Impact Magazine Issue 247

Varsity And: Charity, Spiders & eSports

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Editorial The final few months of the academic year are always tumultuous.

A blend of extreme exam stress and anticipation for a summer of freedom and celebration, it’s often hard to pin down exactly what we’re feeling come May. For third years, who are now facing the terrifying prospect of a world where it isn’t acceptable to head to Mooch at midday, May is also a time for looking to the future and embracing change.

In that respect, Impact is a microcosm for university life.

The last few months have, at times, been challenging.

Our news reporters were out day and night to bring you the latest on SU elections, and our sports team is still working around the clock to capture Varsity in all its glory.

But with our new SU figureheads elected and the final week of Varsity just around the corner, that adrenalinefuelled yet ever-enjoyable pressure is beginning to ease. Much like the close of the academic year, all that is left is momentary reflection and well-earned pride.

This year’s team has a lot to be proud of, as our 11 nominations in the Student Publication Awards testify. Shortlisted 7 more times than last year, we’re celebrating our exclusive rebuttal of the ‘7 Legless’ story and our investigation into the failures of Nottingham’s student housing, both picked up by the BBC. We’re commending music interviews, comment pieces, sports features and our photographers for their endless creativity. And we’re delighted that our website, magazine design and entire publication have been recognised as some of the best in the UK. Progress inevitably implies change, and with these triumphs in our bag, it’s time to pass the mantle to a new editorial team. With the elections date set and some fantastic manifestos, I have no doubt that next year’s team will drive Impact’s success even further.

But in the whirlwind that is the summer term, I’m getting ahead of myself. I forget I have a dissertation to write and no graduation without it.

So, for the last time, I better sign off.

On behalf of Impact’s team this year, thank you for your readership. And to editors new and old: good luck in your creative endeavours.

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF TAMSIN PARNELL

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WHAT A WASTE

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YOU’VE BEEN WARNED

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18 Midland’s deli

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24 Visiting the spiderlab 36 Playing D&D

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38 UoN’s Foule 60 Varsity through the ages 64 Do Trent hate us more?

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WORDS BY SOFIA KNOWLES JO RALPHS

IMAGES BY POPPY ANNE MALBY

“IN SUCH A JOCUND COMPANY” UoN English lecturer Dr Kevin Harvey’s Read Aloud Scheme provides crucial support to elderly people with dementia

EXPERIENCE

Student life might be busy, but that’s no reason not to help others. Last year, over 4,000 enthusiastic students volunteered their time to various causes through the Student Volunteering Centre here at Notts. It’s sometimes hard to remember that your time could be an invaluable service to someone else and that giving back to your community matters. Older people in residential homes, particularly those with dementia, are one group in Nottingham that is often forgotten by the student bubble.

While people are enjoying longer lives, they are also experiencing ever-increasing ageism and age-associated illnesses. Student volunteering can build relationships in the outside world, combating isolation and preconceptions about older people. It can provoke intellectual stimulation or simply friendly conversation, which is both fun and an important part of care for someone with dementia. Not only this, but the relationships built by volunteering go both ways; students can learn a lot from chatting to care home residents.

There are already some radical schemes being set up in other countries, which bring old and young people together. In the Netherlands, students can live in care homes for free in exchange for spending a little bit of time with the residents. They run workshops like graffiti art, for example, as well as simply chatting or helping them to get connected via the internet. Since schemes like these are so effective, it seems a shame that there isn’t more integration between students and care homes in the UK. However, Dr. Kevin Harvey and a group of dedicated Nottingham students are making a real difference to our local area. They’re involved in a Read Aloud Scheme, where student volunteers visit care homes on a weekly basis to read poetry. It’s a fantastic way to connect with older people, and brighten the day of both the readers and the audience.

Some residents in the homes have dementia, and poetry is proven to have a profoundly positive effect on people with the illness, as rhythmical qualities often provoke fond memories.

We spoke to Kevin and three of his volunteers, Jude Palmer, Larissa Rowan and Daisy Edwards, to hear about their experiences.

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How valuable do you think the scheme is?

Kevin, why did you start the scheme?

Jude: It means different things to different residents. We have one lady that comes back to us every week and she says to us, ‘I really enjoy it, I remember these poems from school’.

Daisy: A lot of the residents have said to me that it’s really nice that someone wants to hear their stories; that in itself is quite valuable to them.

Kevin: Often people actually live under the same roof for years but never actually interact and come together. Poetry allows them to do this.

Kevin: There are lots of residential care homes up and down the county, as well as lots of highly motivated, very intelligent English students. What is often valued in a care home is having people come from outside, particularly young people, because it may be that some people in care homes never see a young person.

What do you as a volunteer get from the scheme?

Larissa: It’s really lovely being there because of the stories they have. They’re a section of society that you don’t always get to interact with, that almost get marginalised and maybe forgotten about.

Daisy: It was really interesting to hear about when they were young. They talked about going ballroom dancing, and for us, that was a bit different to Nottingham life. For us to hear about that and talk about a whole different generation, it was really valuable.

Is there any poetry that has had a particularly positive effect?

Larissa: Pretty much everyone in the care home knows ‘Daffodils’ [by William Wordsworth]. There’s one lady that doesn’t speak much, but that’s the poem that has got a verbal response from her.

Daisy: I had one lady that had read ‘Daffodils’ and she spoke along with one or two lines, and then from that she remembered another poem and started reciting it completely from memory.

Have you seen any major changes in the residents?

Daisy: I would say I’ve definitely noticed a change from the first week to the last week.

There was one Scottish guy, who wouldn’t really talk to anyone, and we read him a poem about Scotland, and suddenly it was like a switch had gone off. Another time I read a poem about Paris, and then asked, ‘have you ever been to Paris?’ It only takes one to pipe up, and then they talk to each other about their experiences. I think the conversations that poems provoke are just as valuable as the poetry itself. I think you do have to acknowledge the fact that it’s valuable to them and making them happy in the moment.

Do you believe that poetry actually has health benefits?

Kevin: There’s no doubt that there’s some long term benefit, but certainly there’s short term benefit. One of the issues is that scientific evaluation is always premised on the long term, you know, it’s only considered to be worthwhile if you can show that over six months someone’s health has improved.

That completely misses the point with this, because people feel better now, and that’s why it always works. I’ve seen people with advanced dementia suddenly just reciting poems. There’s an argument that the couplet is a form of memory, the rhyme itself is a memory, because one word chimes with another, which is a kind of memory sensation.

There’s something about poetry. With poetry, residents don’t have to talk; they can just sit and listen. Dementia itself disappears, and what is at the forefront is literature. And that means a great deal.

What kind of feedback have you experienced?

Kevin: Students have made people happy, and that is unquestionable. That comes from the mouths of residents themselves, and the coordinators who work in the homes. They are making a difference and having a big impact on people’s lives.

Daisy: One thing that was said to me when I left was, “I feel you were interested in my life, and didn’t just talk to me like ‘What do you want for dinner?’”

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WASTE NOT, WANT A LOT In a student world of alcohol and empty pizza boxes, no wonder our bins are constantly overflowing. But is there a way to avoid waste completely?

Living in a student home poses so many problems for us all; bills, awful Wi-Fi and the ever-burning question of ‘who drank the milk?’. With the added stress of deadlines and maintaining our commitment to Ocean, all too often we forget the world around us and focus only on ourselves. Never is this clearer than when, as a house of six, we all eat at separate hours, producing one unfavourable result: a whole lot of waste.

By now you must have noticed how quickly your bin fills up with plastic packaging and polystyrene boxes from that take away you got at 3am. It strikes me on a daily basis just

how much we, with our student habits, create waste unnecessarily. I wondered whether it was a student lifestyle that resulted in the fast-filling bin bags, or whether consumers cannot be blamed at all, given the way supermarkets package their products.

I spoke to Tom Holding, a Waste Advisor from Nottingham City Council, who agreed that the main problem in student housing comes from students who create “their own waste, and perhaps cook at different times”.

We discussed the aftermath of parties, and clearly students’ drinking habits contribute to a greater production of waste. He pointed

out that many students don’t make use of recycling bins effectively, and frequently forget the day of bin collection.

I decided to set myself what I called a “no waste challenge”, where for two weeks I would consume nothing from packaging. My main rule was that nothing could go in the bin, and if I absolutely had to use a packaged product, then I would find a use for the waste. I lasted only a week and a half, despite my greatest efforts.

EXPERIENCE

7 WORDS BY SOFIA KNOWLES ILLUSTRATIONS BY POPPY ANNE MALBY

How did I eat?

What about going out?

In one word: badly. Every meal I cooked was bland, and I always had the same basic ingredients. From supermarkets I could buy loose fruit and vegetables and nothing else.

I brought empty jars to the Victoria Centre market and filled them with rice, quinoa, and oats. I couldn’t use oil or butter as cooking fat or even any salt, using only water to sauté my vegetables. I don’t think I’ll ever eat porridge again after almost two weeks of plain oats without even milk.

It was almost impossible to avoid waste when I went to Ocean. I obviously pre-drank, but kept the bottles with the intention of making them into alternative candle holders.

Reactions from shopkeepers were mixed. At one point I took bread rolls from the bakery section in the supermarket and put them straight into my handbag, and it’s safe to say I experienced a few odd looks. Later in the week, I felt extravagant and went to a cheese shop armed with plastic tupperware, where the staff laughed for almost ten minutes straight at my utter desperation for cheese.

We all know that most food comes in packaging, but when you’re forced to avoid these products completely, you’d be surprised by just how much unnecessary crap most food is covered by. In one Sainsbury’s in town, the only thing I could buy in the whole store without packaging was a lemon.

And it had a sticker on it.

How did I wash?

I took a tote bag to Lush and filled it with everything from soap to blocks of shampoo, and even deodorant which resembled a stone. I also bought a bottle of ‘toothy tabs’I was promised that after this toothpaste ran out, they could refill the vessel. I had to keep reminding the assistant about my challenge, who was intent on covering my products in wrapping paper and stickers.

This was actually my favourite part of the challenge. It struck me that whilst some packaging may actually be indispensable, bath products without containers are easy to find, so it’s an easy switch to make.

I have to admit, these purchases were a bit of a bank-breaker. However, even after two weeks, the blocks of shampoo and conditioner have retained their original shape, so clearly last a lot longer than bottled soaps.

The more difficult part was avoiding VKs. I went for the classic vodka-lemonade, but, horrified, was handed a plastic cup. I decided if I kept refilling the cup all night it wouldn’t count, as long as I took it home to use as an actual glass. That didn’t happen; I lost it somewhere in the toilets.

The next day I felt extreme guilt, and from that moment double checked at every social event that I would be given my beverage in a glass rather than a plastic cup.

Where else did I fail?

Toilet roll. I mean, there isn’t really an alternative, is there?

I also still haven’t figured out what to do with my food waste, either. I kept banana skins, potato peelings and apple cores inside a plastic box, with the intention of buying a compost bin, until I found out how much they cost.

Have I changed any habits permanently?

Unfortunately, no. My experience was a hungry one, where often on campus I would go for hours without being able to buy anything. With a busy lifestyle, preparing a lunch box every morning is time consuming, a task which becomes even more difficult to stomach when the meals are tasteless.

Although ultimately a failure, the challenge opened my eyes to the excess of the world we live in. Eating out is an absolute myth, as well as going to any social event whatsoever.

Though some offer loose products, most supermarkets are rubbish (excuse the pun), and it requires determination to avoid packaging altogether.

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IMPACT WORDS BY RAPHAELA RING

THE BROWN BIN WITH THE GREY LID Whilst most students attempt to recycle, many of us are still unsure about the proper way to dispose of our rubbish. This handy little guide lets you know exactly what to put in the brown bin and what to leave out

YES Catalogues and brochures Paper Food and drink cans Plastic bottles Aerosols Newspapers and magazines Cardboard Large tins Plastic tubs, pots and trays Telephone directories Glass bottle and Jars

no Bagged waste Foil lined juice and milk cartons Greasy Pizza Cartons Paper tissue Plastic carrier bags Cling film Foil Wallpaper Polystyrene Textiles Mirrors Light bulbs Toys / hard plastics

This guide is by no means complete and should not be treated as such. The information presented in this guide is taken from The Nottingham City Council’s website. For more information on responsible waste disposal head to http://www.nottinghamcity.gov.uk

EXPERIENCE

WORDS BY NICK SCOTT

ILLUSTRATION BY FAE SAPSFORD

YOU’VE BEEN WARNED Content warnings trigger progress for the University of Nottingham

Consider the current situation facing most students. We are a community, a class of people, a blind herd, some might say, paying exorbitant tuition fees that are both ill-thought out economic policy and morally uncomfortable to say the least. Living costs are rocketing and financial support for students has never been more superficial. We are already willing victims to the sacrificial altar that is the low-wage and low-skill job market. The last thing we need is another excuse for people not to take us seriously.

Trigger warnings are an easy target. When someone seeks to bash modern university culture, they will inevitably bring up what they perceive to be the cowardly, spineless and offence-seeking student refusing to engage with an aspect of their higher education as it ‘triggers’ them.

This word has consequently become an eternal source of ridicule and a torch to hold aloft for those who decry the modern university system. The majority of the press, ambivalent to the student population at the best of times, stoke the fire with select stories detailing the exploits of the most extreme of our group in a bid to make us the laughing stock. But what if people were to read beyond the headlines?

Let’s look at our fine institution, the University of Nottingham. ‘Dark Futures, Tainted Past Dystopians and Gothic Futures’ is a third year English module that was introduced with a warning that students might find some of the content hard to stomach. Themes of race, sex, violence

and drug use were offered in advance to those taking the module, and they were urged to contact lecturers if they had any worries or queries.

This was an entirely appropriate course of action for university staff to take.

If you were a victim of rape, it would be perfectly reasonable to consider the possibility that discussing this in a module, with coursemates who may even know of your ordeal, might be difficult. If you have a family member who was a serial drug-user, then a discussion of an overdose scene might make you squirm in your seat. Trigger warnings are not a lamentation of free speech but rather a celebration of a university taking the time to be personal with their students.

This is not some passing fad purely for the social-justice warriors. There is a distinct line between censoring all material that is hard-hitting and informing students of potentially distressing topics. It marks the beginning of a culture of personalisation at universities. A culture where the university is now expected to reach out to the student rather than the other way around.

Third year English students studying this module at the University of Nottingham are fortunate to have a department that cares about them beyond the classroom. Whilst part of a wider trend, the English department is undoubtedly leading the way to an environment that all other faculties should be aiming for.

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WORDS AND IMAGES BY HAZEL ANDREW

ILLUSTRATIONS BY POPPY ANNE MALBY

ヒッチハイク THROUGH JAPAN One student, an A4 card, and the adventure of a lifetime Spending a year studying abroad in Japan and not travelling up and down the beautiful country would have been a sacrilege. Unlike most of my student friends, I didn’t travel by the Shinkansen bullet train or night bus.

Instead, I was determined to travel for free.

I took to the roads with a black marker and A4 card, and decided to try out hitchhiking.

I ventured up north in the winter to see the Snow Festival in Hokkaido and headed south in the humid summer and ate fresh mango in Miyazaki. I explored almost everywhere in between: Sendai, Shirakawago, Kyoto, Osaka, Hiroshima, Fukuoka to name but a few places. Throughout my travels, I saved at least £1,000.

By leaving my comfort zone and hitchhiking, I met local people and practised Japanese, which turned out to be the best resource for my learning. I made long-term friends, shared experiences with ex-hitchhikers and chatted with families. While hitchhiking in a foreign country seems daunting, and you can never be sure what kind of person will take

you to the next destination, it turned out to be a great social tool; solo travel didn’t feel solo.

A flexible itinerary allowed me to visit drivers’ recommended sights throughout my travels, such as hidden shrines and temples.

Friendly drivers would offer me refreshments, insist that I dine with them, or even offer me a place to stay for the night. On one occasion, when heading from Nagoya to Osaka, the driver first took me on a temple-tour of Kyoto and then treated me to lunch. The lack of a fixed plan allowed for unexpected events, and added to the sense of adventure. You never quite know where you will end up or when you will arrive, but that is part of the fun.

Having a no-plan holiday also has its drawbacks. Relying on hitchhiking can be frustrating when unexpected problems arise.

Sometimes I ended up being taken through unconventional, inefficient routes and, while most of the time I secured a ride within 5-10 minutes, sometimes I could be waiting for

LIFESTYLE

more than two hours. The weather, be it snow, rain or 38 degrees heat, doesn’t stop while you’re stood roadside waiting for a ride either.

Although the crime rate in Japan is extremely low, hitchhiking definitely carries risks.

While others seemed more concerned for my safety as a solo female traveller than I was, I did recognise the danger of getting into cars with strangers. If a driver has malicious intentions, they could easily harm you or steal your belongings.

Beyond mild discomfort, I personally never experienced any dangerous situations whilst hitchhiking in Japan. The occasional lone male driver offered me a compliment, but I would quickly change the subject and that was that.

Aside from that, simple precautions helped me feel at ease, such as carrying a mobile phone, keeping all belongings with me, and simply trusting my instincts by turning down rides with dodgy drivers. That said, I am apprehensive about hitchhiking in the UK, mainly for safety reasons.

With these pros and cons in mind, I am a firm believer that hitchhiking can get you anywhere (I hitchhiked to a mountain summit!). What could be a better holiday than getting free transport while meeting friendly people? It was an unforgettable adventure and I know it won’t be long before I set off with my A4 sign again!

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student single to serbia, please

Not all routes are created equal.

When on a student budget, the cost of actually travelling is often the highest. Emily shows us how travelling by bus can save you money without ruining the enjoyment of the journey

Getting there: As it was festival season, flights were as high as £150. Reluctant to pay this, we flew to Venice and took the ferry to Croatia for just £70. If you are not travelling during peak times, you could probably get flights for much less.

WORDS BY EMILY DALY ILLUSTRATIONS BY POPPY ANNE MALBY

LIFESTYLE Outlook Festival & Dimension Festival, Pula: To save money we volunteered on festival boat parties. Stopping 18 year olds from twerking saved us £180.

Zadar, Croatia: This seaside town can get busy during peak season, but we got to enjoy it at its quietest, relaxing on the pebble beaches and eating seafood for roughly £7 a meal.

Split, Croatia: From Zadar, take the coach up to Split, the cultural melting pot of Croatia. This city is great if you want to snap up some unique souvenirs.

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Mostar, Bosnia:

Belgrade, Serbia:

From Split, we took a £10 coach to Mostar.

With the civil war only ending in 1995, there’s no denying that Bosnia is overall poorer and more run down than Croatia. However, its citizens seem intent on living life to the fullest. A somewhat curious sight are the people jumping off bridges, which is actually a popular sport. They even have regional competitions!

Belgrade gives Berlin a run for its money in ‘grunginess’ and industriousness. Not only are there vegan bars and political street art on every corner, but Belgrade has an infamous techno scene, and floating river clubs which go on until the late hours of the morning.

For just £6 per night, we stayed in a hostel which had kittens and puppies. The hostel also had a community feel, and the owners volunteered daily at the refugee camp in the centre of the city. Many refugees were stuck in Serbia, making the refugee crisis seem very real.

Sarajevo, Bosnia: The highlights of Sarajevo were an old Bosnian bobsleigh run, drinking strong liquor in an old Soviet cinema, visiting the spot where Franz Ferdinand was shot, and a museum on the civil war. A strange combination of cultural activities to say the least. These were all suggested to us by our enthusiastic hostel owners - Heart of Sarajevo was just £5 a night in the centre of the city.

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WORDS AND IMAGES BY EMILY REAY

SA I L A W A Y , SA I L A W A Y

Emily and UoN’s Sailing Club take on Stockholm Archipelago Two summers ago, I and six other members of the University of Nottingham Sailing Club took a boat around the Stockholm Archipelago.

Being accustomed to family sailing holidays in the Mediterranean, with 40-degree heat, light winds and air conditioning, I was slightly anxious about this Baltic trip on a boat that was ‘technically’ for six people. Nevertheless, I flew out to Stockholm and embarked on what would be one of the best holidays of my life.

The boat: Being students, we had a basic yacht; I was shocked to find the anchor was attached to a rope that I would have to pull up myself. Where was the remote-control to winch it up? But, as I would soon find out, the lack of fancy instruments would be what made the holiday so enjoyable.

It was nice to feel like we’d earned our beers at the end of the day.

There are very few open spaces in the archipelago, meaning auto-pilot is not your friend (and our boat didn’t have it anyway). Someone needs to be on navigation at all times in order to know exactly where you are and avoid running into the millions of rocks that are hiding under water.

Living on a boat means that the supply of water and electricity is finite: the water tanks and the battery can indeed run out. We decided to wash in the sea (fun fact: the Baltic is not salty, but is freezing cold), we saved loo trips for land, rarely charged our phones and only turned the fridge on when the engine was on.

The weather: At times, the weather was gorgeous.

We sunbathed, we swam (albeit for two minutes at a time) and we all came home slightly bronzed. However, conditions could change in an instant from warm and sunny to heavy hail. Waterproofs had to be close at hand at all times.

Storms and high winds were also a frequent threat, so we had to be flexible with our route. If you’re expecting a storm, you simply cannot moor in a bay that’s open to the wind. Similarly, the wind direction and strength can change where you are able to go, and some points of sail can be very uncomfortable in bad conditions. We would often set sail for a destination, see a change in wind and have to change our plan on the spot. This ever-changing route meant we couldn’t know when our next food shop would be, so we kept a large supply of food and drink on-board.

The islands: Archipelago islands vary greatly: some are so small they are uninhabited. There are actually a few islands that have been taken over by birds (and they absolutely stink). The uninhabited islands were incredibly beautiful but difficult to moor up to - in many instances, we had to tie a rope around a tree and abseil our way up and down a rock to get on and off land.

We had some of our best evenings on these islands: we would have barbecues and chase the sunset around the island, without ever coming across another human being.

There are also large islands with big communities, where you can pay for a mooring in return for electricity, water and showers. We chose to go to Sandhamn and Utö: Sandhamn was slightly more geared towards tourists and people with money, whereas Utö had a lot going on for young people, including a very trendy nightclub and, yes, Abba did feature.

While it’s not as easy as bobbing around in the Med, you don’t have to be a crew of sailors to sail the Stockholm Archipelago. You just need one or two competent sailors and a crew who can read a map, make sensible decisions under pressure and follow instructions. Of course, if you don’t fancy sailing, you can always take a motor boat.

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WORDS AND IMAGES BY PIA SCHAFER

SU N, S E A A N D S A ND

A sailing trip on the other side of the world, featuring an ever-looming threat of deadly jellyfish and the softest beach on earth About two years ago, after finishing my much-loved A-levels, I decided that uni could wait a bit longer, and that Australia, land of kangaroos, giant spiders and never-ending beaches, was calling me.

Come September 2015, I was ready to leave.

One experience that stood out from the abundance of amazing tours was the sailing trip around the Whitsunday Islands, a couple of small islands known for Whitehaven Beach, which is made up of 98% silica and is thus one of the finest and whitest in the world.

A sailing trip that other backpackers recommended warmly to us before was confirmed on the spot: Tongarra, translated as ‘wildcat’ in Aboriginal language.

For 450 Australian Dollars (around £270), you could sail around the Whitsunday Islands for three days and two nights.

Whilst hardly cheap, this trip was on the more affordable side, and the red catamaran offered a truly amazing experience for its 20 adventurous skippers.

We began our journey on a sunny Monday morning by meeting up with the other passengers, who were a fun, easy-going group from all around the

world. A two-man crew greeted us: Andrew (‘Andy’), the skipper, and his sidekick, Garret, who talked us through the programme and the deadly jellyfish, quickly reassuring us that no one had ever died on a Tongarra trip.

The first day was mostly spent on board, and included sandwiches, sun-bathing, and socialising as we headed full-speed to Tongue Bay to catch the sunset. As soon as the sun came down, the booze appeared, and the group grew closer together as we talked, played cards and drank. When it was time to go to bed, mattresses were brought out on deck and we fell asleep underneath the cloudless, starry sky, listening to the tapping of the ocean waves against the side of the boat.

Waking up the next morning, we watched countless turtles rise to the water’s surface to take their first breaths after a night of sleep.

Following a savoury breakfast, it was time to hoist anchor and sail towards Whitehaven Beach. Arriving at the Whitsunday Island, we first hiked to the Hill Inlet outlook, which gives you a fantastic view over the beach. A couple of photos later, we finally dipped our feet into the softest sand in the world. The afternoon was spent relaxing, swimming and trying to make the most of every second of this unbelievable paradise. Exhausted from too much fun, we ate dinner on our boat while watching the sunset.

On the last day, we rose with the sun to a spectacular view across the early morning sea, and began changing into wetsuits. I could finally cross off another thing on my bucket list: snorkelling!

Equipped with goggles and a snorkel,

we entered the crystal clear waters. The ocean floor was adorned with colourful corals, white sand and small rocks covered in starfish. Surrounded by a multitude of different fish, who weren’t afraid of us, it felt like we were submerged in a silent but startlingly bright world. Back on the boat, we enjoyed our last lunch before heading back to Airlie Beach.

However, it wasn’t quite time to say goodbye. Tongarra officially ended that night with an afterparty, including a bar crawl that finished at a club. It was great to talk to everyone again, especially as we had really bonded with some, who we ended up reuniting with a couple of months later in Melbourne.

The Tongarra sailing trip, despite the price and the jellyfish, was still a magical experience that I wouldn’t have wanted to miss for the world.

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N O S A IN SE

veggie stirfry (try whatever, mix it up!) chargrilled salad

For the recipes mentioned here, head to our website impactnottingham.com or use the QR code

saag lamb canary potatoes

new potatoes

broadbeans

peas

spinach

courgette

lettuce

fava beans

corn

greek lamb kebab

carrots

cabbage

broccoli

rocket

asparagus

arugula

steak tagliata

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17 WORDS BY JAKE TENN ILLUSTRATIONS BY POPPY ANNE MALBY

crab cakes

sweet chilli marinade

greek marinade

citrus + soy

honey mustard

modena

greek dressing

honey mustard, chicken + chicory cups

steak

pork

chicken

lamb

crab

wild garlic

radish

chicory

prosciutto wrapped asparagus

Dressings and marinades (rough ratios, scale as appropriate): Modena 2 tsp of balsamic vinegar 1 tsp of lemon juice 3 tbsp of extra virgin olive oil

Greek dressing Half a lemon’s zest and juice 5 tbsp of yoghurt

Honey mustard dressing 2 tsp of white wine vinegar 2 tsp of honey 3 tbsp of olive oil 1 heaped tsp of whole mustard

Citrus + soy 1 tsp of lime juice 1 tsp of soy sauce 1 tsp of honey 1 tsp of fresh coriander

Greek marinade 5 tbsp of olive oil Half a clove of garlic 1 tsp of thyme 1 tsp of chilli flakes 1 tsp of cumin Salt and pepper

Sweet chilli marinade 6 tsp of chilli flakes 2 tsp of white wine vinegar 2 tsp of honey 2 tsp of lemon juice 4 tsp of soy sauce Half a clove of garlic Splash of water

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WORDS BY RUTH PENGELLY

IMAGE BY RAPHAELA RING

MIDLANDS’ MUNCHIES The University of Nottingham is a mixed bag when it comes to students. 17% of undergrads and 53% of postgrads come from abroad, hailing from more than 150 countries (as of 2015/16). British students hark from all over the British Isles, originating from anywhere between Scotland and Cornwall. Everyone knows their own local delicacies and have their favourites (hello, Lancashire Hotpot), yet I’d bet that barely anyone knows of the local cuisine produced in and around Nottingham. Let us introduce you to a few goodies:

Nottingham Batter Pudding

Colston Bassett Stilton

The core ingredient of this pudding is Bramley apple, which originates from Southwell, Nottinghamshire, after a young girl named Mary Ann Brailsford planted the first Bramley tree in her garden in the 19th century. Together with a light batter, sugar and spices, this pudding is comforting and delicious. Give it a whirl!

Another cheese, but I’m not complaining. This creamy, rich cheese is made not too far from Nottingham, in the village of Colston Bassett. It is one of only five dairy farms that makes Stilton cheese. Although the name comes from the village of Stilton, just south of Peterborough, Stilton cheese is protected by a certification trademark and is only permitted to be made and thus called in Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire and Leicestershire – truly a midlands delicacy!

Colwick Cheese This soft, curdy cheese has a unique bowl-shape structure, which used to be filled with treats such as jam and fresh fruit. It was first created some time in the 17th century in Colwick, a village just south of Nottingham on the River Trent. Although it went out of production in 1993, it has come back with a bang and is available to buy from many places in Nottingham, such as the city’s Nottingham Cheese Shop and Delilah Fine Foods, or Fred Hallams in Beeston.

Melton Mowbray Pies Only pies created within the designated zone around Melton Mowbray can claim the famous name and its reputation. Melton Mowbray pies are different to usual pork pies in that the meat is not cured (and so appears grey like roast pork), chopped up (rather than minced) and baked without a tin. Hartland Pies have been making pies in the nearby village of Cotgrave for around fifty years, offering a wide selection of cold, hot, sweet and savoury pies. Some amazing examples include pork, chicken and apricot pie, pork and chorizo pie and Bramley apple pie.

Most places have their local delicacies, and the Midlands is no exception. If you don’t try these local foods before you return back home, or you will definitely be missing out!

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WORDS BY SERENA TAM

ILLUSTRATIONS BY POPPY ANNE MALBY

BETTER THAN BOOTS We tasked ourselves with the challenge of finding Nottingham’s best eats for less than a tenner, so that you can enjoy some of the best lunch deals with minimal damage to the bank Here’s what we found:

Oscar and Rosie’s: 7-9 Thurland St, Nottingham, NG1 3DR Hidden away behind a bustling main street, this gem does an incredible pizza lunch deal.

All of their 11inch personal pizzas are just £7 between 12pm and 4pm everyday. There are thirteen pizzas to choose from, ranging from the ‘Magic Mushroom’ to the ‘Boom Chicken Wah Wah’, my personal favourite being the ‘Tyrannosaurus Veg’. Despite their eclectic and slightly wacky - décor, this place is very cosy and is definitely a budget-friendly place you’d love to go with a bunch of your friends.

There are gluten free, vegetarian and vegan options available too, so it pretty much ticks all the boxes.

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Nada Budaya: Lower Ground Floor, 20-22 Broad St, Nottingham, NG1 3AL

Tier: 38 Pelham St, Nottingham, NG1 2EG

Tucked away underneath Brewdog is the only exclusively Malaysian restaurant in Nottingham. They do a great weekend lunch deal, where you can pick one course for £5.50 or two courses for £8 between 12pm and 3pm (main dishes are usually £11, so it’s great value for money!).

The food is beautifully authentic (trust me, I’m half Malaysian and my mum would also agree with me here). Plus, the portion sizes are more than adequate. There are also meat and vegetarian options for each dish, which works out great if you love meat but fancying trying something different. This place has a very peaceful atmosphere and really friendly service; I recommend it for a peaceful escape alone, or for quality time with someone else.

This is a relatively new place serving gourmet cheese melts. That’s right, you heard me: Gourmet. Cheese. Melts. On sourdough bread, too! What’s even better is that their meals are only around £5-£7, leaving you with some extra cash to spend on their delectable sides, which include mac & cheese balls and cheesy curly fries. The portions are huge (two people could easily share a cheese melt with a side and still come out with a food baby), so it could be the perfect pit stop while out in town with a few cheese-loving friends.

This place has a lovely atmosphere with very stylish interior. There’s also an upstairs seating area that overlooks the busy street outside, which is great for people watching.

George’s Great British Kitchen: Queen St, Nottingham NG1 2BL

Sarangchae: 280 Huntingdon St, Nottingham, NG1 3NA If you fancy authentic Korean home cooking, then this is definitely the place to go. The atmosphere is relaxed and the restaurant boasts a simplistic, understated décor. For just £8.95, their lunch deal gives you a main dish, miso soup and a drink. The menu is extensive and even has pictures that accurately represent what the dishes looks like. The staff are very friendly and always willing to give recommendations on dishes, although I tend to stick to the popular dishes, as they’re practised to perfection. The dishes are incredibly flavoursome and full of the highest quality ingredients; unsurprisingly, it’s often filled with students coming back for more.

This is quite possibly the best fish and chips in town, and for only £8.75 on the weekday lunch menu (between 11:30am-4pm), who could say no? Even though it’s supposedly only a lunch portion, trust me, it’s large I’ve had difficulty finishing the whole plate myself. The fish and chips comes with tartar sauce and pickles on the side, and for £1.60 extra you can add a jar of mushy peas. The restaurant interior is nautical themed and very grand (I mean, they have a chandelier), containing fish-shaped cushions and makeshift beach huts, which certainly adds to the dining experience. It’s an ideal place for a nice lunch date with friends or with a special someone. However, do remember to book in advance as this place fills up pretty quickly.

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WORDS BY JOSIE CLARKSON

IMAGE COURTESY OF THE UNIVERSITY OF NOTTINGHAM

A FINAL GOODBYE Remembering Sir Peter Mansfield, visionary physicist, Nobel Prize winner and professor at UoN

On the 8th February 2017, the world of Physics lost one of its greatest pioneers, Sir Peter Mansfield, whose brilliance and innovation saved countless lives.

Born in London in 1933, Sir Peter’s academic career seemed a distant dream when he left school aged 15, with no qualifications, to work as an apprentice printer.

to areas of differing water content, for example, cancer cells have a different water content to healthy human cells. In addition to its diagnostic use, MRI has practical implications for surgical procedures in which knowing the exact position of internal structures, such as a tumour, is imperative for the success of the operation.

The turning point came, aged 19, when he studied for his A-levels at night school and earned his place on a Physics degree course.

After gaining his doctorate at Queen Mary College, London, Sir Peter became a professor at the University of Nottingham. Here he developed one of the most revolutionary pieces of medical equipment, Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), still used today to view internal body parts.

MRI scans can be used to create an image of any body part, but arguably the most impressive use of MRI is to image the brain.

Structural MRI creates a snapshot of the anatomy of the scan subject, and functional MRI has also been developed to visualise the brain as the subject thinks. This technology is used extensively to reveal how the brain works.

MRI machines are enormous and involve patients being passed through a tube on a moving bed, encircled by a magnet. To create his ground-breaking MRI machine, Sir Peter applied the principles of Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR), using a powerful magnet to create a magnetic field, which in turn causes the nuclei of atoms within it to spin slightly. The nuclei absorb radio energy, which is released when they return to their original orientation. This energy is detected and then translated by a computer.

The amount of radio energy absorbed and released is dependent on the size of the

magnetic field and the composition of the atoms in the body. The atoms that release the most radio waves are hydrogen atoms, present in the human body’s water and fat.

The radio signal released by these hydrogen atoms can therefore be translated into a precise map of the internal anatomy.

The ability to visualise the body’s internal structures without invasive surgery has vastly enhanced the accuracy of diagnosis.

Different colours on an MRI scan correspond

Although the first successful use of MRI was in 1978, when Sir Peter produced an image of the inside of his abdomen, he was not awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for his invention until 2003. This is because it was not until MRI had been implemented into common medical practice and research that its life-saving potential was finally realised. There are currently 36,000 MRI machines in use worldwide with 2,500 additional sales per year, ensuring that Sir Peter Mansfield’s brilliance will never be forgotten.

Sir Peter Mansfield 1933-2017

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WORDS BY BEN EDGE

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ILLUSTRATIONS BY EMILY CLARKE

Fear it or embrace it, the era of artificial intelligence is upon us. With over a third of current UK jobs predicted to be automated by 2033, do students face a future in which they are constantly supplanted by more efficient technology? Or could AI actually improve job prospects for us all?

In his 1950 paper ‘Computing Machinery and Intelligence’, prolific computer scientist Alan Turing first outlined his idea for an ‘imitation game.’ In the imitation game – now more commonly referred to as the Turing test – a judge would converse via text with both a human and a computer. However, they would not know which was which. Turing proposed that if the judge were unable to distinguish between the two, then the computer could be described as displaying human-like intelligence.

Whilst a machine complex enough to pass the Turing test remains some years in the future, programmers have made staggering progress in the field of artificial intelligence.

In March 2016, Google’s AlphaGo triumphed over one of the world’s top seeded players at Go, a board game much more complex than chess.

The victory of AlphaGo was viewed by many as a breakthrough for contemporary science, as were the recent feats of poker AI Libratus.

In January 2017 – as if Christmas doesn’t leave people broke enough as it is – Libratus won over 1.7 million dollars of chips from four members of the global poker elite.

Compared to board games such as Go and chess, poker is far trickier for machines to master, as they cannot see their opponents’ hands and must mislead without themselves being misled.

With AI advancements making the headlines on an almost weekly basis, should this technological surge have us worried for our occupational security? Already numerous personal assistants have been supplanted by the likes of Siri and Cortana; telemarketers

are becoming increasingly automated and driverless cars may spell the end for taxi drivers. In fact, according to research published by the University of Oxford in 2013, around 35% of UK jobs are under serious threat of being computerised within the next twenty years.

The most endangered roles are those that do not require too much social intelligence.

As machinery becomes increasingly more co-ordinated, manual work faces a high probability of mechanisation; whereas art and engineering graduates applying for creative occupations will encounter little competition from robots. Likewise, students aiming for professions in which empathy is essential – for example, therapy or nursing – are least likely to be ousted by AI. As more businesses begin to embrace artificial intelligence, the relevance of degrees in easy-to-automate fields is a topic of hot debate. Many worry that the low cost and rapid efficiency of AI systems could force graduates out of work. Others, however, argue that advancements in technology will instead make services more affordable and more widely available, leading to a rise in job prospects.

For that reason, the future may not be as bleak as it initially appears, as can be seen from the example of ATMs. When ATMs were first introduced in the 1970s, it was feared that widespread unemployment of bank tellers would follow swiftly. Instead, the drop in running costs resulted in banks opening more branches, increasing the number of tellers.

Interestingly, one of the most devoted proponents of automation was Karl Marx, who addressed the subject in his unfinished manuscript Grundrisse. Marx saw that in our capitalist society, where employers strive for the most efficient labour force possible, machines will inevitably supersede human workers. He predicted that this takeover would liberate the proletariat, resulting in a society no longer constricted by class or income, and effectively engendering the end of capitalism.

More recently, though, people have been less optimistic. In his 2016 book Four Futures, Peter Frase postulates that artificial intelligence will only serve to make the rich even richer, stripping labourers of what little power they once held. It’s plausible that, in a world where sophisticated automation is widely available, the post-working-class will be seen as superfluous to the ruling elite. It may sound extreme, but Frase believes that this could result in the distinct possibility of “genocidal war of the rich against the poor.”

The impact of artificial intelligence remains to be seen. However, one thing is certain: the occupational landscape in a few decades time will be different from the one you see today. As students, we cannot simply expect the University to prepare us for this uncertain future; I believe it is our responsibility to educate ourselves to be as skilled and adaptable as possible while we have the chance. Then perhaps we will be able to work alongside technology, rather than having to constantly battle against it.

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WORDS BY ELLA DEUTSCH

ILLUSTRATIONS BY JESSE YU

8-LEGGED AND MISUNDERSTOOD Introducing the residents of Nottingham’s spiderlab

Golden orb weavers (Nephila inaurata madagascariensis) Habitat: Forests of southern Africa Scare factor: These guys are pretty big (and by guys I mean females, the males can be less than 10% of the female size). They will try to eat pretty much anything that moves due to their poor eyesight. However, their venom is harmless to humans and they stay exclusively on the webs that they have constructed away from disturbance. Their main predator defence is shaking very fast, which isn’t all that threatening.

Special ability: The use of ‘golden’ in the name actually describes the colour of this spider’s silk, which the spider can adjust to increase or decrease light reflection, exploiting the visual systems of insect prey. These webs are also immensely strong and have even been said to trap hummingbirds.

Weakness: The acceptance that anything moving counts as food can be slightly detrimental when it comes time for a male to approach a female.

Diving bell spider (Argyroneta aquatica) Habitat: Freshwaters of northern

and central Europe Scare factor: Due to their small size and aquatic tendencies, these spiders don’t cut an imposing figure. However, they have been know n to hunt (very) small vertebrates in the wild, so there ’s a possibility that their venom may be more effec tive on humans than other native spiders. It does n’t take a lot to beat Britain’s other spiders, though, so we wouldn’t be worried about them posing any real risk.

Special abilities: These spiders brea the air just like land spiders but live almost entir ely underwater.

Rather than coming up to the surfa ce every time they need to breathe, they can spin their own physical gills from silk. This dome-shaped web holds air even when the spider travels in and out of it, and can filter in oxygen from the water to keep it topped up.

Weakness: Surprisingly bad swim

mers.

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Where other people might see a threat, Dr Sara Goodacre and the students at the SpiderLab see potential. Based here at the University of Nottingham’s Life Sciences department, this unique lab studies the impact that spiders have on the natural world as well as the potential of their silk to create new biotechnology. This research often includes the participation of live models: resident spiders housed within the lab to allow the observation of their behaviour, collection of their silk and exploration into the genes and symbionts housed within them, controlling their every move. Listed here is a mere snapshot into the vibrant arachnid world tucked away in the labs of Life Sciences.

Pirate’s wolf spider (Pirata piraticus) ern Europe

Habitat: Bogs of central and west

really live up to Scare factor: These spiders don’t prefer hanging out they es; their plundering namesak to the water at the ping esca and s area in calm boggy first sign of trouble.

r allows this spider Special abilities: Skating on wate which they can to evade predators and find prey, Wolf spiders, the for dive to catch. As is common them around carry and silk in they encase their eggs the onto b clim g youn the e wher , until hatching re dispersing. befo days few a for back er’s moth , easy to find and Weakness: They are, unsurprisingly antly white egg catch with a relatively large and brilli s. sac attached to their back

bonus non-spider

Red rump tarantul (Brachypelma vagaa ns

Habitat: Scrublands of

)

South America

Scare factor: With a leg span of over 15cm, the red rump cuts an imposing figure. However, as wit h all tarantulas, its venom is harmless to humans. Say ing that, they do have an ing enious defence in the form of their back hair: bar bed spines that can be flicked at any disturbance to cause irritation and infl am mation.

Special ability: Female s of the species can live to around 20 years and hav e up to 1,000 young in one egg sac, meaning that under ideal conditi ons strength of numbers can definitely be on their sid e.

Weakness: While spider s are often known for excellent climbing abilities, tarantulas are just too chu nky for their own good and this burrowing species wo uld have made a really rub bish spiderman.

Tailless whip scorpion (Damon diadema) Habitat: Caves in Central Africa (with one appearance in the wizarding world of Harry Potter).

Scare factor: Certainly creepy, but without the sting of a scorpion or the bite of a spider, all these guys can do is pinch with their tiny claws.

of seek the game Were hide and nishto as Special ability: ith W . to a winner here on be ’d we , hnids ce choi xes, these arac and quick refle es di bo t . th fla ea gly rn in ear unde ething to disapp always find som ight ves where eyes ing from dark ca ugstr d ul wo Weakness: Com list, they Christmas wish . ce fa isn’t top of the eir th nt of own claws in fro gle to see their

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T O FO E S LOO

PHOTOGRAPHS BY GEMMA BROWN, RHYS THOMAS + EMILY WOODCOCK MODELLED BY SHANNON MCLEOD, PAASHA AHMED + KATIE LOUISE CASH DIRECTED BY ELLE MAGILL + BEX SHERMAN STYLING + HAIR BY ELLE MAGILL MAKEUP BY MOLLY BARRATT + RAYANNE ELLIS

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R E K A E SN D A E H INTERVIEW BY EMILY HARRIS

Ellis Harris had a chat with Adidas collector and runner of the adidas_gallery on Instagram, Ross Macwaters, about Adidas sneakers, reselling and hype culture. Here’s what the real-life sneakerhead had to say

of Adidas You have a pretty big collection you say ld wou big how hly Roug sneakers. is? it are always I don’t really count [them]. People trying to but fascinated by how many I have, room [in a ’s there e, keep count is a nightmar ose of purp main the rs serve h my house] whic I’d this, of sake the for So all. them housing say there’s roughly 600. ) is Your instagram (@adidas_gallery . What is kers snea as Adid to ly sole d cate dedi h? muc so it about Adidas that you like ll. I used My roots are from playing basketba e wher era an in to wear a lot of Jordans ker snea and ing play still was Michael Jordan ly, so week than r rathe ally annu were releases . From there would be one silhouette a year ething som was there that [I] moved on and as Adid t abou liked and that I looked for as Adid t. cour off wear d coul I that sneakers ’re they n, uctio has such a high quality of prod rial mate high a have well manufactured and s; I can spec. Especially in more recent year doing are they what with d boar on get really t. with Futurecraft and Ultra Boos Technology Since the development of Boost Adidas has and partnering with Kanye West, this think you do gotten a lot of hype. How the and kers snea as Adid has affected both it? nd behi e scen sneaker t, is really Boost Technology, without a doub it first when use beca y funn is h whic , good onto ht caug came out, not a lot of people

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it, and it wasn’t really until Kanye West was pictured wearing them on stage that it really took off. Boost Technology is phen omenal and before people really gave it a chance, Adidas was seen as a secondary brand to Nike.

Kanye West brought a lot of hype and exposure to the brand that hadn’t been experienced prior, which, as an Adid as collector, has its positive and nega tives.

Personally, it makes my job a lot harder, trying to get kids camping out for a week to get shoes. The Yeezy V1’s is not a bad silhouette but I’m not a fan of the V2’s; being a size 12 they look like boats, and they’re not the most attractive shoe. If anything , it’s kind of shown how superficial it is beca use people will buy anything associated with him and they have a high resale value beca use of it.

Yeah, because it has that name asso ciated with it, and that name is such a huge thing, you can easily generate good valu e just because of the name.

The thing is, it has no basis on the shoe itself, as long as it has that name attached to it then it will sell. I think it’s a statu s symbol.

If you have that shoe and you’ve dropped around £600 for, then it has a huge value, especially in the scene of hype cloth ing such as Supreme and Palace. It’s a little bit sad because it isn’t about individual sense of self, it’s more about buying it because everyone else is buying it.

I agree. There are also a huge num ber of fake Yeezy’s out there, which again refle cts that idea of status, which is really sad.

It’s terrible. I’ve seen Instagram spon sored adverts for obviously fake Yeezys and it’s really bad. What the fake market stands for is the darker side of where that mon ey goes to.

Talking about markets, the sneaker resale market is huge. You said earlier that the Kanye West Yeezy’s are harder to get hold of.

This is often due to people buying them and reselling them for double or tripl e the price.

What do you think of reselling?

I don’t like it. Back in the day, it was less about greed and more about peop le being able to fund a passion. My major issue with the resale culture is [...] it’s really superficial and hollow. These guys have very little appreciation of the actual footwear , it’s more about the money, and that’s som ething that’s really sad about the scene at the moment. It’s sad because people don’t try to get to know the heritage and technology behi nd the shoe.

Not everyone has to be super into it like I am, but it’s nice to keep that kind of thing in mind. The brands themselves love it because it drives up sales, but it’s bad beca use people don’t take responsibility for what they cause.

For example, there’s hideous foot age during the KAWS X Jordan IV raffle in Lond on.

Earlier you mentioned heritage and technology behind the shoes. How important do you think they are respectively?

Technology is very exciting. For exam ple, you have Futurecraft who are doing som e really great stuff with 3D printed soles and uppers, which means they can be personal ised. They also made Superstars out of one piece of leather. So, technology is super impo rtant.

The thing with heritage is, hype drive s everything. That’s why collaborations do so much better than general release sneakers because it’s what people want. They have higher value. Especially when socia l media is such a huge driver in buying trend s; people want what will look good on Insta gram, what will get them the most likes and the most popularity. It’s really important to touch on just how big the effect of social med ia is.

Finally, just to finish up, what wou ld you say your favourite shoe is?

I don’t really have one, it changes all the time. There are something I’ve boug ht in the past that I haven’t really liked but are really popular, and some things I’ve boug ht that I used to really like but now aren’t as great. So it would be unfair to say I have a favourite.

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Emily Woodcock

Christina Fusco House

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Muhammad Azmi

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Emily Woodcock

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35 WORDS BY TOM EVANS

Exploring Nottingham eSports Varsity as an alternative to the traditional competition The University offers many opportunities for competitive gaming, starting with the NUEL (National University eSports League) a few years back, to recently throwing a competition similar to the sporting Varsity events.

This year, the Gaming Varsity is back, and gamers from the University of Nottingham will be pit against gamers from Nottingham Trent University. I learned more about it from Alex, President of the Nottingham Trent University Gaming Society and an organiser of the event.

The Gaming Varsity swaps sports for video games, but that’s the only difference from the rest of the Varsity events. NTU Game Society will be competing with UoN Game Society in a range of competitive games.

Joining the roster are games such as Counter Strike Global Offensive, Overwatch, League of Legends, Dota and Super Smash Brothers.

The Gaming Varsity is another chance to get behind your University’s competitive teams, as well as a slightly different type of Varsity event for students who aren’t interested in sports.

Alex puts it simply: “One thing gamers love to do is to simply play in a team. Similar to sports really, it’s more fun with friends.

There’s no better way to put your teams to use than in direct competition with a nearby university”.

The community was clearly a big consideration during the planning, Gaming Varsity 2017 is a highly inclusive and social event.

Running alongside the competitive matches the event rides on, there will be some casual play for those who come to spectate and support their teams. Open to everyone, those attending Gaming Varsity can sit down to game and socialise whilst cheering their uni’s teams on, providing an entertaining and inclusive event that everyone should feel they can take part in.

This casual gaming, running alongside varsity matches, will definitely make for a different experience to the ones had at other Varsity events. Video Games have always been a great way to meet and interact with people, something that many UoN students haven’t had an opportunity to do with our NTU neighbours.

Alex elaborates: “Often, friendly debates and partnerships form when talking about different platforms and games. It keeps conversation lively and is relatable no matter which university you are from. I am excited to see the social aspect of the Varsity; after all, the two committees get along great together”.

The location this time around is the previously featured in Impact, ALT gaming lounge.

With a new 32 PC Gaming Arena, and various consoles prepared with all the games needed, ALT is a perfect venue for more games with bigger teams. The Gaming Varsity was run for the first time last year at the National Videogame Arcade (NVA); and using the experience of last year, this event is set to be

IMAGES BY POPPY ANNE MALBY + DENISE ODONG

much bigger and better than before.

Alex, who was Treasurer at last year’s Varsity at the NVA, remembers: “I enjoyed it but it needed more. As always with setting events like this up, there is so much to do in such little time. But it’s worth it in the end, especially when you see a bit of friendly competition and everyone having a good time”.

UoN came out victorious at the end of the last Gaming Varsity and the teams have practised against each other many times since. There is no shortage of friendly rivalry between the best of the best from each uni. Not only will this be a highlight of the Nottingham student gaming community’s year, but a time where we can get into our competitive, trash-talking spirit in a friendly environment.

Alex used the last of our time to issue a challenge: “They better watch out because Trent is coming!”

How will our gamers respond?

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WORDS BY ANTHONY OSMASTON

HUMAN BARBARIAN VS

CROSSDRESSING KOBOLD We foray into the world of Dungeons and Dragons role-play with RPGsoc Dungeons and Dragons. Arguably one of the most renowned tabletop games, D&D is a staple for any Role Playing Game (RPG) fans, providing countless hours of enjoyment limited only by the player’s imagination. Having never played D&D before (to my shame), I asked the University of Nottingham’s own RPGsoc if they would be willing to throw a “one-shot” (a type of adventure that can be played through in one sitting) for me and two fellow students ready for an adventure, Georgia Butcher and Tom Evans.

We started by making characters, and in an instant I was completely lost. With the guidance of the extremely patient members of RPGsoc and use of the D&D handbook, I threw together a ragtag character - a human barbarian, who knew nothing better than to recklessly charge in with his giant greatsword and split enemies in two. Tom created a bard with a talent for deception and shouting mean things from afar, and Georgia created a sorcerer with a tendency towards getting knocked out. With our rag taggle group we

CULTURE

embarked on an adventure, handcrafted by Connor Clark, and joined in our party by three other RPGsoc members, Dawn Hazel, Edward Kennington and Madeleine Sonnenberg - A cleric, monk and paladin respectively.

It is easy to see why the game is so widely known and played - although there are a fairly strict set of rules, the freedom within the game is only limited by everyone’s imagination. For instance, in our first encounter with a monster called Kobolds, we captured one, named him Steve, and dressed him up in princess clothes. If that doesn’t make a game instantly the best, then I don’t know what does. Not only this, but the game felt utterly inclusive - everybody had something unique to bring to the table, and was an instrumental part of the team. It didn’t matter that we completely failed in our quest of escorting the princess to a royal ball - we had an adventure, and we had fun.

When we spoke after the game, Georgia remarked that the members of RPGSoc were incredibly friendly: “[They] did a great job at not only helping out those more unfamiliar with the rules (Anthony spent more time confused than not), but also at welcoming us in general. Although different to my own experiences of D&D, it was still a good way to spend an afternoon, and I’d recommend RPGSoc and D&D to anyone interested in such a genre of games”.

Although the game was short and sweet, I am thoroughly addicted. There seems to be a huge learning curve - even the other more experienced members were flicking through the handbook a lot of the time - but once the basics are down, the game flows extremely well. Everything from managing to hit an enemy in combat to determining whether or not your character can see something blindingly obvious is dictated by the roll of die. This

element of randomness leaves you to think on your feet and improvise, and ensures that even the most well-suited character can often fail at their determined task. For example, in our adventure, there was a moment when we decided breaking down a door would be the best course of action, but both I, the beefy barbarian, and Edward, the Paladin, were outclassed by Georgia’s sorcerer in our brute force attempts. Moments like this left everybody laughing at the feebleness of our supposedly mighty characters.

Tom’s experience was also a positive one: “Some of my favourite moments in video games are discovering a new, cool ‘life-like’ interaction or wandering that little bit further into the horizon. However, video games have limits and players will always eventually hit an invisible wall, preventing further exploration of the world or your character’s agency within it”.

He added: “Whilst for this adventure we largely stuck along an intended path, our one-shot showed me that with creative players and a good Dungeon Master (like the people at RPGsoc), D&D could definitely be a truly wall-less fantasy world. This is an experience I’ve wanted in my video games since childhood, but is impossible through that medium. D&D is definitely a different but still amazing experience to play”.

On my part, despite being a complete novice to the game, I still had a great time and enjoyed every moment of our time with RPGsoc.

A special thanks to them again for having us.

I’d thoroughly recommend anyone who has ever been curious about D&D or Role Playing Games in general seek them out; they know their stuff and, more importantly, are a fun and friendly group of people. Many games may seek to take the title of RPG, but truly none come close to the freedom and creativity that Dungeons and Dragons presents.

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WORDS BY JOSHUA OGUNMOKUN

IMAGES BY MAHMOUD AHMED + RHYS THOMAS

IMPACT INTRODUCES:

FOULE In preparation for their Sounds against Slavery gig, Joshua talks to Foule about their name’s origin, what they hate about other bands and their worst gig ever

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“I think every time we write a new song it becomes our new favourite one”

Foule are a three piece band made up of three extremely talented students: singer-songwriter and lead guitarist Gil Grant, bassist Ross Barns and drummer Michael King. We followed them on the day of their warm up gig at the Maze, to get a better understanding of who they are.

“So, the band originally started with Gil, some random kid on drums, and Henry, who played bass. I joined in second year, a year and a half ago,” Michael tells me. “Henry graduated, so he left and Ross joined.

At the start of this year, it was kind of new”. He looks out of the window, waiting for his other band members to arrive; “I’m literally always waiting for these two, I’ve spent all my life waiting for them”.

In the meantime we listen to Sampha’s Process and discuss the future of Foule. “It might be the final run of the band, we’ll see what happens. Ross is only a second year, so he’ll be here next year, but I haven’t worked out what I’m doing. I’d like to stay in Nottingham but my girlfriend lives in London. It’d be crazy to not go back”. He pauses.

“It’d be sad to see the band break up, but we’ll see”.

Eventually, as the taxi arrives, Gil and Ross show up with their equipment. We load in the majority of Michael’s drum kit along with some pedals, amps and guitars, before hitting the road.

When we arrive at the venue, Gil realises he’s forgotten his famous pedal board. As this is a free gig, he doesn’t fancy being more out of pocket by booking another taxi or bussing it. So he opts for a stroll back to Lenton, as Michael, Ross and I discuss their EP, Large.

I express my enjoyment of their EP, to which Ross thanks me. Michael snaps back: “You’re not even on it”. Henry Coates, one of the original members of Foule, played bass on the Large EP. “R.I.P. Forever in our thoughts,” says Michael. Henry is not actually dead, he just had to graduate and face the real world as all students have to, one day. Failing to realise I am now sitting with none of the original members of Foule, I struggle to get a proper explanation for the band’s name.

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IMPACT “French for the crowd innit?” “I thought it was Swiss… Swiss for Legends”.

Michael explains: “We weren’t in the band originally. I think Gil did French A-level and came across it and thought it was a cool word”.

By now, I sense that this is a band that doesn’t take itself too seriously. Michael is perhaps the most charismatic of the group, providing a witty response to most of my questions, especially my enquiry as to the name of the EP. “It’s epic, have you listened to it?

There you go!”

The band often refers to this performance as a warm up gig to get back into the swing of things. Due to exams and coursework, they have been unable to gig since Christmas. However, after being released from the captivities of university and putting in hours of practice in Pirate Studios, they are ready to play an array of shows.

“We’ve got a few gigs this month,” Ross tells me. “[There’s] one in Leicester, as well. We’re actually going somewhere other than Nottingham!”

Recording music as a band can prove much more expensive than for other acts, such as production duos or rappers. When Foule won Battle of the Bands, they used their two days of free studio time to record their EP, paying for the last few days of recording out of their own pocket.

Since the EP, the band has been silent in terms of new music, but it seems the wait is almost over. “To be fair, we’ve got plenty of new music that could go on an EP,” Michael cuts in. “We’re recording a new song. In a couple of weeks, we’re going to the studio. We’re all students so we can’t afford to go to the studio for a week. This time we’re doing one day in the studio. We’ll hopefully record one single, and then that will be it. Then we’ll get number one”, he laughs.

“I don’t really sit down and write music as far as lyrics go”

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“I hate bands that go out and write three minute singles”

I asked them whether they would have ever recorded any music without the financial push from winning Battle of the Bands.

“I don’t know if it would have been a full length EP, but we would have done some songs,” says Michael. “Nah I reckon,” Ross begins, before Michael shoots him down with: “You weren’t there bro”. “I can pretend to be Henry!”, Ross retorts. “You’re gonna need to get some muscles first”.

Gil returns, so we decide to get some drinks and discuss how James Brown is “The Man”, as well as the band’s successes and gigs. Ross evaluates, “Bodega was good, Spanky’s was good, Bodega was probably the best one”. Gil adds: “The second Bodega was best,” with Michael clarifying: “We played Bodega twice in one week”.

They reflect upon how successful they have been in landing gigs, but recall the one gig they’d never play again. It’s understandable once they reveal that they “played in a chip shop”. Gil says with a smirk, “The stage was right next to the kitchen; you could smell the food!

The only people there were the people playing. We’ve been offered it again, but…”. The boys look at each other, shaking their heads and laughing.

After they finish an exceptional warm up gig, we venture outside to catch some fresh air and talk about their new single, ‘Finger Trap’.

“I think every time we write a new song, it becomes our favourite one,” they say. Michael explains how the song was made, “We were at studio one day. Me and Gil were setting up when Ross played this beautiful little thing on the bass. I was like, ‘What song is that?’ and he replied, ‘It reminds me of a tune. I keep playing it’. We were like, ‘Don’t stop playing it’. Within the two hour slot, we had we basically written it. Then we were really excited about it, so we just pooled all the money we’d earned and booked studio next day”.

I am surprised to find that no one really knows about Gil’s songwriting process. The band informs me that they know the lyrics to “about 30%” of their songs, due to the fact that a lot of rehearsals take place in Michael’s room where there aren’t any microphones, leaving Gil’s voice to be drowned out by his guitar, Ross’s bass and Michael’s drums. I feel sorry for his neighbours.

Gil tells me: “I don’t really sit down and write music. As far as lyrics go, I just do it. It’s usually when I’m in a rush. When I’m late, I write lyrics, or when I’m supposed to be doing something else. Usually when I’m not thinking about it, I write better stuff”. Ross then explains the casualness of the band’s creative process: “We just jam til stuff comes out and most of the time stuff does come out, which is really great”.

I cannot ignore the jocular but very real disdain Foule expresses for some of the bands in the Nottingham circuit during the night.

However, rather than starting a band war, I decide to ask what annoys Foule about other bands in general.

“I hate bands that already think they’re rock stars,” Ross says. “It’s when they write to try and get famous,” Michael adds, “I hate bands that go out and write three minute singles”. Ross agrees: “We write with some expression, with soul. I hate when they’re not good at their instruments”. Michael expands again: “I hate when bands are up themselves. My biggest pet hate is when you go around Nottingham and you see bands no bigger than us, often smaller, dressing like proper rock stars, with leather trousers. Like they’re about to play Wembley or something”. “It’s always the lead singer,” Ross laughs.

But before you leave thinking Foule are just a bunch of cynics, they also express what they admire about some of the bands they’ve seen around Nottingham. Ross says, “When you go to see them and you’re surprised; you hear something that you really weren’t expecting and you love it at the same time”. Michael interjects, “If you hear someone do something that you think you couldn’t do, or if they’re just cool and write a really good song”.

To wrap up a successful gig, we discuss the band’s plans going forward. “Just to grow really,” Gil tells me.

“I really wanna play a festival!” “Yeah get a festival done”. “Wembley!”

Michael sums up the conversation: “Record some more songs and play some big gigs”.

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JOIN THE FAN CLUB Nottingham-based not for profit, ‘Fan Club’, offers a safe space for women to play and enjoy music

Popular rock music is a total sausage party.

Don’t believe me? Go to Spotify right now and have a look at any playlist with ‘rock’ in the title. The number of white guys you’ll find there is almost ridiculous. Clearly, a glass ceiling remains. Nottingham’s ‘Fan Club’ intends to shatter it.

Your average Fan Club night will consist of female-fronted music, poetry and spoken word. Glitter, dancing and cake are also prerequisites. In other words, you’re in for a very good time. Ask anyone that’s been before; Fan Club is incredibly popular and has grown mostly through word of mouth.

Fan Club is a monthly event whose ultimate goal is twofold. First, they offer a platform to female-identifying and non-binary artists, designers, musicians and creatives. Second, but just as important, Fan Club provides a safe and friendly space for fans to enjoy live music.

Kaylea explains how the idea for Fan Club was born: “We were at a festival in Nottingham and while we were there, it occurred to us that we hadn’t seen a single woman on the stage at all”. Rachel adds, “rock music has been a boys’ club for such a long time”.

They’re not wrong. After interviewing the women, I inspect the April 2017 gig guide for Nottingham’s focal music venue, Rock City.

Of all the bands scheduled to play, just one features a woman.

Since founding Fan Club over two years ago, Rachel, Kaylea and Francesca have organised a plethora of monthly events, mostly based at (Impact-favourite venue) Rough Trade.

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43 WORDS BY MADDY HAY ILLUSTRATIONS BY POPPY ANNE MALBY

I’m stunned. As any reasonable human will know, gender inequality in music is not through a lack of brilliant female-fronted bands. Nottingham itself is full of them.

During our conversation, the three women mention some of their favourites: Babe Punch, Twin Kidd, Cherry Hex and the Dream Church (all of whom are excellent and have played FC events).

Kaylea, Rachel and Francesca acknowledge that bookings at Nottingham’s smaller venues like Bodega, JT Soar and Rough Trade are far better in terms of equality. However, Rock City is a brilliant, independent venue and the self-proclaimed “best in the UK”. Surely it should be at the forefront of gender inclusivity? Still, in 2017, the need for Fan Club and its peers is blindingly obvious.

We discuss the second part of Fan Club’s purpose. As with great music, community spirit and inclusivity is what drives Fan Club.

They’re not-for-profit. “We try to keep as many events as we can free entry, so that it’s accessible to everyone and people won’t have a financial barrier to come and have a good time and watch music. Any money we do generate from selling zines, temporary tattoos and bracelets, all goes back into the events”.

As both women and fans of live music, Rachel, Kaylea and Francesca acknowledge the presence of gig-groping. Though committed by a minority, it’s an (occasional) unpleasant side effect of attending concerts, which are still a male-dominated arena. Fan Club is dedicated to providing a “safe space” for music lovers. They counter the unfortunate presence of gig-groping by providing an alternative atmosphere for music lovers, where women are able to appreciate music without having to encounter “the stuff that they just get used to dealing with as part of their everyday lives”.

If you didn’t think they could get any cooler: Fan Club also produces a zine, which is sold at events. This is yet another arm to the collaborative network of artists that these women have constructed over the last two years. “It’s another way that we try to give a platform to women and let women’s voices be heard”.

Zines were big in the 90s and were often used for the promotion of music or political ideas. They’re currently experiencing a revival within the DIY music scene, of which Fan Club is (by default) a part. Francesca explains that the zine is intrinsic to their vocation: “When Kaylea came up with the idea [for Fan Club], the zine was part of it. It’s still really important to us. We take it to zine fairs.

It is its own thing”.

Clearly, the women behind Fan Club are proud of this aspect of their work. Rightly so.

Though they’re often silly or funny, the zines are far from trivial. Each one highlights a new issue. The last one I picked up was about inspirational women (the front cover featured an illustration by Nana Venter of an alien woman wearing a t-shirt that said “legalise tits”. It’s stuck on my wall). May’s theme is mental illness. What’s also great about Fan Club’s zine is that it is wholly collaborative.

“We have a lot of local and international female writers, artists, doodlers… anyone that wants to contribute something is invited to do that”.

In the future, they’d love to open their own venue, says Kaylea. “We’d like it to be something that’s community focused and cooperative, rather than a profit-making venture”. It’s not difficult to imagine that Fan Club’s success will continue. Community spirit and collaboration make for very solid foundations and they’ve got mountains of it.

Keep your eyes peeled on social media for the next event and I’ll see you there.

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IMPACT IMPACT

Dot Dot to to Dot Dot Festival Festival NOTTINGHAM NOTTINGHAM

SUN.28.MAY SUN.28.MAY

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45 WORDS BY MADDY HAY CALLUM MARTIN-MOORE ILLUSTRATIONS BY POPPY ANNE MALBY

This May, the beloved Dot to Dot Festival returns to Nottingham. Dotted (get it?) across many of the city’s renowned music venues, D2D is the best - and least muddy - way to immerse yourself in the stars and the secrets of current music The festival takes place over one weekend, kicking off in Manchester on Friday 26th May and (after a stop in Bristol) culminating in Nottingham on Sunday 28th. There is no rotation of artists, each one will play in the same city on the same day. Needless to say, it bodes well for us that the weekend ends in Notts: we get the chance to experience the after-party mood as the bands are finally able to relax after what will surely be a manic weekend.

Somewhat annoyingly, D2D often falls towards the end of May, meaning that attendance can often be dictated by exam timetables. However, tickets are cheap and live sets are short, sweet and plentiful. It’d be more than reasonable to revise in the morning and then head out to catch a few bands later in the day. This year’s lineup is full of treasures, so if you do manage to attend, here are a few unmissables.

I’m both fan and foe of LA’s Cherry Glazerr.

On one hand, they’re talented and funny and they make messy, fuzzy indie-pop with the sort of bass-lines that make any listener feel instantly cool. On the other, frontwoman Clementine Creevy is younger than me and has been making and releasing great music for years. In fact, January’s Apocalipstick was Cherry Glazerr’s second studio album.

Obviously, I am seething with envy. However, that won’t stop me from enjoying what is sure to be a bonkers set at this year’s D2D. Nor should it you.

Cosmo Pyke is another ridiculously young face to grace D2D. Born in London, this 18-year-old (my jealousy knows no bounds) has already garnered low-level fame after appearing in the music video for Frank Ocean’s ‘Nikes’. Pyke’s own lo-fi sound has echoes of HOMESHAKE and King Krule, but he’s no mimic. He’s also a great lyricist.

Though most teenagers possess the wealth of complex emotions that is necessary to write great song lyrics, the ability to articulate angst into words is slightly more scarce.

Cosmo Pyke achieves this with ease. He has also managed to write a song (‘Social Sites’) about the pitfalls of social media without making it sound like a PSHE lesson. Don’t miss out.

Hidden among the lower end of the lineup announcement, Vagabon is a refreshing change of pace from much of what the Dot to Dot crowd will be used to. For starters, growing up in Cameroon has provided her with a wildly different musical upbringing to most of the big names in indie rock. Later, Vagabon (real name Laetitia Tamko) moved to New York and became involved with its fertile DIY scene. She rubbed shoulders with the likes of Frankie Cosmos and began to cultivate and release her own brand of delightfully crooked indie rock. Listen to her excellent debut studio album, Infinite Worlds, now. A warning though; against vocal chords as distinct as Vagabons, I can’t promise you’ll master the sing-along.

Glaswegian two-piece Honeyblood combine huge fuzzy riffs and driving drums with fantastic vocal hooks. After a sold-out show at Bodega and the release of their sophomore album last November, we had a chance to ask Honeyblood’s Stina some questions ahead of their return to Nottingham for D2D.

We were lucky enough to see you at Dot to Dot in 2015. The energy was incredible and you were the highlight of our day. Are you excited to come back this year?

Aw thanks! Yeah, we’ve done D2D a few times now and they are always fun! The line up is always spot on too.

Once you’ve finished your set, are there any other bands you’re hoping to watch there?

Cherry Glazerr and The Big Moon.

We’ll probably see you there. So far you’ve brought out two albums. What’s been your favourite song from each?

My favourite song from Honeyblood is probably ‘Braid Burn Valley’ and ‘Love is a Disease’ from Babes Never Die.

Your debut album is mostly slow and hazy, whereas the songs on Babes Never Die tend to be considerably faster and punchier. Was this a conscious decision, or is it something that just happened naturally?

Well, I’ve got a different writing partner now, so I guess that’s the biggest change.

It’s been a mixture of natural progression and a conscious decision making. It’s the development of Honeyblood.

Do you have any plans after the upcoming shows?

For now, we’ll probably just get some dinner and a beer. In general, we will be doing a whole load of festivals and then back into the studio to do a little bit of writing.

Finally, is there anything in general you want to say to whoever is reading?

Follow your heart and live your dreams.

Of course, if you don’t have to revise, your wealth of essential acts is pretty enormous.

You won’t regret catching Pinegrove, Willie J Healey or The Big Moon. Local bands are also a must-see: someone who knows the lay of the land will always put on a great show.

Tickets are available online now. Go on!

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WORDS BY ESTHER KEARNEY

IMAGE VIA TWOPAPERGIRLS

“1984 BUT WITH DOGS” Esther Kearney chats to Amy Hawthorne and Laura Collins, known on YouTube as TwoPaperGirls, about all things book-related

I meet Amy and Laura in the comfy English common room in Trent building. Childhood best friends, the two are in the third year of their English degree and share a love for all things bookish.

The first thing I feel compelled to ask is which Nottingham bookshop they frequent most. Laura’s reply, I feel, resonates with all book lovers: Waterstones. We all agree that Waterstones is rarely a destination you set out to visit, yet its wonderland vibe of lavish, if a little expensive, books makes it all too easy to lose yourself in there for hours at a time. When you do eventually leave, an entire century appears to have slipped by unnoticed.

My next question is how the two started on YouTube. I remember finding them a few weeks before coming to UoN, and falling in love with their channel. The girls bonded over their similar interests in YouTubers, and gradually moved from watching bigger, more mainstream channels to discovering

the BookTube community. They were in their early teens at the time, and Amy remembers that Laura was the driving force behind the discovery. I laugh when Amy says that she had no idea about YouTube initially due to her outdated computer. It was Laura’s enthusiasm that convinced Amy they should start a book channel, although Laura admits that she was nervous when getting behind the camera for the first time.

“We started filming the week before results to give us a distraction. I didn’t know what we were doing then or why Laura had a tripod,” Amy laughs, reminiscing about the good old times when they had time to film nine videos a day. I must admit that I am in awe of at their motivation, given that my idea of an accomplishment is making my 9am lectures.

As we continue to chat, I ask if there have been any books on their course that they have surprisingly enjoyed. The question is met with a joint “oooooh” from the girls, before Laura’s mind darts to Sons and Lovers

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by D. H Lawrence. She says that she enjoys Lawrence’s short stories, but isn’t really looking forward to reading his extended work for fear of being subjected to “miserable miners” for 400 pages!

“So, you’re stuck on a desert island with one book character, who would it be?” I ask next, pen at the ready. Amy’s face colours a deep shade of red and, giggling, she answers: “Rhysand… he’s this guy from a Court of Thorns and Roses and he is the high lord of the high court and he is just so… so gorgeous it’s unreal”. She’s in her own little world for a second or two, just thinking about the possibility. Laura opts for someone practical who would aid her in the given situation.

She places her trust in Dumbledore, who she feels certain could get them back to civilisation and comes with the added bonus of a lifetime supply of sherbet lemons.

Things take a philosophical turn when I enquire after the girls’ favourite and most inspirational book quotes. Surprisingly, both girls go for quotes from John Green’s novel, Paper Towns. Amy’s cites “The town was paper, but the memories were not”, while Laura chooses “It is so hard to leave — until you leave. And then it is the easiest goddamned thing in the world”. Both describe the world as they know it: the notion of us always moving from one place to another, such as the various stages of school to university, and how scary it can be to leave a place behind until it becomes a reality.

My last question, on their literary hidden gem, produces the most interesting answers. Amy confesses that she has a secret passion for books written purely from a dog’s perspective, a niche market to say the least.

The book in question? The Last Family in England by Matt Haig, about a Labrador who

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is part of a Labrador pack, the only good dogs in England, who care about humans while all the poodles have gone rogue. In Amy’s words, it’s very political, like “1984 but with dogs”. That last statement is probably my new favourite quote.

FACEBOOK /twopapergirlsbooktube

It’s easy to get lost in a world of infinite possibilities, but real life calls and our gushing over books must come to an end at last.

Amy and Laura clearly love what they do, and that makes watching their videos all the more enjoyable. If you’re a fellow book lover and curious to learn more, I wholeheartedly recommend that you visit Two Paper Girls on YouTube and see what they have to say.

TUMBLR + INSTAGRAM @twopapergirls

TWITTER @Amy_H_23 @LauraJayne_C

GOODREADS goodreads.com

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WORDS BY SHANAI MOMI + ISOBEL DAVIDSON

ILLUSTRATIONS BY INDIA ROSE MEADE

GONE BUT NOT FORGOTTEN They helped found the Royal Academy and one was even the first woman elected there. Nottingham’s artists always come out on top, even if you’ve never heard of them

Dudley Dexter Watkins The astounding career of Dudley Dexter Watkins has brought an influx of characters to many childhoods.

He studied at the Nottingham School of Art, where his talents led to the formation of one of the world’s longest running comics. Watkins achieved fame for comics like The Beano and The Dandy, and characters like The Broons, the popularity of which skyrocketed, with sales for The Dandy reaching two million per week in the 1950s. Throughout the 1940s, Watkins’ artistic talents were visible in his many comic adaptations of novels, including Treasure Island and Oliver Twist.

Edmund de Waal Whilst he is primarily known for his collections of porcelain designs, Edmund de Waal is also an award-winning author, most notably for his family memoir, The Hare with Amber Eyes, published in 2010. His work as a designer and potter has been influenced by his love of space and architecture, and due to his fresh and contemporary take on porcelain, his installations have been commissioned by some of the most renowned institutions. Such is De Waal’s contribution to art, he was awarded an OBE in 2011.

Dame Laura Knight A revolutionary painter, Dame Laura Knight was known for her unconventional work with oils, watercolours and etchings. Born in Derbyshire, she studied at the Nottingham School of Art, where she embraced English Impressionism and was inspired by circus performers and travellers.

Knight achieved great success in a male-dominated art world, furthering the status of female artists by becoming the first woman elected to the Royal Academy in 1936.

She later became a wartime artist, producing recruitment posters for the Women’s Land Army in 1939 and creating Nuremburg Trial, her famous oil painting, which depicts the war crime trials.

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Kate Greenaway Working in the late nineteenth century, Catherine ‘Kate’ Greenaway created idyllic illustrations to accompany fairy tales and nursery rhymes. What may be surprising to note is how much Nottingham influenced her work. Before going to study at what is now the Royal College of Art, she spent her childhood in Rolleston, Nottinghamshire, and the peaceful aspects of her work are thought to be inspired by her time there. Her work has remained popular, resulting in the annual prize, The Kate Greenaway Medal, which celebrates distinguished illustrations in children’s books. Winners include Quentin Blake, Shirley Hughes and Janet Ahlberg.

Paul and Thomas Sandby Who better to include in our list of Nottingham artists than those who co-founded the Royal Academy of Arts? Born in Nottingham, these two brothers certainly made their mark in the artistic realm.

Thomas not only taught art, but was respected in draughtsmanship, water-colour painting and architecture. Paul, on the other hand, focused much of his life’s work on landscape paintings in watercolour. In 1768, they were nominated by King George III, along with other prestigious artists, to create the Royal Academy, which would promote design and creation through visual art projects.

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WORDS BY ESTHER KEARNEY + HOLLY WILSON

ILLUSTRATIONS BY EMILY CLARKE

Written in the Stars Aries: 21st March – 19th April

Gemini: 21st May- 20th June

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

Twelfth Night by William Shakespeare

Courageous, Determined, Passionate

Curious, Adaptable, Gentle

What could be more enticing than a circus that opens only at night? The Night Circus offers you adventure and magic that will appeal to your adventurous nature. Like Celia and Marco, you are passionate and stubborn and will rise to a challenge. Travel to the circus and experience this indulgent delight.

You’re well known to your friends as having a multi-faceted personality. In this sense, you have a lot in common with Viola (or her male counterpart Cesario) in Twelfth Night.

You can be quiet, reserved and modest, or a complete party animal when you’re out at the club on a Friday night. But when exams roll around, you tend to hit the books and meticulously plan your way to victory.

Reading Location: Nottingham Castle

Reading Location: Waterstones, Nottingham

Leo: 23rd July- 22nd August

The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald Generous, Warm-hearted, Cheerful, Self-centred Gatsby is pretty much the epitome of you.

You’d throw a party and trash your house just to see your crush for a split second. You’re a creative, social and sometimes a little spurof-the-moment type of person. Generous and warm-hearted, you like to give people a good time, as long as it works to your own ends.

Reading Location: Outside Trent Cafe

Taurus: 20th April – 20th May

Bridget Jones’ Diary by Helen Fielding Devoted, Stubborn, Romantic If you’re looking for someone as stubborn yet romantic as you are, search no further, as Bridget Jones has got you covered. Whether you know the story from the 2002 film starring Renée Zellweger and Colin Firth, or find yourself resolutely against romantic “chick lit”, this book will make you laugh at least once. I promise. Stop being so stubborn and give it a read.

Reading Location: Trent Embankment

Cancer: 21st June- 22nd July

Virgo: 23rd August- 22nd September

The Princess Bride by William Goldman

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë

Imaginative, Loyal, Emotional

Loyal, Kind, Hardworking, Practical

Your imagination is as wild as your social life, which is why The Princess Bride is a novel you must pick up. Swordplay, giants, princesses being kidnapped and the Zoo of Death - all this and more awaits you. Like Wesley, the main character, you are loyal til you die, and with such a variety of characters to get attached to, the emotional side of you is sure to be piqued.

Ever felt annoyed by all the over the top people around you? Do you just want to have your own space and be independent, regardless of how those around you think you “should” act? Then Jane Eyre is the gal for you. Outgoing, reliable, and ever so intelligent, like Jane, you’re the underdog, and that’s why we think you and this book were a match made in literary heaven.

Reading Location: Attenborough Nature Reserve

Reading Location: Lenton Firs Victorian Rockery

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Ever wished you could find a book that explained you in a nutshell? We’ve scoured our bookshelves to save you the trouble of searching. Astrology with a dash of literature, here are our top picks for you and advice on where to read them

Libra: 23rd September- 22nd October

Sagittarius: 22nd November- 21st December

Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden

The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams

Cooperative, Diplomatic, Fair-minded Like the protagonist in this novel, Sayuri, you are a gracious individual who often doesn’t see yourself as those around you do. A social butterfly, you have a natural ability when it comes to talking, with people drawn to you like a bee to honey. You hate confrontation or any kind of injustice and strive to eradicate it. This is a melancholy novel, but the gentle characteristics of the main character is sure to have you devouring the book in hours.

Generous, Idealistic, Humorous It must be nice to be as funny as you are.

If your supply of dad jokes and stolen one liners is running low, open up the Guide and find a wealth of wit and adventures to impress your friends with when you’re drunk.

The best thing about this adventure is that you don’t even have to get changed out of your PJs, or pretend you know what’s going on, because, honestly, no one does.

Aquarius: 20th January- 18th February

1984 by George Orwell Progressive, Original, Humanitarian We bet you plan to save the world from itself and, to be honest, you’re a bit of a hipster even if you refuse to admit it. Sipping a chai latte, wearing ripped jeans, and telling everyone about your life philosophy? We would be surprised if Orwell’s novel wasn’t already your favourite. And if it isn’t, we’re sure you’ve sneakily lied about reading it already.

Reading Location: Jamcafe, Hockley

Reading Location: Wollaton Hall

Reading Location: St. Mary’s Church, Lace Market

Pisces: 19th February- 20th March

Scorpio: 23rd October- 21st November

Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman Resourceful, Brave, Stubborn ‘No deed goes unpunished’ is very much your life motto, and this book is based on that very premise. You find yourself in situations that you’re not entirely sure how you got in, but you’re not one to shy away from a challenge, due to your stubborn nature. Your passion and need for excitement will make this book a brilliant read.

Reading Location: Cobden Chambers

Capricorn: 22nd December- 19th January

The Virgin Suicides by Jeffrey Eugenides

The Book of Lost Things by John Connolly

Wise, Compassionate, Desire to Escape Reality

Responsible, Self-Control, Pessimistic You are disciplined and sometimes a little too pessimistic about things that happen around you. You value your family above everything else and have little traditions that you follow to a T. Maybe you don’t meticulously count the stairs every day as our protagonist does, but you do like things to be orderly and have a routine in your life.

Reading Location: Walled Garden near Trent

You’re deep and thoughtful, and probably love a bit of literary fiction, as you’re the wise, arty one in your friendship group. Looking for a new book that you can Instagram and read in Lee Rosey’s? Look no further, as The Virgin Suicides will look really good in a shot with your “reading” glasses. It’s the perfect way to procrastinate and escape the reality of the ever-growing reading list that you’re avoiding.

Reading Location: Lee Rosey’s, Hockley

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IMPACT WORDS BY ELLEN SMITHIES ILLUSTRATIONS BY POPPY ANNE MALBY

YEARS OF DRAMA Ellen Smithies interviews Nottingham Lakeside Arts director, Shona Powell, as the centre celebrates its twenty-fifth anniversary A familiar site on campus, Nottingham Lakeside Arts (NLA) is the University of Nottingam’s public arts centre. It’s home to a museum, a theatre, a recital hall, and several galleries across its two sites. I’ve worked there for the past six months as a workshop leader, but I wanted to learn a bit more about how Lakeside is run behind-the-scenes. I sat down with Shona Powell, Director of Nottingham Lakeside Arts and recipient of the Order of the British Empire this year, to discuss her work at NLA. Shona was keen to stress how much the Centre has developed since it first opened in 1992. “It’s now a year-round programme of visual, performing and participatory arts, heritage, talks, lectures, workshops and films”. The University’s Museum of Archaeology moved to Lakeside in 2011, and this autumn it will play host to the first major exhibition from the British Museum and York Museums Trust: Viking: Rediscover the Legend.

I asked Shona exactly what her role entailed.

“An overarching role in terms of the strategic development of Lakeside, and a leadership role in defining and maintaining NLA’s reputation for excellence,” she told me (sounds like a lot!). Shona is also responsible for keeping NLA’s aims and objectives in line with those of the University, as well as programming the theatre, dance and community festivals that take place each year. Shona also helped commission and organise the digital display by artist Barret Hodgson for Chinese New Year in February.

With so much going on, I suggested that it must be hard to pick a favourite thing about working at NLA. Shona agreed, saying that her favourite project is normally whatever she’s working on at that particular moment.

Being part of the University also has its benefits, as it gives Lakeside access to the University’s resources and intellect; the upcoming Chinese Feathered Dinosaur exhibition was designed by an MA student from Architec-

ture, and Professor Judith Jesch, from the School of English, has curated an exhibition focusing on the regional relevance of the Vikings to Nottingham.

As someone who wants to go into the Heritage sector after graduating, I was keen to get some guidance on how to prepare myself for it. Shona’s advice? “Be like a sponge and add to your breadth of knowledge and experience by working alongside people who are great at what they do. Be hungry to learn, be open to experiences, see as much work as possible and always value the artist’s work. We wouldn’t have a role without them!”

There is something for everyone at Lakeside, no matter what your age or interests. If you have a spare hour or two, you should head down to check it out. Being the Director of the Centre is a huge job, but Shona’s enthusiasm for her work really comes through, and makes me proud to be part of NLA.

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WORDS BY RHYS THOMAS

ILLUSTRATIONS BY JESSE YU

A CINEPHILE’S MANUAL Essential cinematic landmarks in your city Sure, Nottingham might feel a little run down at times; the coppery smell of trams, the endless taxis and the eternal scaffolding dotted around the city. However, one thing our little city has always been able to boast is a wonderful heritage of cinema and film. Here’s the tip of a titanic iceberg for you lovely readers.

I guess it’s unavoidable to talk about cinema without, well… cinemas. Nottingham has a whole host of brilliant cinemas. But the highlights are: The Savoy. Ah, the County’s only pre-war cinema, situated in Lenton and host to some of the cheapest screenings in the city. It has a weird sort of art deco, velvet-red carpet and everlasting popcorn, but it is budget friendly and shows all the big new films.

They also screen some real gems – from classics like One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest (15th of May) to live theatre screenings, such as Who’s afraid of Virginia Woolf? (18th of May). The cinema does a bit of everything and their popcorn is on point. (You could even pop to Sainsbury’s for snacks en route).

If you want less of a student experience, there’s Broadway. In 2014, it was rated as one of the best independent cinemas in the world – and rightly so.

It’s even situated in Hockley, how indie can you get?). It has a screen designed by Paul Smith, fancy food by clever chefs, and is host to a variety of events, including Mayhem Festival.

A cool claim for the business: Tarantino has been here twice! First in 1992, just after Reservoir Dogs was filmed, to visit “Shots in the Dark” – an old

Broadway film festival. And again as a guest of honour for the same festival, where he decided to treat the audience to the UK premier of Pulp Fiction in 1994. The cinema was also treated to an exclusive screening of Inglourious Basterds before its official release in 2009: lucky Basterds.

Of course, a celebration of cinematic culture wouldn’t be complete without mentioning a few of the film festivals Nottingham hosts to every year.

Mayhem is so worth checking out. This year’s is from 12-15th of October, so you have ages to get organised for it, unless you’re graduating, sorry guys.

The festival is rooted in contemporary horror, science-fiction and cult cinema/television, from the UK and beyond (no Brexit here!). It has gained notoriety as one of the best film festivals in the UK. One of the organisers is currently studying for a PhD in ‘Horror’ to become a true expert and master of the genre.

For those who daren’t leave the humble little province of Beeston – no worries, you have a film festival too. Beeston’s film festival ran for the second year in early March and saw 70 films from 30 countries on its screen in the humble - and massively overcrowded - White Lion. Even BAFTA winner Vicky McClure was there to host the awards ceremony.

If you want to get on this for 2018, it’d be best to keep your eyes peeled for ticket releases, as the festival is growing in popularity and will definitely sell out.

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WORDS BY NICOLAS CABALLERO

THE RISE OF THE BACKYARD INDIE UoN’s filmmaking society proves that no budget doesn’t mean no film ‘Low budget filmmaking’ can have many interpretations; from the couple of hundreds that many initially think of, to the UK Film Council’s “low/micro budget” of less than £1 million. For students who need to make a film, even the lowest interpretation can seem out of reach. That’s where UoN’s Filmmaking society comes in. We talked to incoming President, Harry Fleet, about what it really takes to make a film.

Equipped with cups of tea and ready to talk business, I sat down with Harry. We discussed the society’s daily operations, as well as some of their amazing projects. They range from the comedic and whacky (such as a student who plays so much Fifa that one day he wakes up only able to say “Fifa”) to the more serious and introspective (such as a man dealing with people from his past in The Remnants).

Making any type of film, whether short or feature length, is an arduous job that only gets harder when the budget cuts into money laid aside for groceries and utility bills. Being a producer requires creativity and a lot of determination. As Harry himself puts it, “you need to want to see it through”.

As a society dedicated to making films, they aren’t just content with churning out motion picture after motion picture. Part of their goal as a society is to educate their members on film techniques and provide them with the equipment to get started. Their equipment cabinet is home to DSLR cameras, audio equipment, and everything needed to make good amateur-level short films.

What the society is doing is virtually zero budget filmmaking. A term that has emerged to define this increasingly popular approach to film is “The Backyard Indie”. Most of the

CULTURE

increasing popularity of this type of filmmaking comes from clearer and more varied ways to distribute and showcase your work.

With the demise of physical movie distribution and the rise of streaming services such as Netflix or even YouTube, indie films no longer need to sell at festivals to reach mass appeal. Suddenly, emboldened by the countless pathways to distribute work, filmmaking on zero budget becomes more appealing.

The society approaches distribution by mostly showcasing the work of their members in weekly posts on Facebook. Most of the content of these posts comes from their “3 week projects”, a challenge that splits members into groups who then have to make a film in 3 weeks. The weeks are split into one for writing, one for shooting, and one for editing.

Harry believes this method “challenges people to get to the core of an idea”.

Another way they showcase their work is through the Filmmaking Society Film Festival (bit of a tongue twister) that took place for the first time in April. This is an opportunity for members of the society, and anyone from the University who has made a short film and wants to submit it, to display it in front of an audience.

Of course, filmmaking is a hugely collaborative process. In that sense, creating a network you can rely on to transform an idea into film is as important for a Hollywood Blockbuster as it is for a Backyard Indie. This is often one of the most crucial and difficult things to approach as an amateur filmmaker because ideas are such personal things, but films are not. Bridging this gap requires finding the right people to work with and making sure that there is a network there for an amateur filmmaker to join.

Again, the filmmaking society tackles this in a series of ways. First, by simply knowing who checks in and out the equipment they can get a grasp on the amount of student filmmaking going on at Nottingham, and create a network around it. The society also makes itself open to all sorts of people with different interests in filmmaking, be that writing, directing, or producing. This allows any creator to walk in and find people to help in any role. As Harry puts it, “if you don’t know how to do XYZ, you can find someone to do your X, someone to do your Y, someone to do your Z”.

In fact, Harry’s first experience with the society was showing up to a meeting with the first script he’d ever written thinking he “had to make this” and asking for help from anyone who knew how. The people who agreed to help him went on to become some of his closest friends with whom he has progressed as a creative team.

With the rise of The Backyard Indie scene, zero budget filmmaking has become more relevant than ever, and, I would argue, more important than ever. At the core of amateur filmmaking is a desire, nay, necessity to make a story into film. The Filmmaking society is just one of the many examples that shows that if you have an idea and are determined to see it through, the tools are there and budget is not a restriction. As Harry himself says while I finish my tea and get ready to leave: “One thing we can never get enough of is people with creative ideas”.

So don’t fret, you creator.

Go and make your film.

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WORDS BY DAN LYONS

ILLUSTRATIONS BY INDIA ROSE MEADE

S R A W S U P M CA Ever wondered how UoN would fare compared to some of our favourite fictional universities?

The world of film and TV has a habit of portraying the university experience as one of parties and antics, but have you ever found yourself asking how these universities would fare on a league table? We took it upon ourselves to dissect three famous universities from TV and film and rank them based on student satisfaction, teaching standards and, due to Nottingham’s prowess in the area, their greenness.

If having a uni-wide paintball fight and expansive blanket fort wars sound appealing, then ‘Community’s’ Greendale Community College is the place for you. With literally no entry requirements, affordable courses and students from diverse backgrounds, Greendale does sound attractive.

Despite student satisfaction being high, the teaching standards are dismal. Dean Pelton has no control over his school; he may interact with his students and be a master of puns, but he panics in any emergency. In terms of eco-friendliness, Greendale would score relatively well. It has plenty of green space and a “Green Week” with performances from everyone’s favourite Irish folk-band Greene Daeye. What truly brings it down the league table is the poor quality of teaching. Still, classes in the History of Ice Cream, Nicolas Cage and ‘Can I Fry That?’ could be fun.

A university that appears good on paper is Monsters University. This is a prestigious institution with high quality teaching – some of the best scare experts in the world teach here. But all of this comes at a price. The class of

‘Scare Can Design’ has clearly been underfunded. As well as this, the University, has yet to work out the efficiency of laugh power over scare power and is therefore not eco-friendly. Monsters University is also oblivious to student satisfaction. Failing to get into Roar Omega Roar could very well ruin your entire experience.

Barden University in the film ‘Pitch Perfect’ appears idyllic with its clean, well-kept green space. They have created a calm atmosphere for students to prosper along with a wide choice of societies, including four different kinds of Acapella groups so you can truly find your niche. These factors suggest a good level of student satisfaction and attention to the environment. However, where are all the teachers?

We never see anybody actually doing any studying. Not only is this a waste of resources, it also shows a lack of professionalism from the academic staff.

Whether any of these fictional universities is worth the price of admission is still up for debate. The screen depicts university as a place of play with no work in between. We rarely see the aftermath of these university experiences except for Mike and Sully whose careers aren’t affected by their qualifications anyway.

Rest assured, your money is definitely being put to better use in Nottingham that boasts the greatest overall score in the categories. Even our counterpart Nottingham Trent boasts well, ahead of Barden University and just behind Monsters University.

1313

Monsters University

Pitch Perfect

Community

Monsters University

Barden University

Greendale Community College

**based on tuition fees for the Louisana State University

*based on $64 per credit hour and 12 credit hours per semester

1992

Nottingham

Nottingham Trent University

0

401

439

305

424

4.5

4.01

2.97

4.15

4.06

Student Satisfaction (maximum 5.00)

Data for UoN and NTU are the official ranking from www.thecompleteuniversityguide.co.uk and www.greenmetric.uc.ac.id.

All other data points are purely fictional, like the universities themselves.

1974

1907

1881

Nottingham

The University of Nottingham

Founding year

Universe

University

Entry Standards (UCAS points)

1.23

2.33

3.98

2.59

3.09

Research Quality (maximum 4.00)

20.32

52.1

87.65

66.3

81.2

Graduate Prospects (maximum 100.00)

49

515

628

627

799

Total Score (maximum of 1000)

4789

6980

5978

6519

7267

Greeness

$27,434**

$1,536*

ÂŁ9,000.00

ÂŁ9,000.00

Tuition Fee per academic year

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THE GAMES SO FAR

IMAGE BY RHYS THOMAS

SPORTS

IMAGE BY EMILY WOODCOCK

IMAGE BY OLIVIA VILLAREAL

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WORDS BY JOE TANNER + FREDDIE STUART

IMAGE BY RHYS THOMAS

STORIES OF VARSITIES PAST 13 years in the making, two universities, one annual set of bragging rights at stake. The rivalry runs deep

The Nottingham Varsity Series is undoubtedly one of the great spectacles of university life here in Nottingham; the pinnacle of the year for students, staff and supporters alike. It’s bigger and better than ever before, now in its 14th year, with 31 sports on offer across 14 days of action. Players enjoy support from over 30,000 students from each respective university.

It’s home to the best attended university Ice Hockey match outside North America, as well as top class venues like the Motorpoint Arena and Meadow Lane - the oldest football ground in England – which are able to create cauldrons of noise for the Green and Gold and Pink and Royal Blue, alike.

But aside from the locations and the culmination of student sport, which we all love to see in the spring of the academic year, it’s the rivalry which takes precedence.

It’s El Clasico, Old Firm and Merseyside all rolled into one. It’s so much more than

Sheffield v Hallam, or Cardiff v Swansea; the Nottingham Varsity Series is like no other.

Forget BUCS. It’s the summit of the sporting year, it’s what you’re remembered for by every student, it defines your season and it means so much to participants and spectators of both universities.

We reminisced with previous UoN Varsity winners and fans about their experiences from Varsity. Back in May 2015, Jonny Betts was the goaltender (or wall) who blocked every puck that came in his path, ensuring that UoN won a 3rd consecutive Ice Hockey Varsity 4-3. The undoubted hero of that match recounted the night in front of 7,000 students at the then Capital FM Arena.

“My favourite moment had to be the noise stepping out of the tunnel onto the ice with the smoke. There’s no feeling like it. The noise fills your whole body with electricity.

It’s like jumping into an ice bath filled with euphoria,” he told us.

SPORTS “As a Nottingham experience, there is no question it is top of my list. The energy is completely on another level. Regular season games force me to play good hockey, but playing in that arena in front of all those people tests who you are as a person. Also, you get to feel like a pro for the night”.

With such a massive crowd at the Ice Hockey Varsity and attendances regularly surpassing a few thousand for the likes of Football, Basketball, American Football, Rugby Union and league, they really are the lungs as well as the heart and soul of the Green and Gold.

Jonny continued, “I’m sure everyone could see in this year’s Varsity [Ice Hockey] that once the crowd got into the game, we gained a ton of momentum. In my second year, it pushed me over the line after a tough 60 minutes. [This year], we didn’t get the result for them, unfortunately, but I’m sure they could see the difference they made”.

With such a pulsating rivalry being such a constant theme of the series, it is inevitable that tensions and adrenaline can boil over onto the ice/pitch/court, on the sidelines or in the stands. Last year, previous UoN Students’ Union Sports Officer, James Bramley, made a statement warning that unless behaviour improved in the 2016 series, the contest could have ended that year.

This could have been referring to fights in the stands at Ice Hockey, pitch invasions and fights at the Futsal Varsity, the usual Trent fans’ pitch invasion at Meadow Lane or the University of Nottingham cheerleaders’ banner held up at another Varsity event, which read ‘United by geography, divided by job prospects’, to name but a few examples.

Neither UoN nor Trent’s Students’ Unions will be wanting to replicate the scenes that occurred at the Sussex vs Brighton Varsity earlier this year, where the entire Sussex campus was shut down by police because of disorderly supporters.

Yet, a competitive edge on the pitch always makes the spectacle better. Betts sees the aggression as something that is part and parcel of the series. “Outside of Varsity sports season, I don’t think about it. Before and during the game it plays a factor because I’m just trying to get my head in that zone where I’m ready for anything, and finding a reason to get aggressive helps me achieve that mindset. For sure, don’t have five pints and start fights in the crowd though.

We party together after the game, including the guys who fight. It’s always a great atmosphere”.

UoN Futsal President, Sam McGrath, said it’s all about the match for those playing the game. “It’s mainly all about concentrating on yours and the team’s performance. It’s also important in Varsity to keep the crowd levels as high as possible to spur on the team and I enjoy getting the crowd going as much as I can during the match”.

McGrath was an integral part of the Futsal team that drew 6-6 and then won 2-1 on penalties against Trent at Jubilee Campus in May 2016, in the game which clinched the series overall for the

61 University of Nottingham. “The atmosphere at Jubilee last year was amazing,” exclaims a nostalgic McGrath. “With it being the only time the two sides played each other in the year, it made it all the more intense”.

“As an achievement, I think the event is clearly our standout match of the year.

Varsity is the type of game that gets the two clubs and the city noticed within the Futsal community. The penalty shootout itself was amazing. What an experience,” he reminisces.

“I’ve never been involved in anything as tense as that and I will struggle to be again.

Winning the series overall was an amazing feeling, but this didn’t really sink in until afterwards, when we did the maths and realised we’d brought it home for UoN”.

As we embark on the second set of fixtures in the Varsity series, enjoying watching the matches and playing them in the spirit of the contest should always be held in mind.

There is no doubting this is one of fiercest and finest parts of the Nottingham student experience and long may that continue.

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IMPACT

WORDS BY RHYS THOMAS

IMAGES BY RHYS THOMAS + VIRGINIA MOORE

ON WEDNESDAYS, WE WEAR GREEN AND GOLD Super Wednesday. Biggest farce of Varsity, or a crucial encounter that highlights less popular sports?

Last year, we saw an 8-1 annihilation of Trent Army, and a similar battering this year, where Trent failed to pick up a single win. Sure, it’s an outstanding point, but what does it say about sport as a spectacle? How competitive can the matches really have been? And what sort of ridiculous bias was there to allow us to win so convincingly?

Initially, we have to consider the sports being played. It’s no coincidence that when you scroll your way through the BUCS rankings, UoN’s firsts are always above Trent’s firsts in our Super Wednesday events. We’re actually above by leagues and not places, in many cases. Table Tennis is an exception, where the women’s firsts and seconds finished 1st and 2nd respectively in Midlands 1A, with Trent’s firsts coming in 3rd. However, as we saw back on March 29th, Trent could barely win a match against us.

Also, in the past, teams have not been able to benefit from anywhere near the amount of support some sports receive.

This is partially due to the venues being smaller, but also due to the locations. Realistically, most people aren’t going to go on a crawl around the campus buildings to get to all the events. Therefore, some events will inevitably get less support, especially for the team playing away, which is less motivating for both sides. Even in this year’s Super Wednesday at David Ross, staging multiple events simultaneously means you can miss out on events you want to watch. Having several events in the same room is also quite discouraging and likely to put off the athletes.

Speaking to a host of athletes after UoN’s Super Wednesday, Thomas Hughes of the Handball team was keen to point out that: “It would’ve been nice to make the handball more of an occasion, perhaps by setting up more seating for spectators”. He also added: “It was ridiculous that the Varsity Facebook page said the handball started at 3:30, when the women’s match began 2 hours earlier”.

Meanwhile, Nick Ratnarajah of UoN’s Squash squad noted that, despite an enjoyable and competitive day, “the fixtures could have started earlier and had us all play on the glass, one after the other, as it’s better for [the] audience”.

Many spectators were also quick to point out that there weren’t any umpires for badminton, which made the event seem slightly less serious.

Hopefully, the beginnings of a slight change in this regard is UoN’s Super Wednesday having been hosted entirely at David Ross. There was an increase in support compared to last year and the sports on show seemed to be eye opening to many and championed as events.

Yet, as we anticipate Trent’s Super Wednesday, it’s likely that we will see much the same as last year in terms of support. The Easter break is also likely to prove problematic, as the lack of access to training facilities (and Easter egg intake) will have an adverse effect on the team’s forms.

SPORTS

WORDS BY JOE ROBINSON

SPLIT IN TWO HALVES Does the new formula work?

One of the main stories surrounding this year’s Varsity series was the decision to split the fixtures into two halves either side of the Easter break. With half of the events taking place before and half after Easter, will this prove to be problematic when it comes to maintaining levels of interest amongst the students of both universities, as well as the match sharpness of those who partake in events post-Easter?

We’re all used to Varsity being one big block across a few weeks, and this has certainly helped in maintaining the exciting pace of the series. In one block, interest levels can be easily upheld, as events come thick and fast one after another. The new formula, however, will see the best part of a month’s break, and it remains to be seen whether interest will have somewhat fizzled out when Varsity resumes in early May. With Ice Hockey being one of the premier events of the series, I’m not convinced that it should have been played before Easter. The Ice Hockey could have been a potential avenue of making sure attention remains focused on the Varsity series after the break, but only time will tell whether the new strategy has paid dividends for event popularity.

The break over Easter could prove problematic when it comes to both UoN and NTU teams retaining their fitness.

UoN Badminton captain, Eddy Langford, told Impact, “Often over Easter, we don’t have access to our training facilities, so by playing this side of the break we are able to train as normal whilst also being fresh from BUCS, which has advantages. We wouldn’t like to be on the second half of Varsity though”.

On the other side of the argument were UoN’s Women’s footballers, Joanna and Ellie; they told us the split series format actually worked in their favour. “The new system is good because a lot of us also compete in the Futsal Varsity fixture. Futsal is before [the break] and Football is after [the break], whereas last year they were just two days apart. To have a massive game and put your all into it and then have to play again two days later would be a massive struggle for me personally. So in our case the break is definitely a positive thing”.

It’s pretty clear that a split can work both ways. Thus far, Varsity has run smoothly. It remains to be seen whether the University will be able to retain interest as the series resumes a month after the last event, especially with dissertation deadlines looming large. Will the break affect those performing?

Only time will tell.

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IMPACT WORDS BY JEREMY DUNN + AMAR MEHTA ILLUSTRATIONS BY INDIA ROSE MEADE

S R U O L O C E H T D E E L B WE Do Trent hate us more than we hate them?

SPORTS

Varsity is, irrefutably, the time of year when the rivalry between The University of Nottingham and Trent University is at its fiercest. But what does the rivalry mean for Trent?

From a UoN perspective, there is a sense that Trent are beneath us. This feeling starts before students descend onto Nottingham as an unfortunate result of university rankings and league tables. We spoke to Trent students to get their view on the chants and banner-clad rivalry.

During Varsity, a heightened sense of animosity between the two groups of students emerges that is decisively different to the rest of the year. During the British University and College Sports (BUCS) seasons, people outside of the sporting sphere at both universities do not really pay attention to games, unless they have friends playing.

According to Harry Southwell, who is on Trents 2nd team for Hockey, “a win [in BUCS] isn’t felt outside a team, but a win in Varsity is felt by a much larger audience”.

Sam Barker, UoN alumnus and a postgraduate student at Trent, said that “the fans cheering you on motivates the players more. The energy from the crowd really drives players on”. Joe Betts, a first team Futsal player, added that “the fact that it’s a one-off game means the winner gets bragging rights for the year”.

The derby-ness of the one-off matches to which Varsity plays host means that there is an extra level of spice in games. Arguably, Trent’s track record of pitch invasions, throwing things onto the field of play and their general reaction to victory and loss alike, have branded them as the more emotional fans. But does this show a sign of greater hostility from Trent towards us?

Speaking to Joe and Henry, they both admit that there is a little bit of resentment towards UoN because of the size of our campus and the new facilities. There is a sense that, with the better facilities and the attraction that comes with them, the gap in talent between the two camps will grow and make Varsity one-sided. Henry said that our new facilities “motivate us [Trent] more to win this year, just to make all the money spent seem pointless”.

“The new facilities motivate us (Trent)] to win this year, just to make all the money spent seem pointless” From a non-sporting perspective, Sam said that the rivalry and anger towards UoN build up during Varsity. He believes that there isn’t really a rivalry at either university outside of the Varsity series. While Sam didn’t think the rivalry was artificial, he did say that it is very much Varsitycentric; outside the series, both camps keep to themselves.

Henry added that seeing events like the Varsity Ice Hockey, where for 99 percent of the year they play on the same team, but are rivals for one game, the rivalry can be blown out of proportion.

Joe, however, disagreed. He felt that the rivalry is genuine.

Trent fans are sometimes looked down on for being a polytechnic, which “is really annoying for us”. For Trent students, “UoN is just another generic Russell group university’,” Joe articulated.

When we asked if the rivalry had changed for each person as they progressed through university, Henry and Joe both agreed, saying that the rivalry became less intense and more enjoyable for them. It went from being pure hatred to an enjoyable derby. However, for Sam, the rivalry became more intense. Despite graduating from UoN and now going to Trent, he will always bleed Green and Gold.

Henry and Joe both think that after the first half of Varsity, Trent have their best chance in recent times to win, with UoN “underperforming” and Trent’s best sports still to come.

Sam disagrees – he thinks that UoN will have enough to edge the series.

Speaking to Trent students, it seems clear that they have a similar feeling of indifference toward UoN as we do to them. From both camps, the rivalry is very much at its worst during Varsity. While UoN tends to focus on a calmer, more ‘psychological warfare’, fuelled by insults towards Trent, the Trent Army has a reputation for going all-out to support their team and belittle ours. This has given off the perception that their fans are more invested in the rivalry, but once Varsity is done, the Pink and Blue sea calms once more and we all return to our home campuses to rest until Varsity swings around again.

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WORDS BY HARRY VOGT

TOO LITTLE, TOO LATE Why is there such a gulf in attendance at Varsity between different gendered teams?

The Nottingham Varsity Series is one of the most viewed anywhere in the country, with great swathes of support across all the sporting fixtures. Despite its general popularity, however, there is still a noticeable disparity in attendance between the sexes, with supporters coming out in full force to support the men’s teams, rather than sharing their time equally between the men’s and women’s.

The lack of attendance at women’s sports may simply be, because they are less popular than men’s at university level and in wider society. However, it may also be down to the scheduling of the events, which sees the women’s matches always played first, at times which are less convenient for supporters travelling to matches.

Looking at the events for this year, the women’s weekday matches have had very early starting times, ranging from 4.00pm

to 5:30pm. This is a major issue for any supporter wanting to get from University to these events; particularly as, in some cases, the venues are on the other side of Nottingham.

A case in point is the football event at Meadow Lane, where supporters tend to arrive much later, catching no more than the final moments of the women’s match.

Women’s Football winger, Ellie Readman, has played in Varsity for the last three years and has repeatedly noticed that people just turn up to “see the result” and to “watch them for fifteen minutes, then watch the men’s game”.

It seems unfair that the women’s team has to experience this.

Even at an international level, there is a significant comparative difference in attendance when women compete, which suggests that people are less interested in women’s sports in general, rather than being unable to attend due to the start time.

In football, there is a 35,000 difference in the mean average attendance between the Premier League and the Women’s Super League fixtures, and women’s football matches on average generated a turnout of just over 1,000 people per game in 2016.

This is a complicated subject matter which draws on many issues, but I think there are a few simple solutions. Mixed events, with men and women competing together, is

one option. Badminton takes this approach, and President Ellen Liddle says that Varsity, “brings the club together”.

For some sports, a mixed match is not an option, but that doesn’t mean it’s impossible to increase support for the women’s events.

Women could compete on a different day to men to raise the profile of the match, although this could be difficult to plan, particularly in the case of big stadiums like Meadow Lane. There is also the risk that fewer people would attend than before, due to more matches making the Varsity series long-winded.

The best solution seems to be alternating each year which team plays last. This would be the fairest and most viable option, and, although it would not resolve the issue of early starting times, it would mean that the women’s teams aren’t the only ones experiencing lower attendances from playing first.

University sport need not follow wider social trends. As Laura Smith, women’s cricket President, says: “People should choose to support the University, no matter what gender”.

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