The Orbital March 2013 (series 26, issue 8)

THE ORBITAL MARCH 2013

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www.theorbital.co.uk

THE OFFICIAL NEWSPAPER OF THE STUDENTS’ UNION ROYAL HOLLOWAY, UNIVERSITY OF LONDON

Singh victorious amidst election controversy - Societies officer claims first presidential term - Opponent embarks on expletive-laden Twitter rant

Alex Pegler Deputy Editor

AMARBEER Singh is to be Surhul’s 2013/2014 president, after the current societies officer came out on top in a poll of Royal Holloway students.

Singh, 20, fought off competition from union chair Joe Rayment and campaigns officer Craig Gent.

Following the announcement of the election result to a packed Medicine crowd, Rayment launched a Twitter tirade against the election victor, accusing him of running

a “shit campaign on a shit manifesto”. The union chair also claimed that, by electing Singh, “Surhul deserves everything they get”.

Rayment went on to clarify his comments on 10 March. Speaking to the Orbital, he said: “I realised last night that the last month of preparing my campaign and then putting everything into my campaign was completely futile as the decision had been made before we started, based on popularity.

“Singh had the nerve before the election to ask me to delay my governance

- VPComCam accuses rival of foul play - Surhul records highest election turnout ever

review, and it turns out that was because he had stuff on his manifesto that I had put in my review.

“I think this is more despicable than anything I wrote on Twitter after the results.”

Responding to the criticism, Singh said: “I want to say thank you to everyone who voted for me, I can’t wait to get started with the role.

“It was a tough campaign and I wish Craig and Joe all the best.”

The elections, held on 7-8 March, saw the contestation continued page 3

IN NUMBERS

$1.2m

The most money ever paid for a cow — it was for “Missy” in 2009.

98%

The rate at which atoms in your body are replaced every year.

1,140

The average number of phone calls a person makes in a year.

COMMENT P7: David Cameron Alex Anthony questions the prime minister’s record on LGBT rights in light of recent legislation.

LIFESTYLE P17: RHUL Fashion Show Leigh Dobson tells us about her experience running this year’s fashion show at Royal Holloway...

FEATURES P12: Puzzles Try your luck at our Surhul election-themed wordsearch and sudoku puzzles.

ARTS P20: Oscars roundup Johanna Ri sums up the results of this year’s Oscars, celebrating the best films of 2012.

SPORTS & SOCS P24: Show choir Voices of Holloway president Angus Wyatt gives his account of the latest show choir competition.

SERIES 26

ISSUE 8

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The Orbital Mar 2013

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The Board Julian Farmer Editor-in-Chief

editor@theorbital.co.uk

Alex Pegler Deputy Editor

deputyeditor@theorbital.co.uk

Vacant News Editor

news@theorbital.co.uk

Stephen Atkinson Comment Editor

comment@theorbital.co.uk

Simon Rawlings Lifestyle Editor

lifestyle@theorbital.co.uk

Rachel Ivens Features Editor

features@theorbital.co.uk

Rebecca Hilsdon Arts Editor arts@theorbital.co.uk

Shannon Mizzi Sports & Socs Editor

The Orbital is the official publication of the Students’ Union, Royal Holloway, University of London, and is run entirely by an elected board of students. It is editorially independent of both Royal Holloway and the Students’ Union.

If you have any questions or want to write for us, send an email to getinvolved@ theorbital.co.uk, or contact the relevant section editor directly.

Design: Julian Farmer and Jack Gordon

sportsandsocs@theorbital.co.uk

Vacant Web Editor

web@theorbital.co.uk

Zosia Edwards Art Director art@theorbital.co.uk

theorbital.co.uk @theorbitalrhul facebook.com/ theorbital

Leone Richmond Admin Director admin@theorbital.co.uk

Jamie S Green Executive Editor (VPComCam) jamie@theorbital.co.uk

From the Editors Julian Farmer Editor-in-Chief

IT’S been a crazy few weeks with elections and all the chaos associated with it.

We now come to the penultimate issue of the Orbital under this academic year’s editorial board, and while it’s been very stressful and timeconsuming role I’ve thoroughly enjoyed it.

With the end of elections comes a new leadership for the Orbital; my focus over the coming weeks will be meet with Simon, who will be taking over from me, and Alex, who will be continuing as deputy editor to see what direction they’d like to take in the next academic

Note from the Editor I would like to sincerely apologise to all readers — and especially our contributors who wrote for this issue — for the delay of the release of this issue.

The issue was initially supposed to be distributed on campus

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during the elections period, but our printing company was unable to accommodate us for that week.

Subsequently, we decided to delay the issue until the week after and instead provide postelections coverage.

Student mugged in College woods

09 Fasting: does it work?

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SU elections... meet your sabbs!

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Music reviews

year and advise them how to best achieve their goals.

I ran in the elections for the position of station manager of Insanity Radio, and was beaten by just 46 votes.

Therefore, I’ll be taking over as assistant station manager this summer and look forward to working with Station Manager Archie.

I also look forward to seeing where Simon and Alex take the Orbital in the coming year.

Speaking of which, elections will be held for the next editorial board at the start of next term, so if you’re interested in one of the positions listed on the left then drop me an email at editor@theorbital. co.uk for details!

Alex Pegler Deputy Editor

HEY there everyone, I hope you enjoy the eighth edition of the Orbital that I have been involved with as deputy editor.

I’m writing this just 48 hours after election results night and the hangover grogginess is just beginning to fade! On a personal note, the night was slightly disappointing as I failed in my quest to gain the democratic mandate to take the reins as editor next year.

Coming second, I will be subjecting you all to my second term in office as deputy editor. I offer my heartfelt congratulations to

Due to an issue with the printers, we were once again unable to make this and expected to be on campus in the final week of term.

After it became clear that we wouldn’t be able to be on campus until the holidays, we

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Simon Rawlings who will be seeking to prove that being born north of Watford doesn’t render you unable to run a newspaper.

It will be an honour to serve you, the people, in assisting Simon in ensuring the Orbital can compete with the other (regretfully excellent) news publication on campus next year.

Finally, the Orbital v Insanity Radio all-star football match in aid of Comic Relief was great fun — although conveniently, as Orbital captain, I seem to have forgotten the score.

See you after Easter for more scoops, more typos and most importantly, more beer.

made the decision to release the issue online and concentrate our efforts on the next issue.

We are currently liaising with a another company, with a view to printing with them in future.

Julian Farmer, Editor-in-Chief.

Staines centre cordoned off in bomb scare

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Are we becoming more materialistic?

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Model of the month

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Duke of Edinburgh’s award

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Surhul elections current rules of Surhul

continued from page 1 elections.

of 21 Students’ Union positions including that of vice president of communications and campaigns (VP ComCam).

The incumbent, Jamie Green, secured a second term in office, beating Jamal Johnson into second place. Green was declared the winner of the VP ComCam contest just 24 hours after he released a statement accusing Johnson of breaking a series of election rules and lying in an election disciplinary hearing. The Welshman also bemoaned the leniency shown by returning officer Sean O’Donnell, president Doug German and democracy officer Aldo Piscina, in dishing out a campaigning ban of 6 hours for the alleged offences.

In a statement released on 8 March, Green said: “This afternoon it came to my attention that my opponent in this election had been going into halls of residence (seemingly Runnymede) and canvassing for votes, uninvited.

“This is against the

“In the first instance of reporting it, it was hit back saying that although people had seemingly done this, there was no proof my opponent had joined them or even put them up to this action.

“I then later spoke to a student who had been canvassed in their kitchen personally by Mr Johnson and had voted as a result.

“Of course this is grossly unfair, because it gives a considerable advantage to the candidate over someone like myself who does not have access to halls.”

He continued: “In the second hearing of Mr Johnson, in light of various evidence showing that, not only had he lied in the first hearing, but he had also definitely entered halls of residence, the returning officer, president and democracy officer decided to give the candidate a 6 hour ban from campaigning.

“This ban came at around 5.30pm when all outdoor canvassing had ended and when most votes had been cast.

“This equates into me having little or no advantage.

It’s also impossible to police campaigning via private messages or texts meaning that they could easily be campaigning on the sly.

“This ban is flimsy and does not reflect the precedents of previous years where candidates have had at least 3 hours alone for Facebook violations.

“If this candidate wins, especially by a small margin, it can be argued that it was achieved through this illegal method, that we still don’t know the full extent of.

“It would be an indictment on Surhul, its democratic practices and its duty to meet the terms of the 1994 education acts that calls for democratically led students unions.”

Johnson rejected any accusation of deliberate foul play, insisting that he and his team had simply “misinterpreted” election rules. He said: “My story paints a different picture to this (Jamie Green’s) statement, which I assure you is not factually correct.

“I have communicated this with the SU president, the democracy officer, and the returning officer, and have pleaded my innocence.

“It was decided that there were some rule breaks, and bans were consequently placed on me.

“Unintentional they were however.

“And I assured these people that my mistakes came from errors in my approach to campaigning, and misinterpretation of the rules.”

Johnson continued: “I assure you that I or no one else involved in the aforementioned incidents intentionally broke any rule regarding the campaign.

“I am not a cheater or a liar, and anyone who knows me can attest to this.”

Democracy officer Aldo Piscina also came under fire after it emerged that the election code of conduct for candidates contained elements in direct contravention of the Surhul constitution.

Piscina though, when interviewed by this newspaper, remained

defiant in the face of criticism.

He said: “We tried to follow the constitution religiously although some aspects of the constitution need updating in relation to election rules.”

Responding to the alleged leniency of the campaign ban given to Jamal Johnson, Piscina continued: “I tried to fight my case for a stronger ban for Mr Johnson, but I was overruled by Doug German and returning officer Sean O’Donnell.”

At the conclusion of the elections, president Doug German reflected on the success of the voting exercise. He told the Orbital: “I’m really pleased with the turnout for the elections, it’s fantastic to have beaten every previous count and target for the students’ union, and a mandate of 23% is fantastic for next year’s team to have.”

Sidonie BertrandShelton, new Surhul vice president for education and welfare, and Ian Stewart, vice president for student activities, complete the sabbatical officer lineup for 2013/2014.

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The Orbital Mar 2013

Student mugged in College woods

Alex Pegler Deputy Editor

A RHUL student was mugged and kicked to the ground on College premises after a Saturday night out at Medicine.

The incident was the fifth attack on a Royal Hollowegian in the last two months, although the mugging was the first on College premises this year.

The 18-year-old student was allegedly lured into the Canada Copse Walkway before being set upon by three males. A robbery then ensued with the assailants kicking and punching the victim to the ground. The student’s wallet was stolen along with other belongings.

Reports suggest the

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robbery occurred as students were leaving Medicine, after it closed at 2am.

Surrey Police says the victim was taken to St Peter’s Hospital, Chertsey, for treatment to injuries including head, hand and knee cuts.

Officers described the main assailant as a black man of slim build, 6ft tall and wearing a grey hooded top.

Detective constable Rory Carrau said: “This was a frightening ordeal for the victim who was left shaken and traumatised from the incident.

“The offender described was joined by a further three young men. I urge anyone who has any information relating to these men, or anything

seen as suspicious in the area at the time of the office, to contact us with information.

“It was a cowardly attempt by the offenders to lure an unsuspecting young man to danger.

“The incident happened in the early hours of Sunday and I would appeal to anyone who may have seen something, perhaps on their way home from a night out, to get in touch.”

A Surrey Police spokesman continued: “Anyone who witnessed the robbery or who has any information should call Surrey Police on 101, quoting reference RM/13/1089, or contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.”

Photo: Veronica Paez

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COMMENT FEATURES LIFESTYLE ARTS 2-5

SOAS set to expand into Senate House THE School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) is to expand into Senate House after the first consultation in December 2012.

The development of SOAS into Senate House is part of a plan by the university to increase student numbers and courses, according to its students’ union (SU).

It is expected, according to the SU, that the extension “will be completed by 2016” and is “one of the most ambitious projects the school has ever undertaken.”

Once the development has been completed it is understood that the school is to increase its student numbers from 400 to 700 with a

STAINES town centre was cordoned off on 6 March after a suspicious package was found at a business address.

At 11.30am on Wednesday, 6 March, Surrey Police officers were called to the high street after a package was thought to be suspicious.

A 100 metre cordon was erected shortly after, which covered parts

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THELONDON CONNECTION

SOAS

plan for “new courses compiled by Harry Angers to be developed.”

Speaking on CUL ULU condemns closure of Muslim prayer rooms the issue, a SOAS spokesperson said: THE University of London Union by City University London on Friday “Moving to Senate House (ULU) elected leadership have 22nd February to lock rooms used North Block will bring many condemned the decision by City for weekly Friday prayers by Muslim benefits for our staff and students, University London (CUL) to lock students at City University.” including new state-of-the-art Muslim prayer rooms.

It continues: “The locking of research, teaching and student The controversy erupted after the prayer rooms is deeply concerning facilities, all in one precinct. The university closed the prayer rooms and raises questions over City entire SOAS community will on 22 February, preventing Muslim University’s approach in dealing with benefit from this development.” students, who use the facilities for Muslim students who have repeatedly The spokesperson continued: evening prayers. expressed that their Friday prayers “Staff and students will play a In a statement released on the are open to all students and staff. key role in determining what our ULU website president and vice We call upon the University to campus will look like in the future president, Michael Chessum and reinstate services for prayer and to through an extensive consultation Daniel Cooper, condemned: “in the refrain from infringing on students’ process.” strongest terms, the decision made rights to worship freely.”

Staines centre cordoned off in bomb scare Harry Angers

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SPORTS & SOCS

of the High Street, London Road, Greenlands Road, Kingston Road, Sidney Road, Fairfield Avenue, Moormede Crescent and Matthews Lane.

Following this an Explosive Ordinance Disposal Unit attended the scene and carried out a controlled explosion at approximately 2.30pm.

The cordon was then lifted at 3.20pm.

A Surrey Police spokesman said: “The public are thanked for their patience during this incident.”

LSE

LSE occupiers evicted AT 3.30pm on 9 March, feminist protesters were evicted from their two-day occupation of The Women’s Library at the London School of Economics. Defiant to the end, women had to be dragged from the soon-to-be-closed building by High Court Bailiffs and Police. Outside they were met with cheers from a one hundred-strong crowd of supporters.

The world-renowned library had been occupied the previous day, International Women’s Day, by a coalition of activists from feminist groups, UK Uncut, Occupy

and Disabled People Against the Cuts.

This daring and audacious action highlighted the disastrous impact of government spending cuts on women.

The occupation succeeded in extending the opening of “Treasures of The Women’s Library”: The Long March to Equality’ which ironically was scheduled to close on International Women’s Day. During Friday and Saturday, people of all ages flocked to the library to visit the exhibition, and take part in a programme of feminist discussion and workshops.

NUS calls for summit on “lad culture” Harry Angers THE National Union of Students (NUS) has called on the women and equalities minister to hold a summit on “lad culture” after a report by the University of Sussex on the issue.

In the report, entitled “That’s what she said”, a group of 40 women from across England and Scotland were interviewed on how lad culture had affected their lives.

According to the report, the participants defined lad culture as “a group or

‘pack’ mentality residing in activities such as sport and heavy alcohol consumption, and ‘banter’ which was often sexist, misogynist and homophobic.”

The participants also felt that education was “gendered” and cited “negative attitudes towards feminism and gender-related topics” as affecting their experiences at university.

An open letter has been sent by the NUS Women’s Officer, Kelley Temple, to Jo Swinson MP, calling for a summit on lad culture as “a problem that needs to be urgently addressed.”

This report follows the NUS’ “Hidden Marks” report released in 2010, which revealed that 68 per cent of respondents had been the victim of “one or more kinds of sexual harassment” while a student.

One of the report’s participants is quoted as saying: “[Laddish behaviour] generally makes me not want to go certain places, [or] talk to lads I’m friends with on their own.”

Diane Abbott MP, shadow public health minister, added: “It is important that the government and universities listen to what

students are saying, and challenge any normalisation of sexism on university campuses. This isn’t about being killjoys, but about building a society where people can learn and thrive free from shame, harassment and abuse.”

Laura Bates, founder of The Everyday Sexism Project, supported the report, saying: “The new

research from the NUS confirms and reiterates themes that have arisen again and again across hundreds of young people’s entries to the Everyday Sexism Project.

“Young women report being bullied, harassed and belittled, with sexual jokes and threats punctuating their experience of higher education.”

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SPONSORED PAGE

College update Students work together for Big Spring Clean 2013 This week, over 100 Royal Holloway students lent a helping hand across the local community for the annual Big Spring Clean.

Since 2007, this event has responded to requests from the local community and completed a diverse range of activities including gardening, cleaning, painting, planting and litter picking.

This year, there were over 20 projects taking place across Egham, Englefield Green, Virgina Water and Chertsey at local primary schools, churches, recreation grounds and

other community hubs.

More than 300 hours of work were completed across the scheme, with several clubs and societies offering their assistance.

MACS, the Mountaineering and Climbing club, were involved with re-painting the Exhibition Gallery at Chertsey Museum and Women’s Football revamped the changing rooms at Manorcroft United Junior Football Club.

Phil Simcock, Community Action Volunteer Manager said: “Once again, our students have risen to the challenge and have helped

out on these projects with the utmost enthusiasm and dedication.

“Importantly this event gives them the chance to get out into the local community and make a real difference. Feedback from residents is always extremely positive and they really appreciate the effort that our students go to.”

The day was supported by the Royal Holloway Alumni Fund. For more information about volunteering, please visit: http://www.rhul. ac.uk/volunteering/home. aspx

Looking for a space to study?

Space to Study is back and running even earlier this year from Monday 8 April to Friday 24 May, including Bank Holiday Monday 6 May. Space to Study opens up classrooms and other areas across campus to provide lots of additional study spaces in the run up to the exam period when demand is at its peak.

Now in its fourth consecutive year, the joint initiative from the College and the Students’ Union is set to provide an extra 300 quiet places for you to work and revise in. This helps to alleviate pressure on libraries and PC Labs and has been well received by students in previous years.

The extra rooms confirmed so far include: McCrea Building rooms MC201, MC218, MC219, MC301 and MC325 plus Queen’s Annexe room QA135. Seats are available on a strictly first-comefirst-served basis from 08:00 to 21:00 hours every

day. You can access the rooms by swiping your college card.

PC Labs in the Computer Centre, Queen’s Annexe and the International Building Call lab (IN005) are also available as study spaces and these are accessible 24/7 via swipe card access.

The Music lab and Bourne Yorkon lab are open from 09:00 to 18:00 and Kingswood Lab is available for residents. You can locate where computers are free in real time using PC Finder at rhul.ac.uk/it/ pcfinder Space to study runs in tandem with longer opening hours in the libraries, in particular Bedford library which is open 145 hours per week during the current term, extending to 24/7 for the period between Monday 22 April and 5pm on Friday 31 May 2013.

So whether you need to write coursework, finish your dissertation or revise for exams the library’s

services and resources are there for you.

Find out more about Space to Study on the student site, eCampus.

Stressed about exams?

At this time of year, many students begin to feel anxious about the approaching examination period and the pressures it can bring, so here’s a reminder of the support available to help you in the build-up and during exams.

The Student Counselling team has great online advice about exams anxiety at: www.rhul.ac.uk/ecampus/ welfare/counselling/ commonproblems.aspx This helps you with key questions such as what to revise, planning revision, how to revise, testing yourself, maintaining a balanced lifestyle during this time and how to prepare for and sit an exam.

Exam stress effects everyone but to varying degrees. It is healthy to be nervous about

your performance in exams – if you are not concerned, you are not likely to perform at your best – but it is important to be able to deal with this worry effectively. If you find yourself getting stressed in an exam, it might be helpful to put into practice a quick relaxation technique to refocus your attention. The time you spend doing this will pay back dividends with increased performance through the remainder of the exam – the worst thing you can do is ‘freeze’ with panic.

If you need to refocus, stop writing, put down your pen, shut your eyes and say (not out loud!) ‘Stop’. Then breathe in and hold your breath for a moment before slowly exhaling while relaxing your shoulders and hands. Pause

for a moment, as you breath in slowly, relaxing your facial muscles. Stay quiet for a few moments, blocking out the rest of the room and get on with the exam, not rushing it.

In addition, the exam techniques resource in Moodle contains short videos, tips, materials, a revision planner and much more. You can also find an exam skills module in skills4studycampus.

The whole of Support & Advisory Services are here to help with any aspect of exam worry that you may encounter - please do get in touch. Email SupportAndAdvisory@rhul. ac.uk or call 01784 443394.

Helen Groenendaal Community Liaison & Support Officer

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Why has Cameron suddenly come on to gay marriage?

Alex Anthony THE passing of the gay marriage bill has been met with a big fanfare, and rightly so. It signposts a significant moment in our national history which finally consolidates the right of gay couples to enjoy the same status and civil privileges as heterosexual partnerships.

However, what confounded me when the bill was first proposed was why David Cameron would care about gay marriage. Why would Cameron choose to propose a bill for gay marriage when a significant faction of his own backbenchers and, in fact, his past self, stood firmly opposed to it? My question is of course rhetorical, because it should be obvious that it was a way to draw attention away from the massive, ideologically driven programme of cuts the cabinet is implementing across the country.

Cameron’s voting record certainly does not point to his new advocacy of gay rights: in 2000 and 2003 he supported the section 28 legislation to discourage homosexuality in

schools, accusing Tony Blair of pursuing the “promotion of homosexuality in schools”; in 2002 he voted in favour of excluding gay couples from adopting; and in 2008 he voted to bar lesbians from the right to in vitro fertilisation treatment. This should hardly come as a surprise considering his heritage. Related to King William IV, he comes from a blue-blooded, well-todo family; he went to Eton and then Oxford where he joined the all-male, exclusive Bullingdon Dining Club, where he partook in smashing up local shop windows, and entering his political career by characterising himself as a thoroughly conventional rural Tory.

His character background is not exactly in tune with what one might consider the necessary profile of a liberal and open-minded politician, which altogether makes his 2006 “Call me Dave” campaign, famously featuring his cringeworthy video blog or “Web Cam”, seem ridiculously insincere. However, Cameron’s politics made a strange and dramatic U-turn around 2010 to being largely supportive of

gay rights.

Unfortunately in politics, seldom do instances arise that allow us to see what truly lies beneath most politician’s robotic performances.

However – Compliments to Dave - Cameron’s 2010 interview with Gay Times momentarily reveals his underlying sentiments towards gay rights. He starts the interview by stating his intent to allow his MPs a free vote on gay rights, but then in a fatal slip-up, contradicts himself by agreeing with the interviewer that if gay equality is a fundamental human right then his MPs should be made to tow the party line.

After stumbling through the rest of the interview he later asks to restart it “completely from scratch”.

Cameron himself affirms the point that he does not hold the core beliefs he pretends to, meaning that when unacquainted with his script, he is soon left stranded without a genuine moral conviction to support his rhetoric.

Moreover Robin Harris, Director of the Conservative Research Department in the 1980s, who gave Cameron

his first job, claimed: “I think that David Cameron is an outand-out opportunist ... I don’t believe that David Cameron believes anything”. Blair had done much the same in 1997 by appealing to the political middle ground. In the satirical show Time Trumpet Armando Iannucci provides a hilarious compilation of Blair and Cameron speeches edited Cassette Boy-style, whereby it seems Cameron mimics many of Blair’s rhetoric and hand gestures.

Ultimately, gay marriage means little to the cabinet and the financial institutions on which the party relies to sponsor their election campaigns. Unlike the neoliberal politics of austerity - which stands to strengthen the private sector as the institutions of the welfare state deteriorate – gay rights matter little to big businesses, as they fundamentally do nothing to undermine their interests.

The coalition government knows the deep resentment held for its policies, and fearing a defeat at the next election, it has desperately scrambled to pass popular legislation in order to give

their government at least some vestige of integrity. Gay rights legislation was used in much the same way in the United States whereby massive media coverage was used to blanket the unpopular deregulation of the financial sector. In the end accepting gay marriage will mean little for Cameron’s political legacy.

His backbenchers represent a dying, antiquated and outdated viewpoint of marriage where hopefully in the future, as put by Yvette Cooper, young people “will look back in 10 years and won’t be able to remember what the fuss was all about”.

However, in the final analysis, perhaps one statement by Philip Hammond on the Andrew Marr Show does ring true, that gay marriage is “clearly not the number one priority” for many people who are mostly concerned with losing their livelihoods under Cameron’s government.

Gay marriage could well be a positive factor for Cameron’s election prospects, but it will not be the deciding factor for the economy; something voters must keep in mind for 2015.

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The Orbital Mar 2013

Knowing Nigel: Why Farage merked everyone at the PIR talk

Photo: European Parliament

Alex Anthony I WENT along to the Nigel Farage PIR talk to see a senior politician get roasted by the usual angry, left-wing mob (of which I am a part) who descend on any political event on campus, making it seem as if Royal Holloway is the new bastion of socialism, irrespective of the dozen Maseratis parked outside Gower.

However, although still irritated that Farage refused to talk about anything but Europe and immigration, I agree with one of his statements: that immigration has only been a success for the “giant employers who herd in Lithuanians, to put them in a caravan, to make them work all the hours God sends”.

This analysis goes straight to the heart of immigration as an issue. It explains why Labour and the Conservatives, despite their pre-election promises, have done nothing to effectively deal with it - because they rely on these giant employers for funding. It’s extremely doubtful that a UKIP electoral victory would actually mean anything positive for resolving the issue of immigration, since as an ex-corporate businessman himself, Farage is in the pocket of “giant employers”.

But still the question stands: why is no major party addressing the needs

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of migrant workers who are falling prey to a consortium of irresponsible recruitment agencies as a source of cheap labour?

On Question Time Mary Beard accurately pointed out that only 1% of social housing is taken up by immigrants and in fact exert only a tiny pressure on public services. A woman in the audience then retorted that the problem in her town was that migrants had illegally camped around its outskirts, and due to their low wages, were occupying the low-paid agricultural jobs previously taken by long term inhabitants.

The apparent conflict between Mary Beard’s Task and Finish Group Report and the anecdotal evidence of the audience member at first seem incompatible, but in reality they match perfectly. Immigrants do not occupy the majority of social housing as Nigel Farage would have us believe.

Rather, there is a great demand for housing among many immigrants who currently live below the poverty line in the kind of squalid conditions seen in the recent police raid on the “Southall Slums”. Indeed, planning minister Nick Bowles’ pointed this out on Newsnight when he commented that 43% of demand for new housing can be accounted to immigration.

The truth is that immigrants do not choose to live in illegal encampments

or slums, but their exploitation at the hands of corrupt landlords and unscrupulous employers has turned their residence in Britain into a way of subsidising the low paid service sector in which they work.

Politicians have continued to ignore the issue even though as far back as 2006 polls showed that 40% of the UK public rated immigration the most important area of concern. However, until recently you could still see Labour figures like Jack Straw paring off the issue on Question Time by meandering on about his own vague Jewish ancestry, whilst reassuring the public that border controls were working.

Such arguments appear pathetically loquacious in the light of the party’s own admittance of a long-term failure on the issue. This has only been the case because big-businesses have been able to use their incredible financial power to coerce other politicians like Vince Cable to argue that capping immigration will hurt the economy.

This has only caused a general frustration, leading to some nasty side-effects. The minor electoral blip of success for the BNP around 2009 (and more recently UKIP), is a testament to how a general concern over immigration can take a sideline, neo-fascist party, and throw it undeservingly, into the limelight of political debate. This shouldn’t

be the case, as proper regulation of immigration is very much in-line with the interests of anyone who is genuinely concerned with the situation of the poor and the exploited in this country.

If the government were to make it impossible for companies to actively transport and encourage migrant workers, and enforce the laws already in place to stop employer exploitation, then we would see an end to the problem. Immigration in the past has been integral to the cultural maturation of Britain. However, today it is the lobbying power of bigbusiness, not an affection towards multiculturalism, that drives the Government’s inclination to turn a blind eye to immigration. Business interests seldom follow along the lines of moral reasoning, and there are still even fewer reasons now to believe that its lobby for unlimited immigration has to do with anything other than increasing its own profit margins.

Certainly, Dan Heley’s snipe at Farage at the PIR talk was correct: he is scaremongering for votes. But if voters for the main political parties want to stop the rise of far-right parties like UKIP, then they must be seen to oppose, in actions other than words, the continuation of the abusive and predatory conduct of recruitment agencies.

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COMMENT FEATURES LIFESTYLE ARTS 2-5

The poetry of evolution Jordan Wilson TOO many of the humans on this planet continue to view themselves as being inherently separate from other organisms.

To tell somebody that they are literally an animal would be telling them the exact truth – we are animals. Life is a tree, not a ladder; we are a mere twig in a mass of twigs dangling from a branch among a mass of branches. There are no rungs, no superior or inferior species. This seems almost too basic to put into a university newspaper, but the amount of people who are either oblivious to or deny the fact of evolution is rather unfortunate.

Homo sapiens is unique, and uniquely conceited – many of us do not devote enough of our time learning about how or where our species originated, considering it less important than our daily human lives.

The evolution of our species is of interest not only to the scientist, but also to the philosopher, the poet and the layperson. Its implications are at once humbling, uplifting and inspiring. The prevalent lack of serious secondary education in evolutionary theory is also a shame because of what it could help us with in other aspects of our lives.

An example would be the problem of racism. When one grasps the fact that we are, in fact, all descendants of the same ancestors, one cannot truly be a racist without a form of chronic intellectual confusion. The same could be applied to animal welfare – realise that we do, in fact, share our ancestors with dogs

and lions and polar bears and it may open you up to a new understanding of what we are and what they are and why we should take our time to create a sustainable future for other species too. And if your mind is not changed on these issues, then at least you’ve learnt something – acquiring knowledge for no reason other than interest is always worthwhile.

Even without a change in opinion, learning about evolution can actually help you ask questions instead of assuming the answer. An example would be: is human life paramount?

Almost everybody would agree that human life is indeed more important than the life of a cockroach or caterpillar, but what is better than assuming the answer is to ask: why? It is always good to stop and seriously examine one’s opinions and not get complacent. Most of the time, the same answer will be reached, but with renewed vigour and confidence.

We are the products of billions of years of gradual change caused by genetic mutation. We share a common ancestor with pigs, sheep and weeds. We are not the end result of the evolutionary process, merely a stepping stone for our genes to move forward through time into our offspring. These are scientific facts, and children should most certainly be given more of an opportunity to learn about where they, their parents and their pet Labrador came from.

Thank you very much for reading, my distant cousin.

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From the section editor...

Fasting: does it work?

Stephen Atkinson Comment Editor

EATING food is probably the most intrinsic activity in people’s day-to-day lives. Does the process not astound you by which the food we put into our bodies becomes bones and hair, skin and sweat?

Leaving the lack of a Wagamama in Egham aside, we are able to eat practically anything we want, at any time we want. Yet, there are some cultures around the world that encourage abstinence from eating for periods of time. I used to harbour an ignorant criticism for what I considered futile practices.

Does fasting actually cause any benefit or improvement?

I decided to try to find out.

It was around the time of Ramadan a few years ago that I started my quest.

The Muslim community uses Ramadan as a time in which to consider those less fortunate than themselves, and to exercise charity and peace. The oppression of hunger reminds those fasting of their desire to be better people and to see change in their communities. I am not Muslim myself, but I couldn’t help but admire those aspirations. So I determined to give it a go.

For a month I went without food during daylight hours.

When the sun was up, I drank only water. Ramadan was, as I expected, very challenging.

However, though the experience was countercultural, I learnt quickly that it certainly wasn’t impossible. Each day I became less hungry as my body became used to its new diet, and so after getting over

the first few days of anguish, I began pursuing some sort of spiritual improvement, if such a thing exists.

What I quickly realised during Ramadan was that, in my normal day-to-day life, I rarely get hungry. I go from meal to meal being full; I stuff my face at lunch, barely allowing the food to settle in my stomach before it is time to scoff down dinner, eating so much that I would find myself waking up full the next day. Breakfast can’t be missed, the infomercials tell us, and so the cycle begins again. This was my default diet.

Yet during Ramadan, this structure collapsed completely, and I started to learn what it really meant to be hungry. According to the World Food Programme, 870 million people do not have enough to eat. Realising this fact as I enforced hunger on myself made me feel more and more uncomfortable with the indulgence that our society encourages us to adopt.

I found a strange beauty in the recognition that I was sharing in a global practice. The communal sense of pursuing selfcontrol, temperance, and justice elicited a poignancy that was not lost on me. Yet at the same time, I started to realise some of the dark sides of the tradition. For instance, a friend of mine told me of her time spent in Morocco during Ramadan.

The community was parched for joy and vitality as Ramadan sucked the life out of the people. She told me she could feel the oppression in the air.

And I could imagine the

oppression myself. I was in a privileged position, having imposed Ramadan on myself, but for those who feel they have to adhere to the religious practice must find it difficult not to feel enslaved by the system.

When Ramadan came to an end I’m afraid to say I slowly reverted back to my old ways of indulgence, holding no longer a perpetual empathy with those less fortunate than me. But I like to think I was changed within, gaining a little of the priceless qualities of discipline, frugality and thoughtfulness. I am grateful to have learnt of my comparative richness, and my capacity to reduce my intake to bless others in return. These are qualities I hope I will never lose, and continue to exercise for the rest of my life.

And what is the reason I tell all of this now? Because I have started on the quest of spiritual refreshment yet again. This time I am following the Christian practice of Lent. For 40 days I am fasting from meat and alcohol and desperately trying to replace my excessive lifestyle with prudence and contemplation.

As the church looks ahead with repentance at the death of its founder, I too am using this time to recognise the faults and failings within me and strive to exercise more generosity and patience. I have not totally forgotten the ridicule with which I used to look down on those who religiously follow strict traditions. But now I have hope and expectation that there is some truth hidden behind the tradition.

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o Discrimination in higher education The Orbital Mar 2013

Photo: Rick Payette

Imogen Tyreman THERE is a lot of pressure on everyone to do well at college, and those that do are pushed to apply for Oxbridge and other top universities around Britain. However, sometimes even getting the highest marks in the country might not get you into these institutions.

The Guardian recently published information gained from a Freedom of Information Act request which showed that Oxford university is twice as likely to accept white students over

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black or ethnic minority applicants who have obtained the same or better grades.

Seeing this racial bias still carried on by influential universities is appalling, and although most people will argue that it is only to be expected and put it down to the types of people who run the university, I still feel it is ridiculous that this bias is present in the 21st century; older figures obtained from Cambridge demonstrated that it had a similar prejudice to Oxford.

Furthermore, in September 2012 Professor Les Ebdon, Director of Office to Fair

Access, highlighted the class bias that many universities hold and called for action to be taken to once again let in students from all backgrounds.

At this point, many people begin to argue that you can’t just tell universities to accept people of different class for the sake of it. Yet in this day and age people from every background are achieving impressive A-level scores and class is no longer something that should hold people back.

After reading these articles, I recalled one published whilst I was taking my A-levels regarding the results of the royal family; Princess Eugenie

had obtained an A in English literature and art, and a B in history of art, which were the highest grades this family had seen in a very long time.

This surprised me as I’m so used to hearing about them graduating from top institutions across the country.

Prince William, who received grades ABC, completed an MA in geography at St Andrews for which the entry requirements currently stand at AAA, and though they may have increased due to the number of applicants and the introduction of the A* grade, they were probably not as low as his A-level scores.

The sad fact here is that universities are shunning the better students in place of ones they feel will give their campus a higher degree of class with the royal family, and white middle-class applicants are getting the majority of the places. One day, as the youth gets more in touch with the world, people may stop applying to places like Oxbridge and perhaps turn in favour of less prestigious universities that will admit their students under fair circumstances, not worrying about maintaining any sort of fundamentally wrong, traditional image.

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Are we becoming more materialistic?

Dahab Aglan ARE we becoming more materialistic? This question has been personally dwelling in my mind for years, but then I realised that perhaps if I propose the question, I would be able to fully share my thoughts with all of you.

The reason why this question came to mind is actually derived from another question: “Are we becoming happier or less happy?” Or is there no change in the level of our happiness at all? And assuming any of the three scenarios, does our happiness, if we claim that we are becoming happier, originate from more materialistic possessions such as buying the new car we have always wanted, or shopping as much as we can, regardless of either quantity or quality? Or even getting the highest marks in that tough module and boasting about it?

Mind you, I am not trying to imply that we should not get the car, buy the latest clothes, or study for our courses. However, I still believe these questions are very crucial to address every

once in a while, right? Two years ago, the Guardian published an article titled “UK children stuck in ‘materialistic trap’”, which stated that children are unable to spend adequate time with their families.

Instead, they are “bought off with branded goods”, as the Unicef has warned. To be honest, I do not think the phenomenon applies to the UK only. With increased globalisation and with the fast spread of technology, the world is becoming a small village and ideas are spreading in seconds via diverse channels such as social networking websites for example.

In fact, according to a new study led by the psychology professor Leaf Van Boven from the University of Colorado, material possessions do not provide as much enduring happiness as we think they do.

Additionally, Steve Taylor, a lecturer in psychology at Leeds Metropolitan University, refutes what he views as a misconception that it is ‘natural’ to desire the accumulation of wealth and believes this contradicts history when human-beings

lived as hunter-gatherers who had to give up unnecessary goods because they used to move every few months.

Instead, Taylor regards the materialism theory from a unique perspective: it is stemming out of a “psychological discord” of an inner discontent from “the incessant chattering of our minds”.

Now after proposing the question, I believe we should find the solutions to it. The Unicef, for example, has called for several measures in response to the “materialistic trap” children are raised in. For example, it says that the UK government (and I assume this might work for some other countries too), should ban television advertising aimed at children below 12 years of age because this augments the conspicuous consumer culture.

Additionally, I believe that with the fast pace of life we are all going through, it is important to pause and ask, “What do I want to do with my life? Am I really happy with it?” Such questions will lead us to a more wholesome answer to the issue; “are we happier?”

Photo: Dan Taylor

Cognitive Dissonance Jordan Wilson IN last month’s issue of the Orbital, I was accused of using “the typical warped logic of a bigot” and of being “against freedom” by Alan Ewans and Dahab Aglan, respectively. These comments about my views are not only incorrect, but they are trite and display a rather acute case of ignorance on the part of their two authors.

I had written in the issue before that minors should be legally prohibited from attending public places of religious worship. I believe that the basic requirement for a civilised nation is to acknowledge the supreme

importance of freedom.

And freedom is anathema to religion. The problem is that many people do not think about the subject of freedom and religion; they simply churn out the same response about how parents should be allowed to bring their children up in a religious lifestyle. I have yet to see any good argument for allowing parents to take their children weekly to their local factory of faith where absolute lies are spread (such as the obvious falsehood within Islam regarding the anatomy of a horse – they do not possess wings). Children are, quite rightly, not legally allowed in many of the places which an adult may enter, and this

should be extended to places of public worship.

Mr Ewans, in calling me a bigot, demonstrates that he has no valid argument against my position. Although an atheist, he insists in giving respect to views which, were they not labelled “religion”, would be derided by society.

People who constantly defend religion with vacuous responses such as those of Mr Ewans must re-examine their priorities.

Mr Ewans would likely not attack the rampant homophobia generated by religion or the promise of hellfire to those who do not believe in imaginary deities.

This is because, while these are clearly bigoted concepts

born from religion, Mr Ewan chooses to ignore these and delude himself into the belief that I am the bigot.

The views of my opponents are certainly not limited to their two authors. There has developed a somewhat totalitarian aura around religion, in which you must not criticise it and must not even dare to question it in public for fear of “offending”.

The left wing’s commitment to equality and fairness is proven to be meek as it is obliterated in a hurricane of their own hypocrisy and censorship. At times, a shift in perspective is necessary – an example is the Islamic commitment to having no images which depict

Muhammad. Some would say that by having western newspapers censoring his image, we are “respecting” Islam.

The reasonable position to take is the following: not everybody is a Muslim, and as such, not everybody needs to subscribe to these barbaric holy mandates.

The western world needs to grow out of this self-evidently ridiculous terror of offending, because while it cowers at the thought of hurt feelings, there are those who relish the notion that the western civilised democracies will collapse and some immoral, backward caliphate will rise.

And I assure you, accusations of bigotry will not stop them.

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Ask Auntie Hannah!

The Orbital Mar 2013

Dear Auntie Hannah, What is the kindest way to let someone know that you do not return their amorous feelings?

Hattie x Well Hattie, Tell them you are being called away on a Top Secret mission and cannot ever speak to them again.

Then disappear x Dear Auntie Hannah, I need a dog in my life, but I live in Founders. What can I do?

Owen x Well Owen, Your roommate smells and follows you around everywhere. Won’t that do?

Buy him a collar x

Dear Auntie Hannah, I’m new to dating but I’ve met this chick that I really like and I think she might like me back. What is the best way to kiss a girl?

Callum x Well Callum, With her permission is best, usually aiming for the face as well and try not to take her by surprise or you may find yourself smacking into her nose. Wait for the right moment.

Running into her coming out of the bathroom is not the right moment.

Nor is when passing her a drink at the bar or you may ruin the night by emptying it down her top. Wet t-shirts, whilst fun, can cut a date short. Then again, she may need help changing.

Try your luck x

Election Results wordsearch

N L L E H C T I M I N N W N N

E R E H C T U B I K A Y T I R

S E P O N B U K D H A S R N E

R W S E D L I W D H H I A J H

E O M K G D O N L E U N W A T

D R S A O L F N E E R G E P A

D Y J S C T E K T A Y H T E R

E E E H G L T R O T N T S N T

F R O N N N E W N H A A C G S

H F Z B A S I O N E G M A U C

W F R P U L O L D B Y R D I H

A A K H T A R N W A R Y I N A

N S L I E B S D R A W D E G D

Dear Auntie Hannah, It is my aim in life to graduate university and get a job as a stripper.

How should I go about telling my mum without freaking her out?

Keira x

Dear Auntie Hannah, How do I tell my woman that I’m never going to give her up, never going to let her down, never going to run around and desert her?

Tom x

Well Keira, I suggest you open the conversation by telling her that you’re pregnant and failing your degree. Then when she’s done fainting you can just inform her that actually you’re looking to get a first and have complete control over your future still. She’ll be so happy and relieved for you that she can’t argue when you slip in what profession you’re actually interested in.

Happy stripping! x

Well Tom, Did I just get rick rolled? x

N O T L E H S D N A R T R E B

F R H A H B A J D P Q X I Z B

SINGH, BERTRANDSHELTON, GREEN, STEWART, AKHTAR, CADIER, STRATHERN, WILDE, BUTCHER, SAFFERYROWE, WALL, EDWARDS, MITCHELL, FEDDERSEN, MIDDLETON, RAWLINGS, PEGLER, MACLEOD, NINJAPENGUIN, HURYNAG

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Dear Auntie Hannah, My junk is beginning to smell. What should I do?

Sam x Well Sam, I’m no expert on this, but your flatmates probably are and won’t laugh at you at all.

Ask them x

Sudoku Fill in the grid so that the

numbers 1 to 9 only appear once in 3x3 sector and only once on each line.

Easy

Hard

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COMMENT FEATURES LIFESTYLE ARTS 2-5

Well Jude, Just think about all the chemical smells and dyes being used in the baby’s vicinity. He/She/It could be born with special powers, or at least be able to change its hair colour at will.

This could be amazing, stand down x

Dear Auntie Hannah, How to I mention to my brother that he’s put on a tonne of weight? I don’t like going out to bars with him anymore because he obscures my view of the ladies. He either needs to get fit or I don’t want to be his mate anymore.

Boris x Well Boris, This is obviously a serious issue. Slip him a gym membership form, hide salad in pizza boxes and swap all his clothes for a smaller size in anticipation of his weight loss. He’s your brother, he deserves this level of commitment.

Just trick him into it x

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Dear Auntie Hannah, The girl I like is beautiful, funny and clever, but she has a boyfriend that is better than me in every way. How do you suggest I get rid of him so that I can have a shot at her?

Jamie x Well Jamie, Murder is a messy business and generally not viewed as a terribly classy move. Maybe send him a letter saying he’s won a one-way ticket to Australia - who would miss such an opportunity? It will take him a while to earn enough money to come back so you’ll have enough time to make your move.

I wish you luck. x

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Dear Auntie Hannah, I accidentally took 3 paracetamol when it says 1-2 on the packet. Am I going to die?

Lucy x Well Lucy, I don’t know why you decided to write in to the Orbital and wait for my printed response in such a dire situation. I don’t really believe that you are a university student to be honest.

Get out x

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Ask Auntie Hannah!

Dear Auntie Hannah, My little sister is having a baby in a few months but she’s only sixteen and more concerned with dyeing her hair funky colours than preparing to receive a new life into the world. I don’t want to come across as mean and opinionated, but do you think I should step in?

Jude x

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Got a burning question?

Ask Auntie Hannah by sending an email to features@theorbital.co.uk with “Auntie Hannah” in the subject line.

Crossword ACROSS 1. Gretel’s brother (6) 5. Ore vein (4) 7. Perfect (5) 8. Wheel spindle (4) 9. Twelve months (4) 10. Once more (5) 11. Picturesque (6) 13. Female sheep (4) 14. Knot in hair (6) 18. Ward off (temptation) (6) 21. Peruvian capital (4) 22. Abided by (rules) (6) 24. Fishing-line fibre (5) 25. SW Pacific nation (4) 26. Prayer ending (4) 27. Neither here nor ... (5) 28. Ancient musical instrument (4) 29. Bell-shaped flowers (6) DOWN 1. Earphones (7) 2. Rear of ship (5) 3. Pale violet (5) 4. Politician (7) 5. Craftiness (7) 6. Arouses (7) 12. Under the weather (3) 15. Nimbleness (7) 16. Grey building stone (7) 17. Gradually develops (7) 19. Flow away (3) 20. News (7) 22. Start (5) 23. Internet letter (5)

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The Orbital Mar 2013

SU Elections...

Meet You The Orbital caught up with the newly elected sabbatical officers for ne Amarbeer Singh

Sidonie Ber

VP

President

Societies Officer 2012/13

Equality & Liberation Officer 2012/1

The President is the figurehead of the Students’ Union at Royal Holloway and has overall responsibility for student representation, democracy and governance, finance, staffing, strategic development and commercial services within it. They are also represents the students of Royal Holloway at College, National Union of Students, University of London Union, and within local and national government.

If you are ever uncertain of who you need to speak to at the SU, make the President your first point of call!

The VP Education & Welfare is respo at Royal Holloway and will look to hel Their key areas of focus lay with educ to academic affairs, appeals and comp They also coordinates the Union’s eng overall responsibility for the activities

I’m really excited about being elected - It’s really good to see all the hard work pay off and I’m really looking forward to getting started in July! The elections have been great, I had an excellent team and we all had an amazing time but the highlight would definitely have to be just the amount of people that supported the campaign and came out and joined in! I can’t wait to get stuck in - I want to rejuvenate events on campus that promote equality: standing together on the platform against any sort of hatred within our university, and likewise the world. Last year, we saw the launch of the “Love Holloway, Hate Racism” campaign, carried on this year by its successor, “Love Holloway, Hate Hatred”.

With the introduction of four new liberation officers, I will make sure that the students occupying these posts are given the support that they need, so come next year, we all hit the ground running.

Finally, if you’re on a night out, you deserve to know exactly what you’re getting, so I want to get more input from you and see what you want from your SU nights. I want to introduce an open forum for the entertainments committee so more people can have their say in what takes place from function nights, to one-off events, to the Summer Ball.

Being the joint first ever re-elected sabbatical officer at Surhul is a really exciting prospect in itself.

It will be a new experience for Royal Holloway and hopefully Ian and I can pave the way for future sabbaticals to do it too. I’m really excited about getting going on my second year manifesto - I know the role very well by now, I know what’s feasible and what isn’t, so hopefully I’ll be much stronger second time around. The election was really tough. In the week leading up to it I had to do all my preparations outside of my working hours; this entailed being up many a late night. I campaigned tirelessly throughout the week too , so I was exhausted by the end of it - but that’s the name of the game I suppose! The highlight was probably getting to meet lots of students, campaign team members and candidates; elections are always good bonding sessions, plus it’s always fun talking to people about their visions or ideas for the union . The first thing I want to do is hit the ground running.

My lead campaign is around housing and I want a slick plan for how to roll that out quickly, and to do it in a really engaging way. I also want to work with student media extra hard over the summer to ensure they’re ready for a big recruitment drive in welcome week.

The VP Communications & Campaigns helps to implement and facilitate all the campaigns that the Union runs; from fighting the government’s cuts to education, to raising awareness on the issues that affect you here on campus! They are also the Editor-in-Chief of Insanity Radio, The Orbital and RhubarbTV. Most importantly, the VP is responsible for making sure the Union’s hard work is communicated to the student body effectively.

VP Communications & Campaigns 2012/13

Jamie Green

VP Communications & Campaigns 14

I am very excited to have been ele by step plans, to make sure I have elections were tough and hard wo areas of Holloway than the SU, and Also, the astounding number of vo stickers, the people we spoke to, c the results being read out, my cam anticipation - I had never known s to meet the course reps to begin w that!

Re-election feels great, especially learn a lot during the summer but year. The campaign was hard work everyone to buy me a drink - it wo I will be working on my manifesto society structure. I want to make C and reducing ticket prices. Moreov the College 10 year build plan. I w cutting red tape and facilitating id group within Student Activities all providing access to support.

The VP Student Activities oversees sp Holloway. With around 30 sports c coordinate, there’s no doubt they can SURHUL. If not, then why not start yo VP Student Activites 2012/13

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ur Sabbs ext year. Here are their thoughts:

rtrand-Shelton

P Education & Welfare

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onsible for the welfare of every single student lp with just about any problem you may have. cation and welfare, including but not limited plaints, as well as welfare advice and support. gagement with the local community, and have s of RAG (Raise and Give).

ected! I have many ideas that I need to begin putting into step the most productive year possible - and that’s exciting too! The ork this year. We had to find campaign team members from other d running as one of six candidates was another layer of pressure! oters this year was great. Highlights? My team morale, our beautiful candidates question time and also results night. When hearing mpaign team and friends were all hugging each other and me in such wonderful, emotional support. I’ll remember that. I can’t wait working with them, and to go find some puppies; I’ll look forward to

as it’s the first time it’s ever happened at Surhul. Last year I had to t this summer I can just get to planning and preparing for the new k, but my highlight has to be my winning speech where I asked orked! o points, starting with creating associations to complement the Colours and Societies Balls more accessible by increasing venue size ver, I want to ensure that sports and societies remain a priority in want to streamline student activities through reducing bureaucracy, deas from clubs and societies. Finally, I want to create a third category lowing groups to have members without charging them, but still

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Surhul Executive Committee 2013/14 Position

Candidate

President VP Education & Welfare VP Communications & Campaigns VP Student Activities Student Trustee Union Chair Democracy Officer Entertainments Officer Women & Marginalised Genders’ Officer LGBT+ Officer Academic Affairs Officer Communications Officer Campaigns Officer Sports Officer Societies Officer

Amareer Singh Sidonie Bertrand-Shelton Jamie Green

The Orbital Editor The Orbital Deputy Editor Insanity Radio Station Manager Insanity Radio Assistant Station Manager RhubarbTV Station Manager

Ian Stewart Samir Akhtar Alex Cadier Hannah Strathern Hannah Wilde Victoria Butcher Jack Saffery-Rowe Chris Wall Zosia Edwards Andrew Mitchell Theresa Feddersen Brianna Middleton MacPherson Simon Rawlings Alex Pegler Archie Macleod Shambolic Ninja-Penguin (aka Julian Farmer) Ashna Hurynag

ports, societies and volunteering across Royal clubs, 60 societies and volunteering to help n find something for you to take part in at our own club or society?

Ian Stewart

VP Student Activities 15

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The Orbital Mar 2013

Women’s History Month

Yes, I am a feminist Garen Abel-Unokan “WHAT’s wrong with Taylor Swift?”

“I’m not really a fan of her. I think it’s a bit weird that she still pushes that whole virgin/whore thing in her music videos.”

“Wait, are you a feminist?”

“Um… yeah.”

This is a conversation I’ve found myself having quite a bit recently. Not the Taylor Swift part, of course, but the “are you a feminist?” part. My feminist leanings usually emerge when I’m ranting about a show or book that’s been offensive; somewhat more rarely, it might come out when someone says that all feminists don’t shave and hate girly clothes and I argue that we’re not (though even if that were true of all of us, what would be wrong with that?). These conversations happen in the library, outside Founders Building, even in cupboards (true story).

I’ve been thinking about this quite a lot because the 8th of March was International Women’s Day, with the whole of March being Women’s History Month. Women’s History Month is particularly important to me as a Holloway student because our university has historically been a hotbed for feminist movement and change in England; Emily Davison, the Suffragette who threw herself under a horse at King’s Court, studied here in 1891, and before 1965 and the merger with Bedford College, Royal Holloway was a women’s only college. It’s strange to me that in 2013, in a university famed for its strong belief in the education and inherent equality of women, that I still find myself having to explain what feminism is and why I identify as one.

The easy definition of feminism is that we want equality and liberation in all things for all women.

Equality and liberation means proper healthcare – reproductive and otherwise – and equal pay. It means equal access to education and employment; proper childcare if you need it and personal safety.

And when I say all women, I mean all women: black minority ethnic women, working-class women, LGBT* women (with particular emphasis on the T!), disabled women, single mothers, working mothers and women who don’t want to have kids. It sounds like a total no-brainer, but in light of the recent messes involving some very prominent feminists who forget that the white, cis, middle-class perspective is not the only worldview (Caitlin Moran and Julie Bindel, I’m looking at you), it’s become necessary to remind people.

Not that our very own Feminist Society needs reminding; looking at how varied and interesting the talks and events are, it’s as if the unofficial motto is “my feminism will be intersectional or it will be senseless”.

So far, there have been collaborations with Afro-Caribbean Society, Islamic Society and LGBT* society under the MissRepresentation campaign and there are many more to come! Events for FemSoc usually take place on Thursday and Fridays and in honour of Women’s History Month, there will be loads of events honouring the female historical figures that are so often overlooked, including Sisters’ Circle in the Prayer Room every Friday of this month, a talk on shadism with ACS, and an Art Attack session in the Rialto with ArtSoc. We’re hoping this year’s Women’s History Month will be fantastic, which is why we want as many of you there as possible! You can find all the events if you just search ‘Royal Holloway Feminism Society’ on Facebook; events are free if you’re already a paid up member, but they’re only a quid if you want to dip your toes into the feminist

waters first, as it were.

So come along whether you’re a hardened feminist or just beginning to be interested; you’ll have a fabulous time and meet some awesome people. And if you do learn something about feminism, chances are you’ll be sparing me an awkward conversation in a cupboard.

What’s on?

Monday 11th, 6-8pm, Rialto ART ATTACK with Art Society and Feminist Society We’re going to be making a massive collage surrounding issues of body image and the female form, bring along magazines! (ones that you’re happy to rip to shreds obviously) Thursday 14th, 7pm, Munroe Lecture Theatre The Personal is Political with FemSoc

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Friday 15th, 12pm, the Prayer screening of Jessica Valenti’s Room (behind Santander) documentary about the Sisters’ Circle with Islamic Society representation of women in the media.

Friday 15th, 6pm, Arts Lecture Theatre 2 Thursday 21st , 7.30pm, Venue Women in Leadership with I+R & TBC* FemSoc Big Talk On: Shadism with AfroCaribbean Society Wednesday 20th, 6pm, Venue The second collaboration TBC* between ACS and FemSoc, this Miss Representation Documentary discussion is going to be on Screening with FemSoc shadism/colourism in the black FemSoc’s MissRepresentation community and how it affects campaign culminates in a black women.

Friday 22nd, 12:15pm, Prayer room (behind Santander) Sisters’ Circle with ISoc *for more information on venues and times, please refer to the facebook pages for RHUL ACS and RHUL FemSoc. Search them on facebook and they should come up!

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RHUL Fashion Show 2013: Temptation

Leigh Dobson IF I’m honest, my involvement in the Fashion Show was a complete accident!

I stumbled upon an email about creating a bid for the show, and then quite happily spent a couple of hours procrastinating from work and planning how I would direct a show, which seemed like the most unlikely thing to ever happen. Yet, I am sitting on my bed the day after our final show, writing about how I have just directed a fashion show. I still find the whole thing rather unbelievable!

My bid pack was heavily centred on the idea of diversity.

There are lots of productions and events that happen across campus, but personally, it can seem that they only cater to a certain audience. I know, I know, fashion is a marmite subject. You’re either really

into it, or you don’t really care.

I thought the same initially, but I have met and worked with so many different people during this project, that I now see fashion as something everyone can engage with in one way or another.

This year, there is no fashion society, so we pretty much had to start everything from scratch.

As a result, my production team consisted of three history students, two geography students, and a psychology first year. The models, stylists, makeup artists and photographers study a range of subjects from media arts to French, maths and to business.

Now, admittedly I know NOTHING about fashion. I just tend to wear whatever is clean in my wardrobe. But I wanted a theme that would apply to the everyday lives of the audience. This is where the idea of temptation came in. We divided the show into

six distinct sections that were designed to follow the daily life of our audience members.

So we had daywear, workwear, fantasy (because everyone likes to daydream whilst they’re at work), sport (for any gym lovers out there), party and finally… seduction!

Then in each section, we would use two distinct styles of clothing; the “innocent” style which featured flowers, pastels and light colours, contrasted with an “edgier” style, using lace, leather, sharp lines and adventurous colours. The idea being there would be an outfit in each section that someone can relate to, (or feel tempted by).

As with any production, there were a number of problems that arose. For example, we were unable to find a DJ for the show, (saved by my Producer Annie who, despite never mixing music before, managed to get us a set of tracks before the first

show) and faced difficulties in borrowing clothes from retailers.

However, with the hard work of not only the production team but also the stylists, models and friends that got “persuaded” to help we overcame everything, to put on three awesome shows! Featuring performances from MTS, Dance, Hannah Robertson and Rebecca Copper, the show had a three night run, completely selling out on the final night, which had about 80 people in the audience (including the VPSA, last year’s fashion show producer and director… pressure).

Even more importantly, the show was put together in aid of the “Make-A-Wish” foundation, which grants wishes to seriously and terminally ill children, and is based not too far from our own campus. I am pleased to announce that ticket sales and products sold on the nights of the show raised £990!

Furthermore, we have taken part in a number of fundraising activities ourselves such as the five-day dress-up of my producer and head of fundraising which has raised £400. We are hugely proud of what we have all been able to achieve, especially considering our limited previous experience of such events!

All that’s left for me to say is a HUGE thank you to everyone involved, from the businesses that donated time and products to help us, to everyone backstage and behind the scenes who worked so hard to get the show together! It was a huge honour to work with such a lovely team of people, and something I will never forget!

For more information on the show, check out our blog run by the Film Festival Society: http:// surhulfashionshow.wordpress. com/2013/02/12/first-stagesof-preparation-for-the-surhulfashion-show/

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Model of the Month

Through the lens:

Christian had never had a photoshoot before but learnt extremely quickly and produced some beautiful shots.

I felt this was the best photograph from the shoot as it showed his natural personality — relaxed and cool. The location for this shot can be found at the south end of the Founders building: it has beautiful lighting in the mid-afternoon and the intricate stone work offers a regal background.

The model:

Christian F Hörning is a second year management student here at RHUL and owes his perfect complexion, blue eyes and blonde hair to his Swedish nationality.

If you have spotted Christian around campus you may have thought you were seeing double and you wouldn’t be far wrong!

Christian’s identical twin brother Christopher is also a student here.

This photograph captures effortless beauty and emits a natural relaxed aurora, testimony to Christian as a model and Gyan the

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4 - Mexico: Fajitas

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Around the world in six issues...

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cost

£10

by Bryony Bowie

Photo: Josh Bousel

Mexican food somehow seems to be a student favourite, and no wonder, it’s cheap, exciting and increasingly easy to get hold of: Tesco even sells a “tex mex” dip selection which is great value for money.

Fajitas are really easy to make and are great if you have friends over for dinner — and this meat-free version is perfect for vegetarians who want a taste of Mexico without the taste of meat. They’ll also keep for a couple of days in the fridge, so can be a great lunch if you’re in a rush.

Ingredients: • 1 large onion • 1 red chilli, plus seeds • 1 clove garlic • 4 peppers (mixed colours) • 1 300g bag Quorn fillets or “chicken style

Instructions: pieces” • 1 sachet “Old El Paso” fajita seasoning • sprinkle of Tabasco • juice of half a lime • handful of fresh coriander

To serve: • tortilla wraps • salsa • sour cream

• cheddar cheese • Tabasco • guacamole

1. Roughly chop the onion into strips Quorn fillets defrost just enough and put it into a large frying pan so you can cut it into small pieces, or wok with a generous amount of then add that to the rest — if you’re olive oil, then finely chop the chilli using the ‘chicken style pieces’ you and garlic and add. can just add them straight away.

2. Wash, half and de-seed the Tip in the seasoning and add a peppers, then cut them into strips sprinkling of Tabasco, then cook and add to the pan. Cook for about for a further 10 minutes.

8 minutes, until the onion is soft 4. Add the lime juice and coriander and the peppers are starting to and voila — you’re ready to go. colour.

Assemble as you wish and enjoy 3. Meanwhile, if you’re using the getting messy.

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o Film The Oscars 2013 The Orbital Mar 2013

Johanna Ri THIS year’s 85th Annual Academy Awards, honouring the best films of 2012, took place on February 23, 2013.

As expected, the Oscars brought its fair share of emotional moments, surprises, as well as a muchdiscussed host. This time it was Seth MacFarlene, creator of Family Guy, who started out the awards with a mouthful of tasteless jokes directed at Rihanna and Chris Brown’s relationship, Mel Gibson, as well as the Kardashians.

Though his jokes began on a cringe-worthy level, he did humorously acknowledge his reputation for off-colour jokes, and how this might affect the reception of his presentation. The night began with Christoph Waltz winning Best Supporting Actor for his

role as Dr. King Schultz in Django Unchained.

The film also won the much-deserved award for Best Original Screenplay, accepted

by Quentin Tarantino. It was widely speculated that 86year old Emmanuelle Riva for Amour, or Naomi Watts for her powerful performance in The Impossible, would win the Oscar for Best Actress, making it a surprise to many when Jennifer Lawrence received the award for her role as Tiffany in Silver Linings Playbook.

Tripping on her dress (a gorgeous white Dior gown) while walking up to the stage, she accepted the award in her typically clumsy, yet endearing way. Less of a surprise was Anne Hathaway’s widely predicted Oscar, which she won in the category of Best Supporting Actress for her role as Fantine in Les

Misérables.

This is her third award for her role this year; she also won the Golden Globe and Bafta film award in the same category. Though she received some criticism for her apparently over-rehearsed acceptance speech and dress, a pink Prada gown, her humble nature did not fail to shine through.

The Oscar for Best Actor went to Daniel Day-Lewis for his role as Abraham Lincoln in Lincoln. Competing against actors such as Hugh Jackman and Denzel Washington, his win truly reflects the dedication he gives his craft; he is known to stay in character even when the cameras stop rolling.

The film that received an outstanding four awards was Life of Pi, with Ang Lee winning his second Oscar for the category of Best Director,

having won his first in 2005 for Brokeback Mountain.

This year the Oscars introduced a celebration of some of the finest movie musicals of the last decade, with more than its fair share of musical tributes performed live. These included Catherine Zeta-Jones performing Chicago’s All That Jazz, Jennifer Hudson performing And I Am Telling You I Am Not Going from Dreamgirls, and the cast of Les Misérables performing a medley of songs from the film. Later on, during the “In Memoriam” segment, which looks back on members of the Academy that have recently passed away, Barbra Streisand sang a moving rendition of The Way We Were.

Also celebrated at the Academy Awards was 50 years of James Bond, with Dame Shirley Bassey performing

Goldfinger. Fittingly, Adele gave a stunning performance of Skyfall, which she and cowriter Paul Epworth won the Best Song Award for.

Finally, the most anticipated Oscar-winner everyone was waiting for, the Best Picture Award, went to Argo, directed and produced by Ben Affleck, alongside co-producers Grant Heslov and George Clooney.

The winner was announced

by Michelle Obama from the White House via satellite, which some saw as unfitting for a First Lady.

All the nominees for Best Picture were deserving of the award, with many predicting Les Misérables or Life of Pi as the winner, but when Ben Affleck gave his choked up acceptance speech, all else was forgotten, and Argo rightfully overshadowed the other nominees, doubtlessly worthy of the Oscar.

Theatre

Port at the National Theatre Lauren Clancy WATCHING Simon Stephen’s Port, directed by his trusty collaborator Marianne Elliott, is like flicking through a photo album.

You see a series of moments; each one is selfcontained, and in that small moment you see one piece of the jigsaw that is their life. Through an episodic style, we follow the central character Rachael Keats over a fourteen year period.

Rachael (Kate O’Flynn) first

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emerges as an energetic eleven year old, squabbling with her younger brother Billy (Mike Noble) and unintentionally agitating her mother (Liz White); whilst they are sitting in their cramped car after being locked out of their flat.

The story moves to follow Rachael through her teenage years and early 20s, so in the last scene she is 24 and we see her moving on from Stockport where she’s beaten the troubles in her life that so heavily haunted her teenage years and early adulthood.

O’Flynn obviously faced

an extremely difficult challenge, showing Rachael’s development from childhood to womanhood. She handled it respectfully without patronisingly talking like a child or throwing a moody teenage strop.

The play was incredibly touching and real at points; in particular, the conflict between Rachael and her father after the death of her grandfather was painful to watch.

Yet, the play did have its downfalls. It was too long, most scenes were filled with two-hander conversations

and not enough action on stage, a perfect example of this is the opening scene.

Watching three actors in a car (one of which was in the back seat and not really visible) at the corner of the stage, and struggling to hear what they were saying, for what felt like half an hour, was neither entertaining or an engaging opening. What is more, the huge Lyttelton stage dwarfed the actors and had them unnecessarily moving around it whilst they were talking.

In particular, O’Flynn seemed to find it difficult

to walk around the stage without flamboyantly lunging, jumping or running.

For a play that is originally meant to be performed in the round, with a small intimate audience, perhaps the Cottesloe would have been more fitting.

To appreciate the tender harshness of Stephen’s writing, a smaller theatre seems essential, without it we can’t truly appreciate the characters; it appears Stephen’s language and meaning gets lost in those famously large National Theatre sets.

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TV Charlie Brooker’s Black Mirror Thomas McDonald THE first series of Charlie Brooker’s Black Mirror was a revelation, grabbing rave reviews and adding to Brooker’s already considerable fan base.

Through three intriguing, devilish, stand-alone stories in the frame of The Twilight Zone and Tales of the Unexpected, Brooker examined human nature and society as reflected in the “Black Mirror” of the screen, portraying what our world could possibly soon be like if we continue to let media and technology dominate our lives unchallenged.

Such success with the first series led to much speculation about whether the second offering would be able to match the same high standards. The series started with a bang, if a quiet one. Brooker dropped his usually more in-your-face style for a slow, subtle story about how we deal with grief in the modern internet age, asking the question: how can we forget those whose existence is stored forever on the World Wide Web? A story consisting for the most part of two characters with Hayley Atwell wonderfully portraying the pain of suddenly losing a loved one, while Domhnall Gleeson walks a clever tightrope of being both loveable and then creepy in the same episode.

Both touching and unsettling, the episode was essentially

Image courtesy of Channel 4

an actors’ piece, which made it such a shame that an extra 10 minutes couldn’t have been given to establish the characters relationship at the beginning.

It’s a wonderful episode, but somewhat forgettable, leaving one wondering what could have been had they given just an extra few minutes to greater flesh out the characters and the story.

Brooker returned to his characteristically melodramatic style for the second episode: a bruising encounter about a woman who awakes with no memory of who or where she is, to find half the population have been turned into mindless zombies simply filming her every move.

This is but a brief synopsis of what occurs in an episode

where you’re never sure what’s going to happen next. Here Brooker explores the apathy of modern generations in the midst of disaster, whereby we are more likely to film someone in peril than help them, while also examining how modern society reacts to those vilified in the news and media, forcing them to relive their actions.

Some may find its negative attitude too depressing, and while the central character’s constant screaming is understandable given the terrors she faces, it does quickly become frustrating.

However, this was still certainly one of the most memorable, if not one of the best episodes Brooker has produced so far.

The close of the series

however was disappointing given the quality of the first two episodes. It is the story of the voice of a cartoon blue bear called Waldo, who becomes famous for crudely insulting a local politician on a late night satirical news program (which some may feel bares some resemblance to Brooker’s own 10 O’Clock Live) and then goes on to run against the politician in a local election, surprisingly gaining support with a possible chance of victory.

A romantic element within the story is further evidence of Brooker’s surprising ability to write touching love stories, however this is an element ultimately forgotten about as the plot takes predictable steps to an underwhelming climax.

This was a story originally

intended for a previous Brooker series, Nathan Barley, and it does in some ways feel like a storyline better suited as part of a running series rather than a stand-alone story, with there possibly not being enough for this to stand on its own two feet. It is still a well made, entertaining piece, but ultimately disappointing given the quality of the previous five Black Mirror episodes.

The second series on the whole has been received just as well as the first, continuing Brooker’s rise as the predominant force in British TV. Black Mirror has delivered some of the most unpredictable, unique and gripping story telling around any where at the moment, and hopefully there’ll be many more series to come.

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o Music The Orbital Mar 2013

Modestep: Evolution Theory Ethan Lawrence Well butter my crampons, I’ve been listening to this album for two weeks (at a time for writing fact fans), and I still don’t know whether I like it or not.

Due to this, what follows is not so much a review as an attempt to articulate my own thoughts. Perhaps these flustered scribblings will show you how much Evolution Theory needs to be a part of your life. We shall see.

Modestep are a British-based dubstep / rock fusion band, and Evolution Theory is their debut album. Much like how Enter Shikari are a rock band who happen to have dubstep in their songs, Modetsep are a dubstep group who happen to have a guitarist. It honestly works quite well.

The discordancy of the dubstep parts are given anchor by the huge slabs of riffage that are sprinkled throughout.

While they have a tendency to favour the dubstep entirely, songs like Freedom have a very rock-centric focus and don’t sound like the guitar has been

arbitrarily stapled on when they realised they weren’t doing anything original. It’s all very organic and sounds great.

So why hasn’t this album set my gusset aflame? Its a few things. After a stellar opening track (Show Me a Sign) the album never really feels like its going to top that. It makes some solid attempts (with Sunlight and Praying for Silence in particular being very good tracks) but never really reaches the same standard until Feel Good, the twelfth track on the album.

In addition to this, the album has completely run out of ideas by track 14, but keeps going, coughing up three more mediocre tracks before bleeding out in a roadside gutter. 13 tracks is a good solid length for an album (and Bite the Hand would have made a great closing track, being very atmospheric and moody before having a fit somewhere around the 2m30 mark; this moment certainly woke me up I tell you) so why they felt they needed 17 is beyond me.

But the album’s biggest failing is it’s completely lack of cohesion. There’s no through-

line or any kind of concept to it. There’s a bit of grime here, a massive drop there but without variation or structure, there’s nothing for the album to do but potter around.

There’s a sense that Modestep are desperately going through their toybox looking for something interesting to show you particularly by the end.

But all they conjure up is the same formulaic structure.

Build, verse, chorus, drop, rinse repeat. And some of the lyrics are abysmal as well. “I can feel the fire burning like a naked flame.” For reals? Also, whichever genius tried to rhyme “your face” with “now let me hear the bass” really needs a slap.

But… there’s the rub. I must like it. I have to. I haven’t listened to anything else for two weeks and if I’m spending this much time looking for stuff to complain about then it must be doing something right.

My suggestion is to check it out and make your own mind up. It’s certainly an interesting experience if nothing else and lord knows we need some of them in today’s music industry.

Laura Mvula: Sing to the Moon James Carrick SINCE the advent of Amy Winehouse, the UK music scene seems to churn out vintage throwback soul/bluesesque singers year after year, varying in uniqueness and individuality.

However, 2013 sees the arrival of classically trained Laura Mvula’s debut album Sing to the Moon, which brilliantly bears all the hallmarks of a truly individual artist.

Sing to the Moon has been hailed by many critics as “souledelia” (soul and psychedelica) due to the unconventional arrangements weaved throughout the record.

From the largest orchestral aural sensations to the most subtle nuances not noticed until repeated listens of the record, the production on this album is as important and relevant to the truest experience of the set as the lyrics. This is evident on single and standout track Green Garden, which involves a layering of Mvula’s vocals to create a textured and multifaceted delivery of the track’s lyrics, an ode to her hometown of Selly Park, Birmingham.

This brings a sonic

connection to Adele’s track Hometown Glory, though is in fact the complete opposite in terms of delivery and production. Another standout track, She, reveals the coarse yet honeyed tones of Mvula’s powerful yet oft restrained vocals; the track that rightly gained her a look in to the BBC Sound of 2013 list, in which she was placed fourth.

The unconventional musical arrangements and vocal delivery across the album point to influences as diverse as Janelle Monae, Erykah Badu and Nina Simone, though it seems lazy to try to box Mvula’s music in this fashion (though it does share the futuristic elements of Monae’s own record Archandroid).

Mvula was on the shortlist for the Brit Award for Critic’s Choice, and although Tom Odell is a brilliant musician, it is hard to understand why Mvula didn’t take the award; a singer songwriter whose first instinct isn’t to reach for the guitar or piano, which would limit her to endless comparisons to Emeli Sandé.

Conversely, she has created in her LP a genuinely individual experience that nobody this year should miss.

Book The Hunchback of Notre Dame Lily Waddle TOM Hooper’s recently successful and heart-rending film Les Miserables was certainly thought provoking and most definitely captured my heart.

The first thing I did when I got home was search for the classic book and the artist himself,

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Victor Hugo. I was surprised to find that Hugo was also the author of the forgotten classic, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, which happened to be one of my favourite Disney films when I was younger. The next day I rushed to the Works to buy my own edition of this forgotten classic; I was not disappointed.

In fact I found myself

engaged with one of the most compelling, dramatic and heart breaking hopeless love stories, the reworking of the well-loved tale, Beauty and the Beast.

Quasimodo, our bestial hunchback hero, yearns for the love of the enchanting gypsy girl, Esmeralda. Inevitably, you will smile, you will cry and you will be shocked; it is a memorable

love story.

Hugo wrote The Hunchback of Notre Dame to restore the much-neglected cathedral to its former glory — and it certainly worked by attracting thousands of tourists! His beautiful, eye opening descriptions of Notre Dame are mesmerising, magical while at the same time ultimately terrifying!

It becomes the living “organ” and “furnace of music” that is “talking”, “breathing” and “singing” with its “chorus of belltowers”. It is Hugo’s “symphony which roars like a tempest”. The figure of Notre Dame is alive and breathing the music of the city of Paris. It’s fascinating and exciting to read about — now I would love to visit Notre Dame

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Interview: John Newman THE new and up and coming British soul artist John Newman has recently emerged into the music scene his first big break in 2012 featuring with Rudimental: Feel the Love, a number one hit in the UK and chart topper Give it Up. He has just released his new demo single Try and gives his fans a taste of what to expect on his greatly anticipated album through his mixtape.

VO: You started writing and producing your own songs during your early teen years; where did this love for music spark from? How did it all start for you?

JN: My mum played ‘70s records and house which inspired me. I did some DJing with my mates on the side in men’s clubs playing ‘70s and Motown music.

I had the kit to record which literally started it off. At the same time I was learning guitar and song writing.

VO: That’s so cool! Exciting news for us: you have just released your first new demo single Try which sounds incredible by the way. So tell us a little bit about the

motivation behind this song?

JN: Last year touring was full on and I had a long term girlfriend at the time and it was an exciting time, meeting pretty girls and get opportunities. And for her, it was a bit hard because we’ve spent so much time together.

I was having a great time, a crazy world and I didn’t want to bring it all home.

VO: Oh right, that’s given me a bit of clarity. Who would be your dream artist to collaborate with if you had to choose?

JN: Dead or alive?

VO: Alive or dead? Anyone.

JN: Not a male artist. Otis Redding would embarrass me, haha. I’d probably say Aretha Franklin.

VO: Oh wow! Powerful voice! Also, just a quick cheeky question: what’s the funniest thing you have ever received from a fan, if anything?

JN: I’ve received some really weird things. I was given a McDonalds cup as a present at the back of the ‘02 tour bus by two fans. I never thought that story would be told again, haha!

VO: Also, I wanted to ask, on a serious note, what piece of advice would

you personally give to any aspiring artists out there?

JN: You have to work really really hard. Coming out of college and doing a part time job; it was a little bit of a messy world, doing the odd gig. But all I can say is work hard because the music is the one; if you get it right, it will work.

Another thing is contacts, I use my own contacts. I met my first manager behind the bar. You have to be careful about how you talk to people and who you talk to. You have to be nice to everyone because they are potential opportunities. And keep people well informed!

VO: Oh thank you, that’s great advice. I totally agree with that! And lastly, some of us are dying to know, when will you be performing at Royal Holloway? When are you coming down?! Please!

JN: Haha! I would love to come — it would be good to do a tour. I live right next to you guys! Ahaha, yeah, keep in contact!

VO: Aw, that’s great! We will definitely keep in contact, it was a pleasure speaking with you, and have a great day!

JN: And you too, thanks Victoria.

in Paris to feel this absorbing vibe Hugo depicts!

At the heart of this story, we meet the elegant Esmeralda who dances off the page. She is the gorgeous Egyptian gypsy who performs magical acts and dances for the people in the streets of Paris with her goat.

However, the enigma of her origin haunts her very existence.

Although everyone admires Esmeralda at first, the women in the city of Paris grow jealous increasingly of her exotic beauty

and enchanting nature. People begin to question whether her mesmerising performance is rooted in the dark spells of witchcraft.

Claude Frollo, the arch evil villain and Archdeacon of Notre Dame, decides to take on the hunchback child when no one else will. The motivation of this decision haunts the towering walls of Notre Dame. As the novel develops, he is torn by his tormented uncontrollable desires to possess Esmeralda

and the church’s rejection of gypsys and witchcraft. His actions become impulsive and possessive as the obsession devours his own soul.

There are many unspeakable secrets and many acts of obsessive cruelty that are embodied in the physical cathedral of Notre Dame and will eventually be revealed. As the reader you are gripped as this haunting and obsessive narrative unfolds. You will be shocked. Prepare to be amazed.

Victoria Orme

Creative Corner

Autumn

As children we crunched through burgundy leaves, They were the Fallen, And we, the Glad Victorious.

We pulled apart their brittle skeletons With thumb and finger And they were broken And we stood glorious.

So many years later, Red shards still drop .

Now the bones we break make eyes sting, Our hands, shake.

Our ears, ring.

There is no appeal To treading on boys’ backs.

We huddle together For the usual Sunday stroll ‘Round the outskirts of the frosting meadow we patrol.

It’s Autumn on the battlefield.

Jamie-Rose Dukes

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o RHUL show choir hosts second The Orbital Mar 2013

annual inter-university competition Angus Wyatt Voices of Holloway President ON Saturday 9 March, Royal Holloway’s show choir Voices of Holloway hosted the second annual inter-university show choir competition Masters of Show Choir.

The competition grew in size this year and was a huge event not just for the choir but also the Students’ Union and Royal Holloway as a whole. There was a sell-out audience for the show, and featured supporters from each of the competing universities.

Judging the competition this year was Aaron Lee Lambert and Nick Barstow. Aaron is an actor, dancer and singer who has played Donkey in Shrek the Musical and also starred in Sister Act in the West End. Nick is a final year music student at Oxford University and more notably the former musical director of hit all-male a cappella group Out of the Blue, best known for their appearance on Britain’s Got Talent.

Voices of Holloway faced fierce competition from the

show choirs of Cambridge, Warwick, Sussex and Swansea.

The all-female competition choir fielded a set which featured a mash-up of Usher’s Without You and U2’s With or Without You; a mash-up of Owl City’s Good Time and Ke$ha’s Die Young; and Little Mix’s Wings.

Despite an amazing performance from the girls, and commendation from the judges for their energy, stage presence and importantly show faces, they lost out to Warwick Glee Club, who were crowned “Masters of Show Choir”.

With excellent feedback coming from performers, judges and audience members, and interest from other choirs already being expressed ahead of next year’s competition, who knows where Masters of Show Choir will be in 2014?

If you missed out, then fear not — the choir will be performing their competition set as part of their summer concert in June.

For more information, check out “Voices of Holloway” on Facebook.

Mean Girls meets Disney with MTS Lewis Mullins MTS President 13 FEBRUARY saw the final night of the Musical Theatre Society’s first years’ Variations: Once Upon A Burn Book.

This fantastic show saw a number of talented first years take to the stage in a story where Mean Girls met Disney. The Disney mermaid Ariel, played by first year Drama student Amy Batty, arrived at her new high school faced with characters that we know and love such as Rafiki, Aladdin, Mulan and of course the Princesses.

Alongside her new friends Timon and Pumba (played

by Georgia Cousins and Josh Buckland) they fought to bring down lead princess, Cinderella (Frankie Fowler Burtwell), to make sure she would not win the fairest of them all contest. Along the way, Ariel was faced with

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numerous high school dramas, and of course, her real true love, Hercules, played by the hilarious Tom Stevenson.

Featuring songs such as I Won’t Say I’m in Love, Circle of Life and Kiss The Girl, the Burn Book story was adapted and directed by Fay Breed and Isla Jeffery who did an amazing job at bringing the Disney parody to the stage.

Alongside musical directors Emily Matthews and Cyrus Dean plus choreographer Andrew Millar these Disney classics were brought to (real) life with energetic dance routines and some beautiful singing.

Seen by three sell out audiences, this was a joyous occasion for all who came.

Congratulations to the crew for their obvious hard work throughout the last few weeks and to the stunning, talented cast.

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The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award Jack Gordon DofE Unit Leader MANY of you may think that it’s too late to complete or even start your Duke of Edinburgh Award (DofE) - but there is still plenty of time. The cut-off date for completion is your 25th birthday, meaning that you can enroll up until the day before your 24th and still finish the process.

For me, participating in DofE was one of the most rewarding and proud moments of my life. The skills I gained, the experiences I had and the friends I made will remain with me for a very long time. Indeed, I got so much out of the Award that I am now the Unit Leader here at Royal Holloway - and I want as many people as possible to get involved while they still can. DofE is an unmissable experience. One that will enhance any CV in the job market.

The Award is offered at three different levels: Bronze, Silver and Gold. I completed all three of these although many only undertake one or two, and there is no requirement to have completed previous stages before moving onto the next. Indeed, every student at the University is eligible to begin their Gold Award and, if you’re looking for a

challenge or something different, I really cannot urge you enough to consider DofE as one way of fulfilling this.

Over a twelve-month period (eighteen if you have not completed your Silver Award), participants have the chance to gain recognition for three activities of their choosing: Volunteering, a Skill and Physical Recreation.

Additionally, the Award also incorporates an expedition away from home (four days and three nights at Gold level) - trekking across unfamiliar countryside carrying all your supplies in a rucksack. Gold participants also need to spend a further five days volunteering at an unfamiliar location as part of the Residential section.

For me, I was able to count activities that I already undertook towards each of my sections: Rock Climbing for the Physical, Fundraising for the Service and Transport Restoration for the Skill section, whilst my Residential was spent at the Beamish Open Air Museum near Newcastle. After an expedition each in Snowdonia and the Peak District, my Award was completed and, before I knew it, I was sat inside St. James’ Palace waiting for HRH Prince Edward

to come around and present me with my Gold Award. It was an exciting and memorable day out.

The scheme is extremely flexible, allowing for a wide range of activities to be counted towards completion as well as easily catering to the different requirements of those getting involved. No matter what your fitness or confidence levels, DofE can support and assist you in boosting these - not to mention countless other skills - ready for life ahead in the big bad world.

DofE has something to offer for everyone, and it’s one of Royal Holloway’s lesser-known Societies. Providing all the training and support needed to undertake the Award - and offering leading opportunities for those who already have - we’re looking to recruit new members and increase our participant base after Easter.

So, is the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award something that you’d like to get involved with? Please don’t hesitate to get in contact with me: you can email me via Jack.

Gordon.2011@live.rhul.ac.uk if you want to find out more, or just search ‘Royal Holloway DofE’ on Facebook to get more information.

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o Bears claw their The Orbital Mar 2013

way to victory in relegation fight!

Alex Reilly-Cooper ROYAL Holloway badminton men’s second team faced a crucial “six pointer| away at bottom of the table Roehampton University in the last round of February fixtures to increase the gap between themselves and the relegation zone.

Knowing victory would leave winless Roehampton needing an unlikely two wins from their remaining two league games, A-games were needed from all six players! Holloway raced to a commanding lead with president Daniel Thorne and team captain Mark Lodge pairing together to take their first game 2-0, (21-7, 21-15).

This was strongly followed up with Sam Hurst and Christopher Chung edging a close encounter, prevailing in the deciding set 21-18. Rui Fujino made it 3-0 with a very impressive straight

sets win over Roehampton’s team captain.

Roehampton’s unbeaten, number one, singles player would soon make the score 3-1 against fresher, Alex Reilly-Cooper.

The game was then left delicately poised and the three points hanging in the balance with two more closely fought out singles victories going to Roehampton levelling the match at 3 games apiece.

However, experience proved to be the deciding factor as newly promoted Roehampton’s doubles pairs could only prolong the inevitable victory for visitors, with both Royal Holloway pairings winning the last two sets up for grabs securing a 5-3 win, 3 points and surely their divisional status for the new season in September!

Elsewhere, both the men’s and women’s first team travelled south to do battle at Chichester University, unfortunately falling to 7-1 and 5-3 defeats respectively.

Marketing Week with Royal Marketing Society Margaux Nourrissat THE Marketing Week organised with the Royal Marketing Society and the Careers Centre held between 18 - 21 February was a great success!

It included events with guest speakers from L'Oréal, Saatchi & Saatchi X, Shopitize and Weber Shandwick, among many others, who kindly came to Royal Holloway to network with current students and talk about their work experiences in the marketing, PR, or advertising industries.

Each event was followed by a wine reception and gave students an incredible opportunity to

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network with professionals and make good contacts for the future.

The events included "A day in the life of...", "Industry insights from Marketing, Media, PR and advertising" and a "Marketing careers Networking" event, marking the end of the Marketing Week.

After hosting two extremely successful parties at Tommy's Bar in October and in February, the society will also be organizing a Boat Party after the exams period — but they'll keep you posted with more news.

Check their Facebook page regularly for updates! http://www.facebook.com/ RoyalMarketingRHUL/

Swimming Club Sabrina Travers “ROYAL Holloway has a swimming club?!” … This was a regular phrase we heard pop up during the sports fair at the beginning of the year.

Yet, over the past six months, and after lots of hard work, the new swimming club committee has seen over 100 new members join what is perhaps the fastest growing club on campus. You have most probably seen us at the “Come In Your Kit” SU nights, flaunting our stuff in skimpy swimwear! It has been these nights amongst many other socials that have further

helped to create what is now a great group of friends and a fun, outgoing club to join.

One of the greatest aspects of our club is that not only does it offer pool time for leisure swimmers, but also weekly land and pool training for our competitive squad. Due to this, it has been great to have been able to put forward a fantastic squad to enter in the competitions; BUCS shortcourse, Team Champs and a friendly gala in Manchester.

These events have seen real success in our swimmers, with many gaining personal bests and commendable finishing positions.

Royal Holloway Swimming Club really does have the best balance between leisure and competitive, providing 2 lanes for each, which you can easily change between.

We swim three times a week (Monday 8.30pm-9.30pm, Tuesday 7.30pm-8.30pm and Thursday 8pm-9pm) and have land training every Sunday afternoon. Plus, at £3 a session or £45 per term, you really can’t go wrong!

Join us on Facebook or come to the bus stop by Founder’s tennis courts half an hour before any session starts to find out more. We’d love to have you join!

Musical Theatre Society presents Mack and Mabel Lewis Mullins MTS President IT is another busy term for Royal Holloway’s Musical Theatre Society.

With half of the term already gone, we’ve seen some fabulous events such as a workshop with a Professional Musical Director, the first year production of Once Upon A Burn Book and a fabulous weekend of Andrew LloydWebber music which raised £197.09 for the National Aids Trust!

Now we are looking forward to our main production of the term: Mack and Mabel by Jerry Herman. This musical is based upon the tumultuous romantic relationship between Hollywood director Mack Sennett (played by James Dance) and the woman who became one of his biggest stars, Mabel Normand (played by Beckie Burtenshaw).

The story, told through flashbacks, immerses the audiences in the glory days of Keystone Studios from 1911 onwards. This production sees Adam Carver in his directorial debut for one of MTS’ main productions despite directing many smaller numbers throughout

his time in the society.

Matt Abrams returns to the position of Musical Director after his work on the MTS Summer Cabaret, Varations, Legally Blonde and I do! I do! at the Theatre Royal Windsor.

The musical also features a number of energetic dance routines, including a large amount of tap dancing, all choreographed

by Claire Garland. The cast have come a long way since their first rehearsal and have been made to laugh, cry and taught to tap dance within the space of ten weeks.

Last week, the Mack and Mabel team had a fundraising event full of glitz and glamour in The Stumble Inn. Our moviethemed launch night transformed The Stumble Inn into a red carpet location for the stars. With events such as Oscars, Play Your Cards Right and the Dress Up game, those who attended had a marvellous evening. Congratulations to Frankie Mapes, Théophile Lenoir and Caitlin Arnott for the running of the evening.

I think all would agree that the highlight of the evening was seeing two members of the Mack and Mabel team receive a number of

shaving foam pies to the face, all in the name of fundraising! This brilliant evening followed the Undergraduated Valentine’s Day Soirée in collaboration with the Mack and Mabel production.

On 14 February, Royal Holloway students gathered in Founder’s dining hall for a night of dancing and live jazz music from the Undergraduated band.

The night was enjoyed by singletons and couples alike as everyone joined together to celebrate Valentine’s Day in a slightly less traditional fashion.

The Undergraduated band were the stars of the night, playing brilliant jazz songs almost non-stop, from the beginning to the end of the night. A huge thank you once again to the Mack and Mabel team for organising this event!

The performance of Mack and Mabel by the Musical Theatre Society runs from Sunday 17 March to Wednesday 20 March in Jane Holloway Hall, with tickets available from Medicine prior to the shows or at the door from 7pm.

Come along and see this wonderful show for a glorious night of fun, laughter, singing, dancing and maybe even a few tears.

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