. Interestingly, this plant creates the six types of true tea; black, green, white, yellow, post fermented and oolong. If tea doesn’t contain one of the aforementioned it technically isn’t classiﬁed as a tea at all. Despite its economic and cultural importance, little is known about the genetics of tea and this is where a research team based in China come in. This extraordinary team have decoded

the genetic building blocks behind the super- plant.. They hope this will provide an insight into the chemicals that give tea its distinctive flavour; as stated by Lizhi Gao, a plant geneticist on the team: “together with the construction of g e netic maps and new sequencing technologies, we are working on an updated tea tree genome that will investigate some of the flavour”. In terms of flavour, the researchers discovered that tea contains high levels of flavoids and caffeine (great for those late night study sessions then). Understanding flavour becomes important when considering the future of tea. Demand for tea is ever present and if the opportunity arises for new varieties, this presents a whole new market

to explore with a vast array of products for the consumer. As Guy Barter, a horticulturist at the Royal Horticulturist has said, “Once you understand the basis for the ﬂavours and the processing quality of the tea, you can then have genetic markers that breeders can look for when try-

ing to produce new varieties,”. Breeding new tea through selective breeding could offer even more variety for tea lovers everywhere. Make way PG Tips, we have a new contender for you. The team revealed that decoding the genome took ﬁve years. The genome is three billion DNA base pairs long making it four times larger than the coffee plant; it is one of the largest sequenced plant species. However, it isn’t just the breeding of new teas that makes this research so exciting. Acknowledging the genetics behind the tea plant allows discoveries sur-

rounding evolution to occur. The ﬁndings reveal how the plant itself evolved. Dr Monique Simmonds, the deputy director of science at Kew Royal

Botanic Gardens who bears no attachment to the research in China has stated that “the biochemical pathways involved in the synthesis of the compounds important in the taste of tea are also present in some of the ancestors of tea and have been conserved for about 6.3 million years.” Simmonds also declared that “Overall, the ﬁndings from this study could have a signiﬁcant impact on those involved in the breeding of tea but also those involved in breeding many plants

The genome is three billion DNA base pairs long making it four times larger than coffee used medicinally and in cosmetics, as the compounds that occur in tea are often associated with the biological properties of plants used medicinally or in cosmetics.’’ The possibilities are endless and this new research opens up more opportunities for tea’s presence in our day to day lives. In the future, we might not just drink tea, we might use it for health or for beauty. It will be interesting to see how tea’s cultural presence could evolve into a heftier economic enterprise.

Stamina without the steroids Allina Ivan discusses the drug that is changing ﬁtness

HE benefits of exercise are manifold, something we all know to be a fact. Exercise reduces the risk of major illnesses, including cancer, heart disease, and stroke. It also lowers stress levels, promotes the growth of new neurons, and extends life expectancy. Yet for some people – including the elderly, the obese, and those with reduced mobility - these benefits are out of reach. For others, exercise is indeed an option, but it is simply not the pastime of choice. What if we could enhance training with a drug, and obtain these benefits with a little less effort?

One thing is sure: exercise remains the best medicine We’re not quite there yet, but new research published in Cell Metabolism has opened promising avenues. Scientists at Salk Institute in San Diego have identiﬁed

a molecule that can activate what is called the PPARD pathway, a signalling pathway that is naturally activated during exercise. This molecule – which goes by the name of GW1516 or GW – works to promote fat burning and endurance. To test the effectiveness of the GW, they isolated a group of mice and kept them sendentary from birth before dividing them into two groups. One group was given a new drug called GW, while the other group was given a placebo. They were then subjected to treadmill tests to see how long they could run for. They found that control mice could only run for 160 minutes on average, while mice that were given GW1516 were able to run for an average of 270 minutes. It took them 70% longer

than it took the control group to hit the so-called “wall”.

To understand what was happening at a molecular level, the team conducted a gene expression test in a major muscle. The test revealed that 975 genes were changed after receiving GW. Among those were genes responsible for breaking down carbohydrates for energy. These genes were suppresed, while genes related to fat burning were activated. Interestingly, they did not observe any changes associated with prolonged training such as increases in blood vessel number. Changes were solely related to glucose management. It usually takes longer for muscles to start burning fat than it takes to start burning sugar, which explains why runners experience mental tiredness when they run out of

glucose and become fatigued.. In mice that had PPARD activated, sugar was no longer the main energy source. This meant that they had more energy left for their brains and more endurance to carry on running. The researchers have plans to build on these findings and develop clinical trials in humans, and Russia has already approved testing the compound in human subjects. Now we must ask ourselves: if fit for human use, would a GW-based pill give a free pass to couchmarathon to those fit for exercising? Or to eating junk food? The idea may seem seducing, but do we want “doping” to become the norm? Clearly, improving endurance through pharmacotherapy would offer enormous benefits to those who are hospitalised for long periods to stop muscle degeneration. It would also help those who are too obese to start exercising. For the rest of us though, one thing is sure: exercise remains the best medicine. Better put those trainers on and get going!

22 MAY 2017 | EXEPOSÉ

SPORT

Ross Barkley: in the ﬂoodlights

Grecians march on to Wembley CONTINUED FROM BACK PAGE ... equaliser intensified. With 90 minutes on the clock, and the additional time about to be announced, the ball found its way onto the head of Carlisle super-sub John O'Sullivan, who made no mistake in nodding home. It seemed as though Exeter would yet again fail to capitalise on their lead, and there was a genuine fear that they may bow out. Still, Exeter had one rather unexpected trick card up their sleeve. With time not far from running out, the ball fell to Jack Stacey, who ensure one last twist in this tale with a monstrous strike from distance. The stands descended into absolute hysteria and Exeter booked their place in the play off final. After the match, Exeter manager Paul Tisdale said: "It was very exciting and it was a strange feeling because I was more nervous at 2-1 and the fact we were holding on for the last five minutes, but once they scored their goal there was a strange acceptance that we’d have to go and get another. "We said all week that if they score two, we’ll score three, if they score three, we’ll score four." Exeter City will face Blackpool in the final at Wembley on 28 May.

Player Ratings

By Fenton Christmas, Screen Editor

Bobby Olejnik

Jack Stacey

Troy Brown

Jordan Moore-Taylor 7 Craig Woodman

David Wheeler

Jake Taylor

Ryan Harley

Jordan Tillson

Lee Holmes

Ollie Watkins (MOTM)

Substitutes: Joel Grant

Unused Substitutes: Christy Pym, Lloyd James, Liam McAlinden, Luke Croll, Pierce Sweeney, Reuben Reid

Wil Jones, Sport Editor, assesses the media's representation of sportspeople

HAT do you suppose was going through Ross Barkley’s mind as he wheeled away to celebrate in front of the Gwladys Street End after Everton’s second goal in their 3-1 defeat of Burnley earlier this season? Or indeed, when he picked up the ball in the middle of the field against Watford a few weeks ago, driving towards the box before striking the ball into the bottom corner from twenty five yards, the sole goal under the Friday night lights? In many ways, should such things be the concern of the public? Here was a young man playing football and (particularly in his effort against the Hornets) displaying promise and potency as a talented individual. Yet the story does not end there. Barkley, like many athletes, is subjected to scrutiny that extends far beyond the football pitch. Recently, that scrutiny manifested itself in one journalist’s now notorious article in a newspaper that has been out of stock in many newsstands in Barkley’s hometown of Liverpool for some time. What goes through Barkley’s mind, do you suppose, when he is compared to a gorilla, and his salary to that of a drug dealer? The state of the midfielder’s heart and mind becomes important in such a context, as do those of his contemporaries. Everton teammate Aaron Lennon’s recent detention under the Mental Health Act for “a stress related illness” is evidence of the normal human frailties that even idolised footballers can experience. And perhaps therein lies a problem: idolisation. The fervour and dedication during the 20th Century that built British football into arguably the greatest domestic game in the world is now what entices and sustains the peripheral off field attachments to the sport, of which a variety of commentary in the media is one such part. As football commercialises, it declassifies itself from the people and culture that fuelled it for so long, opening itself up to as wide a market as possible. There is a peculiar marriage of these worlds- the old and the new that can sometimes be jarring as attitudes and expectations shift. The part of the media that is concerned with ephemeral narratives sees footballers as fair game, their salaries and notoriety arising from something so popular that the inherent public interest in them justifies the way in which the players are written about. Narratives require character: people reduced, exaggerated, or allegorised into understandable figures, and there is no narrative quite as compelling as the hero and the villain. As our consumption of the peripheral parts of the game increases relative to the 90 minutes on the field, the strength of a narrative over reality can increase, too, if it is clear enough and accepted by enough of the consuming audience. The hero and the villain trope is an all too common occurrence in English football,

but by no means does it reside on the pitch alone. Ross Barkley has suffered from the same fate that has seen scorn heaped on Wayne Rooney: both working class men from Liverpool with tremendous natural ability. Once he retires, Rooney’s failure, perceived or otherwise, to transform that ability into realised potential will be well worth a discussion on many facets of the game; from how British football views the position of attackers, to the merits of good management. Rooney has had an incredible career, and achieved a lot, and whilst parallels to former teammate Cristiano Ronaldo may show him in an unfavourable light there is little doubt that he has still done well. Yet one would be forgiven for thinking that Rooney’s inability to haul Manchester United or, particularly, England to titles and victories through his sheer talent is a failing that is all his own: that the boy from Liverpool isn’t worth that much if he falls just shy of the very pinnacle of achievement. By implication, Barkley is already being configured as the predecessor to Rooney: ill disciplined, unstructured, lots of effort with little end-product, and disloyal to his club and contract. Ultimately, he is expected to fail, in part because the stakes of acceptable success are so high that to win against the odds is almost unattainable. We also demand that sportspeople be role models- the economic rewards they receive are conflated with a presumption, or rather demand, of a moral and ethical ideal. Or, at least, to appear like this on the surface; to the media. When a politician espousing the virtues of the family unit is found the be an adulterer, there is a clear hypocrisy of values. Yet the same revelatory approach in degrading their public status is applied to footballers, where the ethics of wrongdoing are often far less hypocritical or damaging. The implications are therefore problematic in treating midfielders like ministers. Somewhat arbitrarily we are ascribing expectations to footballers as role models, that relate to what is societally valued, not least in relation to class. Whilst football support is increasingly declassified, the vast majority of British players are from the heartlands of the game: the industrial, working class hubs of talent that have produced many of this island’s greatest players and clubs. Yet there seems to be more at stake than mere appreciation of football-

ing ability and the idea of players as representative of their town, club, or country, in the way football is weaved into narratives. Barkley is deemed unintelligent a substitute for uneducated of sorts despite the widely acknowledged intellect required to play creative attacking football.

We demand that sportspeople be role models He is beastly, unreﬁned; someone who gets involved in nightclub altercations. Hardly the behaviour of a multimillionaire. Implicit in this is the sense of undeserved status and, consequently, fraudulence. The wealth bestowed upon Premier League players- gargantuan, by anyone’s estimationis forgiven if a player can become the hero. Otherwise it is further evidence of "villainy". But by demanding unreasonable expectations- winning the World Cup, no less- it becomes easier to dismiss a player's ability or achievement into a binary, often concluding failure over success. The rules are set against them: given too much too young doesn't merely relate to money, but praise and adulation, too. Footballers in particular represent social mobility, and the idea of undeserving and fraudulence seems a deeply regressive and reactionary attack- real human beings used as political footballs. One problem and not the only one, of course, of talking about Barkley in such derogatory terms is how thinly it veils the antipathy, going 'too far' in its determination to create and reinforce negative associations between barometers of class- money and status- and career success- or, rather, failure. Barkley is the 'wrong' kind of millionaire, and to prove himself worthy of admiration and his economic standing, he is made a prophetic hero, or unworthy of praise. He is from the wrong part of the country, from the wrong background, and such aspects are reinforced should he not attain the conscribed standards of becoming the country's saviour. The knock on effect is to legitimise such values in mass consciousness. With direct access to athletes' social media for the public, any 'undesirable' aspect of a human being is up for vicious ridicule, forgetting that the character on the receiving end is, in fact, a real person. Indeed, this extends beyond the footballing sphere. The jovially well known idea that Andy Murray is Scottish when he loses, and British when he wins, comes from the same societal value system

that seeks to utterly degrade Barkley. One man who has recovered from villainy having dashed the hopes of the nation is David Beckham. In Beckham, we see what is valued: conformity. The conscious loss of accent, embrace of wholesomeness, and pursuit of societal ascension through the titled class system all uphold an existing value system. His celebrity and wealth is more accepted, more 'deserving' than footballers who exhibit human failings that remind us of both their fallibility, and their origins. As long as sportspeople are asked to suppress themselves, to cultivate the role model image on social media from childhood, we are in danger of denying them their very humanity. Tiger Woods's infidelity is by no means excused by the demands placed upon him to uphold a certain image, yet it isn't inconceivable that when someone gets used to hiding parts of themselves from the public eye, it can manifest itself in destructive behaviour hidden even from those closest to the individual. However strongly denounced Barkley's treatment has been and it was deplorable, the phenomena of spinning narratives around sportspeople sees no sign of abating, quite the opposite. For nearly every footballer in the national consciousness, it is easy to conjure a negative caricature relating to their appearance, alleged sexual antics, or heritage. Go on: try it. It's worryingly commonplace. Whilst this phenomenon of image cultivation is widespread, and common, it is not to say it is the sole journalistic tone: something as large and popular as football receives a lot of eloquent and fair assessment, and long may it remain a counter to the more sinister aspects of journalism. We might, finally, consider the effects and, subsequently the ethics of treating athletes in this way. Perhaps the most talented English footballer in living memory is evidence of the dangers of a fickle media: Paul Gascoigne. It is important to emphasise that Gascoigne's alcoholism cannot be attributed to his fame alone, but the exaggerated idolatry he was held in in the wake of Italia '90 cannot have helped. Gary Lineker's infamous warning"be careful"- upon his return to Britain after his breakthrough at the tournament should be a prescient reminder to modern sportspeople, but it could perhaps be one for journalists and the media, too, and the consequences of their actions. In no way does the absence of heroes justify the creation of villains, not least for dubiously duplicitous reasons. Until then, Barkley- a 23 year old man- and those who follow in his footsteps should be left to succeed, or fail, on their own terms, and not have their characters disparaged for every minor footballing failure.

SPORT

The man in the middle

Dorothea Christmann, Sport Editor, looks at the psychology of refereeing

T the moment, it is almost impossible for 90 minutes of a football game to go by without the referee being the central focus. Booing, backlash from the public on social media, every wrong move discussed and dissected by pundits and the press – this is the daily life of a referee in the age of modern football. I myself am guilty of this online criticising, but should I be to blame? Should it not be the referees? Game after game, they miss a clear handball and award penalties to players who dive and are later blamed. Their decisions have a momentous impact on the way the game turns out.

Are referees nowadays just of a poor standard? There are a thousand rhetorical questions that could be asked but one thing is for sure- to be a referee is to stand in the spotlight day in and day out, always under the scrutiny of the players, managers, and fans, as well as being under massive psychological pressure from themselves not to become a laughing stock. They must balance the conﬂicting interests of the teams in a fair way, whilst not feeling threatened enough by the home crowd to be swayed in awarding controversial decisions their way. So, the real question is – who would want to be a

referee? It’s ridiculous that with all the emerging technology involved in sports now, (such as goal line technology) that video replay still has not been introduced. After all, we rely on the two eyes of a human being to influence how decisions are made. The psychological weight of the responsibility of choosing what card to award, such as whether it is a penalty or not, would figuratively be lifted from their shoulders if they are able to check whether their judgement is correct. Are we holding off so long because we enjoy making the referees into the scapegoat? No-one turns to the player who dived but to the referee who mistook it for a foul. We are relentless blamers yet we do not understand the difficulty of the game. What panic goes through a referee’s mind when a flag is up and a player is rolling

on the ﬂoor but another player had blocked his view? Reactive comments on Twitter when the referee is announced for the upcoming game are common; people are already commenting about how their team will lose because the referee is biased even before the game has begun. A referee can never escape from their mistakes two weeks, a year or even ﬁve years ago. The referee’s job may be to remain calm and neutral but a human’s instincts would be to retaliate to a player who has spat in their direction and called them all sorts of names. Rather than constantly frame referees in a negative context, it would do good to

Chief Ambition

talk about Bobby Madley’s eagle eye refereeing in Manchester City’s game against Leicester where he disallowed Mahrez’s penalty due to the ball being touched twice, which is of courseprohibited. Football has become much more than a game in recent years, it is a spectacle of entertainment. A wild craze of complete and utter competitiveness. We expect much more than we should from a human being who experiences the same panic, anxiety and stress that we do because they are in the public eye.

Lara Hopkins talks to Exeter's Rob Baxter and Jack Nowell

XETER Chiefs took on Saracens at Sandy Park in the Premiership Final, but what was their mindset and approach before the game? Despite Saracens ﬁnishing below both Exeter and Wasps in the normal season, they were deﬁnitely the team to beat coming into the playoffs, having just won their second European title, only the fourth team in history to do so, and are the defending Premiership champions.

Going to Twickenham really was an adventure

ROB BAXTER, HEAD COACH

To add to Exeter’s already vast mountain, the Devon side have failed to beat Saracens this year, even suffering a 13-34 loss the last time these two teams met at Sandy Park. However, the teams have drawn since at Allianz Park, and the Chiefs only lost 28-20 in last year’s Premiership ﬁnal, so there is hope for the Devon side in this rematch. Rob Baxter, shortlisted once again for the Ricoh Director of Rugby of the Season Award seems conﬁdent that his team are in a very different place now, compared to this time last year, and the start of this season. In regards to this season’s playoffs Baxter is of the opinion that his players have a very different mindset now, “It does feel slightly different but it feels slightly dif-

ferent because of the attitude of the players. I have a genuine feeling that the players would be genuinely disappointed not to win the Premiership this year. I can’t honestly say that was the case last year.” This is no criticism of his team’s performance last year though. Baxter was quite open in saying that the whole experience had been an “adventure”. “We were in the top four for the first time, had a home semi-final, we played really well in it but it was a bit of an adventure. Going to Twickenham really was an adventure for us, and I think that probably was reflected in the first half.” This is in reference to how the Chiefs were 23-6 down at halftime at Twickenham, the title virtually gone. However, they did make a comeback and Baxter is sure that the experience will help them this year, “I think we learnt a lot from that first half and what we had to do, and we improved in the second half, and I think we learnt a from not dealing with the final as well as we maybe could’ve done. "I think we’ve learnt a lot from that process, and I think the things we’ve learnt as a club, and as a team and as a coaching group. There’s a lot of things you have to do day by day to make you look like possible champions, and I think we’ve ad-

dressed a lot of those things in the second two thirds of this season, and that makes me feel like we’ve got a great chance.” Nonetheless, Exeter’s leader knows the playoffs won’t be easy, especially the semi final against Saracens, “Have we got a very tough hurdle to overcome this weekend? Of course we have. Clermont showed us that last week (when they lost the European final to Saracens). Clermont came here and beat us pretty well when we were struggling.” This is in reference to the tough start the Chiefs had this year, when they were struggling to win a game at the beginning of the season and were placed outside the top six, seemingly still hungover from their playoff exploits. “The way we’re looking at things now is probably, when we first got to the final and we lost, the overriding emotion for most people, and it was certainly mine, was that we’d had a fantastic season. "We’d had the best season that Exeter Chiefs had ever had, and we needed to talk about that. I don’t feel like there was anything wrong with that, but what that probably actually led to was us going into the next season a little bit like, ‘we’ve a ch i e ve d a certain level n o w, if we keep things going in a similar way and you keep rolling, then maybe you’ll just roll to the next level’, and

it actually doesn’t work like that.” However, this didn’t last long and by October the team had recognised the issues, realising, “We lost the final, we were well down at half time, we may have only just lost but we did lose the final. What am I going to do about it? What am I, as an individual, going to do about it? What are we as a group going to do about it? And we asked ourselves those questions. We asked ourselves those questions after Clermont came here and beat us pretty well, because I think until then we were hiding behind “everything’s ok”. "We were hiding a bit because we were in the Premiership final last year, we’ve gone to Wasps first game this season and we’ve only lost away by 5 points against a good side so we’re ok, we won our three preseason fixtures so we’re kind of ok, yes we may have come up a bit short in a couple of games but they were against good sides, and we were kind of hiding behind some facts and figures when what we really needed to say was “this doesn’t feel right, this doesn’t feel like we’re pressing on from last year”. And I think once we addressed that, and we addressed it very quickly, there’s been a very sharp upward curve for us.” There was a sharp upward curve. Exeter Chiefs won their last eight fixture of the normal season, all with try bonus point, a Premiership record, and have not lost a league game since Bath in October. They have had a season to be proud of, and are a team to respect and ad-

mire, just as Chiefs admire their North London rivals, with Baxter saying how his side have learnt from watching the current champions win and lose ﬁnals, “although they’ve developed and tweaked their players, they’ve never got rid of half their players or ripped up the playbook.

First things ﬁrst I want to win with Exeter

JACK NOWELL, WING

"They've recruited in some key positions, they’ve kept the faith in what they feel is right, and that’s what I feel is important. They’ve had that period of time together.” This is an ethos that Baxter clearly follows, as the Chiefs are mainly comprised of academy stars, older players to add Championship experience, and guys such as Olly Woodburn who made no impact at other clubs but have thrived at Exeter. The Chiefs's ethos is clearly shown by Jack Nowell. Despite having a place on the Lions tour it is Exeter’s campaign he is focussing on. “The most important thing for me at the moment is what I can do in an Exeter shirt. "Last year was a massive boost for me as a player. I want to do it for Exeter, I want to do it for the boys that I play with, so it would be very selﬁsh of me to be thinking about what’s coming in the Summer. First things ﬁrst, for now I want to go and win it with Exeter.”

Sport

22 MAY 2017 | EXEPOSÉ

SPORT EDITORS:

Dorothea Christmann Wil Jones

Que sera sera...!

Stunning Stacey strike sends soaring City to showpiece play off ﬁnal

Photo: wikimedia

League Two Play Off SF 2nd Leg Exeter City ................................. 3 Carlisle United ........................... 2 Exeter City win 6-5 on aggregate Owain Evans Editor

AST-minute heroics from Jack Stacey saw Exeter City make it to the SkyBet League Two Play Off Final - and put the Grecians just 90 minutes away from a place in League One. There were high spirits before kick-off. A 3-3 draw in the away leg meant that (since away goals are not a

tiebreaker in the EFL play offs) this tie was essentially starting from scratch. Still, the Grecians had dominated the away leg, despite the scoreline, and there was no reason to expect they’d do anything other than the same again. Unlike Exeter’s season, this game got off to a perfect start. City, immediately putting Carlisle under pressure, looked at ease in front of the bumper home crowd. It didn’t take long until the Grecians gave their fans something to cheer for. Ollie Watkins, the youngster who countless times this season has stepped up when needed, broke the deadlock just ten minutes in. Whilst it may not be the prettiest of

Exeter Chiefs

ﬁnishes as it trickled in in front of the away fans, it gave the home side an all important leg up.

The Grecians had dominated the away leg Exeter kept the pressure going as the ﬁrst half continued, but it wasn’t quite convincing. No matter how much possession they managed to muster deep in Carlisle territory, it never seemed like it was going to result in another goal. The visitors, however, looked completely lacklustre, and

Exeposé chats to Head Coach Rob Baxter and B&I Lion Jack Nowell PAGE 31

it seemed that a 1-0 lead was likely to hold. The end of the ﬁrst half provided a glimpse at the risks of a slim advantage. Exeter’s defence looked shaky, and struggled to deal with several attempts from Carlisle. Still, as the sides trudged in at half-time, it was the hosts who were still in front. United got the second half underway, and from the get-go it was clear that they were looking to play in a fairly direct style. Still, whilst it was better than the majority of their ﬁrst half showing, Carlisle still did not look capable of capitalising. On the 79th minute, it seemed like

it was all over. Once again, it was Watkins who found the net, and the home fans leapt into the air, convinced that the match had reached its conclusion, and that Exeter would be heading to the fabled Wembley Way. Carlisle still hadn’t read the script, though. Just two minutes later, Exeter failed to deal sufficiently with a corner, and the ball fell down to Jason Kennedy, who easily tapped it into the net. Nine minutes to go now, and the score was 2-1. With the final whistle approaching, Carlisle’s determination to find an...

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Ross Barkley

Wil Jones takes a look at the recent treatnment of the midfielder by the media

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