FREE
MARCH 2018
ISSUE 278
12.03.18 - 16.03.18 SWANSEA-UNION.CO.UK/ELECTIONS
The Students’ Union is a democratic organisation led by you, the students. Only students can stand in our elections and only students can vote in them.
Our Officers make decisions that seriously impact your time at uni - from your internet connection on campus to who’s headlining Summer Ball. If these things affect you, you should vote now.
To check out who’s standing in the elections, go to
swansea-union. co.uk /elections
and cast your vote!
There are currently 17 positions that are up for grabs and it’s up to you to decide who gets elected:
FULL-TIME OFFICERS
PRESIDENT
SOCIETIES & SERVICES OFFICER
EDUCATION OFFICER
WELFARE OFFICER
SPORTS OFFICER
PART-TIME OFFICERS BLACK MINORITY & ETHNIC OFFICER
LGBT + OPEN OFFICER
OFFICER
ETHICS OFFICER
GENERAL SECRETARY
MATURE STUDENTS OFFICER
MENTAL HEALTH AWARENESSS OFFICER
STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES OFFICER
ENVIRONMENT
HOW TO VOTE
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Log in to swansea-union.co.uk between 11am on Monday 12th March - 1pm on Friday 16th March
INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS’ OFFICER
WELSH LANGUAGE OFFICER
LGBT + WOMEN’S OFFICER
WOMEN’S OFFICER
Having a problem? Email web@swansea-union.co.uk
4
Click on the elections banner
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Follow the instructions
Make your Mark on Swansea Uni
ELECTIONS FAQS WHAT ARE THEY?
The SU elections are your chance to have your say on what happens in the Uni. Full-time and Parttime Officers are voted in (by you) and they make important decisions and changes based on their manifestos. That’s why it’s important for you to read their manifestos and vote for who you think can represent you and make the best changes in the Union and the Uni (just like the General Election).
HOW DOES VOTING WORK?
To cast your votes, go to swansea-union.co.uk/ elections. We use alternative or transferable voting so you can rank your preference order, and if your first preference doesn’t win, your vote will be transferred to your second choice, and so on. This means your vote gives you a stronger say.
WHAT IS A MANIFESTO?
It’s a list of ideas that each candidate will make happen if they’re voted in (again, like the General Election). If you agree that someone’s ideas need to happen - vote for them. Easy as pie.
WHAT IS RON AND NFP?
Do you have any questions? student.voice@swansea-union.co.uk
RON stands for Re-Open Nominations. If you don’t want any of the candidates for one of the roles to be elected, vote RON. If RON wins, either another election will be held, or nobody will be elected for that role. NFP stands for No Further Preferences, so after voting for your first and second choice, if you’re undecided about the rest of the candidates, select NFP.
CONTENTS 09
20
NEWS
Culture
42
Swansea lecturers say NO to strike
Ogre the Edge Guys & Dolls The Embroidery Girl
Interview: Newton Faulkner
10
Features Save, save, save Graduation anxiety - what happens next?
12
study abroad A Griswold's adventures
26
Societies SUSU CIVSOC Give It A Go Week
28
Photography
music 45
Relationships Friendships
47
film Wales at the Academy Awards Under Milk Wood Netflix Binge: Restrepo
Get Outside
14
Travel Sweden at a glance Travel hacks packing your backpack
16
creative writing Interview - Kamand Kojouri Angry Girl
31
Wellbeing Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month
32
52
Sport Rugby League match report Try new sports
Election candidates Full-time and Part-time Union Officers 2018
Editor
Film
Rachel Sanders waterfronteditor@swanseastudentmedia.com
Becky Elms waterfrontfilm@swanseastudentmedia.com
Deputy editors
Food
Emily Maybanks & Kassy Fox waterfrontdeputyeditor@swanseastudentmedia.com
Kassy Fox & Hannah Fenlon waterfrontfilm@swanseastudentmedia.com
photo EDITORS
Liberation
Hamish Lawson & Oluwaseyitan Oluwatosin waterfrontphoto@swanseastudentmedia.com
Zoya Chisti waterfrontliberation@swanseastudentmedia.com
DESIGN & ARTWORK
Music
Iain Fisher & Rachael Clayton waterfrontdesign@swanseastudentmedia.com
Sarah Harris waterfrontmusic@swanseastudentmedia.com
ProoFreading
Relationships
Maddy Young proofreader@swanseastudentmedia.com
Heather Harvey & Emily Jane Griffiths waterfrontrelationships@swanseastudentmedia.com
News
Societies
Megan Thomas waterfrontnews@swanseastudentmedia.com
Heather Dimmer waterfrontsocieties@swanseastudentmedia.com
Creative writing
Sport
Emily Maybanks waterfrontcreativewriting@swanseastudentmedia.com
Greg Stone & Lulu Thornton waterfrontsport@swanseastudentmedia.com
Culture
study abroad
Carys Svendsen waterfrontculture@swanseastudentmedia.com
Bronwen Beard waterfrontstudyabroad@swanseastudentmedia.com
CYMRAEG
travel
Alex Nethell waterfrontcymraeg@swanseastudentmedia.com
Meryl Hanmer waterfronttravel@swanseastudentmedia.com
Fashion
wellbeing
Gwen Miles waterfrontfashion@swanseastudentmedia.com
Olivia Rogers waterfrontwellbeingl@swanseastudentmedia.com
Features
Student Media Coordinator
Emily Williams waterfrontfeatures@swanseastudentmedia.com
Iain Fisher iain.fisher@swansea-union.co.uk
Waterfront is a free print and online publication from Swansea Student Media and the Students’ Union.
HELLO FROM THE EDITOR Rachel Sanders
Welcome back to this month’s edition of the Waterfront. If you’ve managed to brave the cold and the exams, you’re doing well so far – give yourself a thumbs up! Whilst many 3rd years are in the midst of dissertation hell, some 1st years are finally starting to settle in, and 2nd years may just be feeling like they might be better than they thought at this studying malarkey. Wherever you are in your University journey, take a break. Pull out your copy of the Waterfront, find a comfy place to sit, treat yourself to that tea, coffee or hot chocolate and indulge in the news and tales of Wales and Swansea in Spring. March is the month of St. David’s day (Dydd Dewi Sant) and we have some suitably Welsh treats to entertain you with alongside pieces from inspirational women and awe inspiring men and a glimpse of your upcoming student union elections. Enjoy!
NEWS // MEGAN THOMAS
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The lecturers at SwanseaUniversity will not be going on strike. After the initial vote failed to hit the 50% turnout requirement, the lecturers in the University and College Union (UCU) were reballotted, voting closed on the 16th February 2018. The turnout was 48%, fewer people than the initial vote and therefore again failing to hit the 50% requirement. The UCU website has confirmed that no strike action will be taken in Swansea, there seems to be no indication that there will be another reballot.
SWANSEA LECTURERS SAY “NO” TO STRIKES by Megan Thomas What does this mean for Swansea students? Honestly, very little. It means that lectures, exams and assessments will carry on as usual, your degree itself should not be impacted by the strike action by the UCU. The strikes by lecturers from Universities such as Cardiff, Bristol and Liverpool, began after the Government announced changes to lecturers pensions. Changes to the current Universities Superannuation Scheme, is said to potentially cost lecturers up to £200,000 over their
retirement. Under the new rules, guaranteed pension benefits would end. The UCU say that this means that these benefits are decided upon “how your ‘investments’ perform” as opposed to them being on “contribution”. The UCU has said that they are open to talks. Strike action is said to begin on the 22nd February. Although initial plans were for these strikes to last for 2 months, recently plans have been announced to keep the strikes going for as long as 5 months. This means that final year exams may potentially be cancelled and graduation will likely be affected. There has been calls from students
to receive compensation from Universities for hours missed due to the strikes. Students at Universities such as Liverpool and Bristol are attempting to claim back for the missed hours, considering that the average student is paying £9,250 a year in tuition fees for these hours. As of the writing of this article, no student is set to receive compensation. As our lecturers will not be going on strike, it is unlikely that these strikes will affect graduation here. If you still want to support these strikes, the closest Universities taking action are: Cardiff University, Bristol University and the University of Wales.
SWANSEASTUDENTMEDIA.COM
ISSUE 278 // MARCH 2018
Our planet is in danger and it is down to us to do what we can to save it. Living sustainably not only helps the environment - it will help you save money and live healthier. A win-win situation! There are easy ways to change your everyday habits. Why not give some of these a try?
by Kareemah Malik
There are plenty of alternatives to disposable products
SAVE, SAVE, SAVE Our planet needs your help!
Food Avoid using plastic cutlery and straws (use wooden or metal ones alternatively). Replace cling film/foil with beeswax wraps or containers. Use less plastic by carrying around long-lasting reusable bags for your shopping. Use flasks or reusable coffee cups: Hoffi Coffi and Callaghan’s Coffee shop will even discount your coffee when you use a reusable cup. Use cloths instead of kitchen roll.
Beauty products Replace cotton wool and makeup wipes for muslin cloths or reusable makeup pads (just pop them in the wash to clean them).
Consider making your own body products. I recently made a body scrub out of salt, sugar, coconut oil and ginger. My skin felt soft afterwards and it saved me money! If not, Lush has a fantastic range of environmentally-friendly products. Microbeads are currently banned in the U.K. as they harm aquatic life. A helpful, natural alternative to this is to use rice and salt. Use natural sea sponges rather than synthetic ones.
Electricity Turn the brightness down on your phone and laptop (as this will help save battery life and thus, electricity. Also, looking at a bright screen in the dark can cause eye strain and damage).
Fill the laundry machine (but don’t overfill). You can do this by sharing laundry loads with your house/flat mates. Switch off devices at the wall rather than leaving them on standby. Turn off lights when not in use.
Other Use plants rather than air fresheners; this improves air quality and neutralises odours. Opt to receive paperless letters and statements. Reuse gift bags. Use handkerchiefs, rather than tissue, for personal hygiene uses. Shop at charity shops (where you can find unique items for good prices!), and donate your old/ unused belongings to charity.
FEATURES // EMILY WILLIAMS
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GRADUATION ANXIETY What happens next?
by Emily Maybanks
December’s edition of the Waterfront featured an article I wrote called ‘Thoughts from the mind of a final year student’. In this article, I explored the idea of having too many options in terms of post-University career ideas. In a sense, this article is sort of linked to that one; as in, the theme of this article is also looking forwards to post-University life. I believe that it is incredibly daunting to be a final year student going into our final semester at University. I know that I feel scared and anxious at the prospect of leaving University in the summer; I know that I don’t want to leave Swansea behind just yet – it has become a real home away from home for me, and I feel as though I still have so much more to learn, but I still don’t have the faintest clue of what to do when I do leave. This sounds like the polar opposite to what I discussed in ‘Thoughts from the mind of a final year student’. It can be tempting to spend our final semester planning every aspect of our lives for once we graduate. This can be unhealthy though. It has the potential to make our final few months of University fly by so quickly that we miss out on the chance to
fully appreciate them. Although some degree of planning is needed, we should not let it consume our final semester. I have learnt that it certainly doesn’t matter if we don’t have our whole lives mapped out ahead of us for after graduation. Nobody expects us to come out of University and suddenly achieve every dream that we had originally set out to accomplish. I know that I have changed my mind so frequently during the past five years about what I want to do once I graduate, and while I now feel as though I have a plan and an idea, it certainly is not the dream that I had even at the very beginning of this academic year. I don’t think that there is a rule book that signifies that we have to leave University and immediately start working towards our long-term
career goals. Graduating can be a chance to do everything that we never had the chance to do before we started University. Taking a gap year, getting a short-term job in a totally different city, or diving into a Master’s are just a short list of the endless possibilities that are in store for us when we graduate. It is important that final year students do not let the end of their time at University be consumed with fear and pressure. We need to celebrate all that we have achieved throughout our time at Swansea University. Graduating is going to be our chances to do all that we have ever hoped to do in our lives. However, if there is one thing that life has taught me, it is to live in the moment and to enjoy these last few months as a student at Swansea University.
SWANSEASTUDENTMEDIA.COM
ISSUE 278 // MARCH 2018
We have a running joke in my family about traveling; we call ourselves the Griswolds. Now for those of you who don’t get the reference, the Griswolds are a fictional family from the movie “National Lampoon’s Vacation,” who road trip across the U.S. to a theme park in California. Along the way, every little possible thing that could go awry does, and the Griswolds find themselves in some awful - albeit hilarious situations. Despite all the hurdles thrown their way, they still manage to make the most of each predicament and come out the other side with some of the best laughs, adventures, and memories as a family. Something to this effect always happens on my travels, so I was waiting to see how my time abroad would go. It started when I arrived in Swansea in September of 2016, at 11 p.m. on a Saturday, after almost 30 hours of traveling from my small town in Louisiana. Jumping for joy at Worms Head
by Karli Walleser
A GRISWOLD'S ADVENTURES
Studying in Swansea I arrived two weeks before fall term to take a pre-sessional course with other international kids. The Uni had us staying in Penmaen, which is all good and well, except I could not figure out how to get in. The ground floor appeared to be offices, and I circled the building for 20 minutes trying to figure out this weird British architecture. Maybe I was senile from the lack of sleep or stressed about getting in before I was kidnapped, but I
could not find the magical entrance. FINALLY, I figured it had to be the stupid door in between the offices. I let myself in and proceeded to drag all my luggage up the stairs to the second (or first for you Brits) floor because I somehow missed the elevators. I found my room and was just about to collapse from exhaustion when a head popped around the corner from the next room down. That head would turn out to be my first friend in Swansea,
STUDY ABROAD // BRONWEN BEARD
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Making s'mores at my first bonfire in Swansea
My first interaction with the rare Welsh sheep
a girl named Katie, from Buffalo. My adventures began the next day. The first few weeks were a whirlwind of sightseeing trips to the Gower, trying to figure out British pounds, and attempting to navigate without cell service. I came to realize just how beautiful Swansea was, and how beautiful my time here could be if I opened myself up to it. The days slipped by with walks on the beach, castle explorations, society meetings, and so many new friends. When you’re abroad, you find yourself in a unique position. You don’t have your family around to fall back on, so you’re forced to make a new, pseudo-family to fill in. My friends became the family I chose. What started out as one friend from that first night, soon grew into a dysfunctional bunch of goofballs I wouldn’t trade for the world.
Trying to fit everyone in for a pic at the Brecon Beacons
I found my people, and pretty soon, I found my routine. Classes three times a week, pub quizzes at Pub on the Pond on Monday nights, movie nights with Disney Society on Tuesdays, dance classes throughout the week, Wednesday adventures with my homegirl Erin, pizza dates with Katie on Thursdays, and the greatest explorations on the weekends. Seriously, weekends in Wales are the best. Five months passed in the blink of an eye. Now I’m home, and I miss it every day. I miss hearing British accents, I miss my lumpy mattress in Kilvey, I miss the weird food (love British people, hate British food), I miss those nights having the dance floor at Pop World to ourselves, I miss Kopparberg cider, I miss that annoying misty rain, I miss tracking sand into my room, I miss the pub quizzes, I miss the hectic
Viva Swansea trips, I miss the bus, I miss the sheep, I miss my professors and my classmates, but most of all, I miss seeing my beautiful friends every day. To any and everyone who made my experience in Wales what it was—I thank you. I am a changed person, as cheesy as that sounds. All I can do now is reminisce on all those things that did go wrong and think about how they made things go even more right. My Griswold adventures had their frustrations, but they gave me the greatest memories. And for that, I wouldn’t give the world. I implore you to push yourself, to hop on that bus, or plane, or train to somewhere foreign, to leave your family and all things familiar, to go find your Swansea; to live. These are the moments you will look back on and wish you had. I’m so glad I did.
SWANSEASTUDENTMEDIA.COM
From every direction, the most inexplicably beautiful landscapes await in the sparsely populated Nordic country of Sweden. From the steep alpine peaks and flowing rivers in the north, to the rolling countryside and countless beaches in the south; from the alluring archipelagos in the east to the rocky coastline laden with hidden lakes in the west, Sweden cries out for the adventurous and nature loving alike. Few other countries can boast the same expressive power, with the summer bringing the midnight sun and the winter featuring the dancing display of the northern lights. Being consistently voted as one of the best countries in the world to live, Sweden is not only a country gifted with breath-taking landscapes but with peaceful and forward thinking citizens as well. As one of the most creatively thriving countries in the world, it is no surprise that the cities are as enchanting as the nature.
Stockholm Commonly referred to as ‘beauty on water’, Stockholm is spread across fourteen islands connected by either bridges or ferries. The city’s historic core of ‘Gamla Stan’ is one of the most well preserved city centres in the world and the perfect starting point for any traveller. Stockholm is easy to explore either on foot or by boat and offers an injection of culture with the truly fascinating Vasa museum and Viking museum, which both lay on the green island of Djurgården.
Gothenburg Sweden is famed as a country for its close connection with the water, and Gothenburg is the country’s home for all things nautical. This walkable city is bursting with ships, aquariums and sea-related museums,
ISSUE 278 // MARCH 2018
Majorna, Gothenburg
SWEDEN:
At a glance all of which tell tales of the countries intriguing history of Viking pillaging and exploration. As a hub for culture and social events, Gothenburg gives the best opportunities for tourists and locals to come together and share experiences.
Malmo Sweden’s third largest city is home to Scandinavia’s tallest building, that elegantly twists its way skyward and overlooks the vast Öresund bridge which connects Sweden to Denmark. Malmo really is a city where old meets new, from the modern engineering to the thriving art scene and the majestic Thirteenth Century fortress.
Swedish cuisine Swedish cuisine is predominantly centred around cultured dairy products, bread, berries and
by Meryl Hanmer
various meats, with big differences depending on the region due to the large north-south expanse. For example, game dishes and reindeer meats are more common in the north of the country, often being served simply with vegetables. Whereas the south is more exploratory with flavours; meatballs served with lingonberry jam being an obvious traditional dish.
Fika No article on Sweden is complete without reference to the highly important tradition of ‘fika’. Fundamental to the Swedish culture, fika is loosely translated to mean ‘coffee break’. It is a chance to pause the day’s activities, share coffee and pastries with friends or family, and profit from an intimate exchange of conversation. Fika is frequently hailed as an aid in preventing mental health issues from festering.
TRAVEL // MERYL HANMER
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TRAVEL HACKS packing your backpack
Padlocks
I never stay in a hostel that doesn’t provide lockers in which I can safely store my bag whilst I’m not in the room. While some hostels provide their own keys for lockers, most require you to bring your own padlock. I always carry a small lock and slightly larger lock so I’m prepared for however the lockers need securing.
Hostel flip flops
Whilst I always ensure I am staying in a clean hostel, I still don’t walk anywhere in hostels bare foot, especially in the bathrooms! An investment in some cheap flip flops is, in my opinion, a definite must!
Spare charger cables
Personally I rely on my phone massively when travelling; from storing all tickets/booking confirmations to using Google maps for navigating new cities. I simply couldn’t manage without my phone and charging cables break all too easily, so a spare is always advisable.
Adapters
Although a seemingly obvious item to pack, I see too many people panicking in hostel dorm rooms because they forgot adapters for the right countries. Unless travelling purely in one region its best to get a universal adapter so you know you’re covered no matter what country.
Silicone travel size liquid containers
A thousand times better than their plastic counterparts, the silicone containers make it much easier to use every drop of the liquid within and, of course, travel size because of airport restrictions.
Plug stoppers & travel size clothes detergent
Depending on the length of your journey you may need to do washing whilst travelling. Every now and then it will be worth the splurge paying for use of hostel washing machines but for small amounts of washing needed, i.e. underwear, a wash in the sink is easier and cheaper.
Packing is one aspect of travelling that many people dread doing. It’s all too easy to either pack the wrong things or pack far too many things. When I began my journey travelling the continent I made many packing errors, but soon learnt what essentials I needed and what items to ditch!
by Meryl Hanmer Power bank
Long days out taking lots of photos may prove draining on your phones battery and so it is always advisable to have a good power bank with you that will give your phone at least 2/3 full charges.
Pack of tissues & hand sanitiser
Two items that I very quickly learnt are absolute essentials after being caught one too many times in ‘ill-equipped’ bathrooms abroad. These are two items you will be grateful for should you need them.
Copies of all documents
If somehow you lose your passport abroad, having a photocopy of the original can make obtaining emergency documentation much quicker and easier. Of course, nobody plans to lose such items, but when you’re far away from home, it is always better to be extra prepared.
SWANSEASTUDENTMEDIA.COM
ISSUE 278 // MARCH 2018
This month’s creative writing section features something different: an interview with writer and poet, Kamand Kojouri. Born in Iran and brought up in Dubai and Toronto, she is currently studying for her PhD in creative writing at Swansea. She is self-publishing her collection of poetry – The Eternal Dance – in March.
by Emily Maybanks
INTERVIEW: KAMAND KOJOURI Describe your writing journey so far. I studied sciences during my undergraduate years because I wanted to pursue neurosurgery; I wanted to cure neurodegenerative diseases. I had never taken any literature or creative writing courses before that but when I was volunteering at a hospital, on my lunch breaks, I started reading and found my love for it. I moved back to Dubai and I had an epiphany; I decided to re-enrol in school and study literature. There weren’t any courses that incorporated literature or creative writing; the only course I could find was in a mall (lots of things happen in malls in Dubai). I took a creative writing course, started writing short stories and submitted one to the City University in London; they liked it so they
interviewed me and accepted me for the Masters programme. The programme was unique because it was a two year programme; in the second year, we wrote an entire novel and I thought ‘I love this, this is exactly what I want to do,’ so I decided to do the PhD at Swansea. Can you tell me more about The Eternal Dance? Since my book is a collection of love poetry and prose, I wanted to divide the chapters into the seven stages of love. I was inspired by Attar who, in his book The Conference of the Birds, speaks about the seven valleys of love. However, it wasn’t true to my journey and experience in love because they’re quite intense and it’s like the seven steps you have to take in order to become an
enlightened individual. I found that quite interesting, but it is not true to my journey. So, my seven chapters are the stages of love that I have gone through. The first stage of love is Attraction and Infatuation, and the second stage is Devotion and Obsession. The third is Heartbreak, then there is Enchantment and then Love. Then you have Understanding and finally, the last stage is Unity. What made you decide to self-publish? When it comes to publishing novels, I think I would prefer to find an agent and go through the traditional route, and have that agent recommend me to publishers. When it comes to poetry, I think it’s much more difficult to get published, to have a collection of your poems published,
CREATIVE WRITING // EMILY MAYBANKS
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Sit here, so I may write you into a poem and make you eternal.
"...to have discipline in writing is very important, so try to write every day. Take your writing seriously because if you take it seriously, other people will take it seriously."
in the UK especially. It’s easier in the States for some reason. I also wanted to have complete creative control so I wanted the cover to look a certain way; I wanted the poems to be in a certain order. I was ready to have it published and I just took the plunge. What advice would you give to new writers? I think that to have discipline in writing is very important, so try to write every day. Take your writing seriously because if you take it seriously, other people will take it seriously. And write for yourself. What is it like to study creative writing? This is the wonderful thing about PhD programmes, especially here at
Excerpt from 'The Eternal Dance'
Swansea; if you were to do a PhD in literature, you’d only be looking at the critical aspect, but in creative writing, you’ll have your creative aspect. You’ll have your collection of poems or your novel or play and then you have a complimentary critical component as well. If anyone is interested in actually writing, I would recommend doing a Masters or a PhD in creative writing because you get the best of both worlds. You get to understand literary theory, but you also get to hone your creative skills. Who inspires you in life? My brother, Hafez, is a classical musician. He’s tried to bring Eastern, traditional Persian music and incorporate Western classical music. He’s bringing together different worlds. My father, because
he taught me to forget myself and remember others and he has always reminded us to try to help to make the world a little bit better in our own way. I intend to do that with The Eternal Dance and other projects I have in mind. What’s the most valuable piece of advice you’ve been given? To be yourself and be true to yourself. If you want to help others, the most important thing is to muster the courage to be your true self because then you inspire others to be their true selves as well.
The full version of this interview can be read online at: swanseastudentmedia.com/waterfront
CREATIVE WRITING // EMILY MAYBANKS
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Angry girl you crown me. Mean that I pay attention. That at the first sign of treason I have the whole kingdom at the battlements. Mean that I defend the castle I fought tooth and nail for the throne that I am still bleeding to keep. Too confrontational is what they whisper like a bird song in the
wind.
And what they mean is I am the last scarred tree that survived seasons. I stand for myself alone make weapons of my own broken limbs and I will fall on my own grounds.
the
Do you think that it is easy? Being the sharp tongued girl with the hard edges? More dragon than princess when the barricades fall. Too difficult to love too much to handle. Less like a glass poisoned apple.
slipper
and
more
like
a
ISSUE 278 // MARCH 2018
Photography: Doug Scott Mountaineering
SWANSEASTUDENTMEDIA.COM
To celebrate the BANFF Centre Mountain Film Festival World Tour coming to Llanelli at Ffwrnes Theatre on 22nd March, Laurence Brown recalls Doug Scott’s Mountaineering Lecture first shown at The Taliesin Arts Centre in Early November 2017
by Laurence Brown
The Ogre Western summit The tales of adventurers fighting against all odds to survive, always have and always will be gripping to me. Tales ranging from Shackleton leaving his crew on Elephant Island to go and find help, to the tale of Yates making the difficult choice to cut the rope on Simpson on their climb of K2 are stories that are being forever engrained into mountaineering history. Doug Scott has been travelling Britain to raise money for his charities and to promote the release of his new book about his climb of The Ogre 40 years ago. His story of adversity through times of struggle has earned him a place on the list of explorers who have risked it all to achieve greatness. The Ogre, also known as Baintha Brakk, is a mountain in the Pakistan section of the Himalayas. It is 7285m (or for the Swansea scale, around 38 Kilvey Hill’s) and is the 87th highest mountain in the world. In 1977, after two previous unsuccessful attempts, Doug Scott was accompanied by fellow climber Chris Bonington and
OGRE THE EDGE Doug Scott's battle against nature reached the peak of the mountain for the first ever time. A feat that remained unrepeatable for 24 years. However, the ascent of this great mountain is not what made Doug Scott’s tale so gripping. Doug Scott is an English mountaineer from Nottingham. He is perhaps well-known for, alongside Scotsman Dougal Haston, being one of the first men to ever climb the south west face of Everest and the first ever Britons to reach the summit of Everest. On this journey they were famously forced to scrape out a cave and survive in the highest bivouac ever, just 100m from the summit of Everest without oxygen or sleeping bags. They even managed to survive the night without getting
any frostbite; a great feat in itself. This tale was told in another of Doug Scott’s books called “Up And About”. Doug Scott’s new tour “A crawl down The Ogre” promotes his book “The Ogre: Biography of a Mountain and the Dramatic Story of the First Ascent” and it’s within these series of new lectures that he recalls the struggles of the expeditions and why it stands out as such a great feat. The expedition can be broken down into the ascent and descent. The plan of the expedition was to climb to the top of the Ogre; however Doug Scott and Paul ‘Tut’ Braithwaite, another member of the expedition, wanted to climb the south pillar which consisted of a 1000m vertical face to the south of the mountain
CULTURE // CARYS SVENDSEN
whilst the rest of the group wanted to take an easier route. Unfortunately the ascent of the south pillar was cut short when Tut was hit by falling rocks which led to Doug and Paul returning to Base Camp shortly after. The rest of the group, made up of Chris Bonington, Nick Estcourt, Clive Rowland, and Mo Anthoine managed to climb up to 6100 feet before setting up a high camp. Two of the group, Chris and Nick, took 5 days’ worth of food and pushed up to the Ogre’s western summit. This was shortly followed by the group returning to Base Camp and resting there before another attempt to climb the main peak. Nick and Tut decided to rest at Base Camp whilst the others attempted the climb. All remaining expeditionists made it to the first high camp followed by the Western Summit and then onto the ridge between the two main peaks. Here they made their second high camp, formed from a snow cave. Doug and Chris decided to push onto the main summit which required them to ascend a 250m rock face and, on the 13th July 1977, they reached the peak. However, the sun was setting and time was running out for their descent. On the first face Doug lost his footing and swung on his rope across the rock face, making his legs collide against the rock face with a harsh impact. After trying to push off, Doug discovered that he had broken both his legs and was stuck over 7000m up with no simple means of descending the mountain. At this point, most people would have given up and surrendered to the mountain. It is seemingly impossible to get off The Ogre with broken legs, isn’t it? To Doug Scott, it wasn’t. “There wasn’t any fear, just anticipation,” he said. “I never had any doubt that I would get down, I just didn’t know how I was going to do it.” He quickly learnt that he had fortunately broken both legs below the knee.
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Doug Scott crawling down the Ogre
It is seemingly impossible to get off The Ogre with broken legs, isn’t it? To Doug Scott, it wasn’t.
Such news of the break meant that he could abseil to the bottom of that rock face using his knees to bounce off the wall, and, after being forced to bivouac in the open, they reached the bottom of wall at the end of the next day. The day after that they managed to reach the snow cave where Doug was forced to crawl on his knees in tremendous pain. Doug Scott described his mentality as just ‘getting to the next feature’; if he could reach one feature without dying then he could get to the next feature. It was this mentality that allowed him to break down his huge problem into lots of little problems. That night in the snow cave they met up with Clive and Mo who were waiting for them and the group had their final meal that night. The next day they were supposed to reclimb the Western Summit but the blizzard was too strong and they were forced to spend another day in the cave. Doug was helped by his comrades who helped cut steps for him to
move through and helped him abseil down harsh faces of The Ogre. It took the group 7 long, harrowing days with no food to reach Base Camp. In this time Chris also took a fall which resulted in him breaking two of his ribs. Doug describes the last section as the hardest due to it consisting of 4 miles of rocky terrain, a feat that cost Doug to wear through four layers of clothing and making him even more vulnerable than before. When they arrived back at the base camp they discovered that Nick and Tut had left that day. They had left a note the explaining that they had assumed everyone dead and that they had gone to form a rescue team. Mo had arrived first and immediately decided to run after them leaving another note to explain his actions and to stop Nick and Tut from reporting the others as dead to their families. It took 5 days for Aid to finally arrive; however in the meantime, they now had food although it was only leftovers from Nick and Tut consisting of mostly nougat bars it was better than starving. It was then decided to evacuate Doug and Chris by helicopter so they can get the medical help they so desperately needed. However, when the helicopter carrying Doug was approaching civilization, when it crash landed causing it to be written off. Luckily nobody was hurt but the consequence of the crash led to Chris having to wait a couple more days for the replacement helicopter to be dispatched. Despite all hell throwing itself at each one of the climbers, every single one of them survived and have lived to tell the tale. I was constantly on the edge of my seat throughout the lecture and would highly recommend the event to anyone, experience climber or not. Doug Scott’s new book is available now at www.dougscottmountaineering.co.uk along with photos of his various travels.
SWANSEASTUDENTMEDIA.COM
ISSUE 278 // MARCH 2018
I had high expectations for this year's Swansea University's performing arts societies musical Guys and Dolls, and I was not disappointed! I often attend shows by Swansea Uni's Shoreline Theatre and having reviewed the 2016 PA musical Sweeney Todd for the Waterfront, I felt that I knew what to expect from a Performing Arts societies production. That being said, I was wowed by the incredible talent of the cast and crew for Guys and Dolls.
by Molly Dowrick
SIT DOWN YOU'RE ROCKING THE THEATRE Review: Guys and Dolls The production brought together performers from a variety of courses and colleges at Swansea University and a range of our students' union performing arts societies, including Shoreline Theatre, Choral Society, Musicians Society, Dance Society and Show Choir. Directed by Jevan Cannon and assisted by James Hill, with musical directing by Catrin John and Will Bennett, Guys and Dolls has been in the works since May 2017, with months of planning and preparation followed by six months of rehearsals before the actual performance. The talented cast, aided by a fantastic backstage crew, drew the audience in and immersed us in this Swansea
revival of the Broadway hit musical. Based on the 1950 Broadway musical and the 1955 classic film (which starred Frank Sinatra, Marlon Brando and Jean Simmons), the musical tells the story of con-man Nathan Detroit's attempt to find a "new life" for his illegal "crap game", whilst trying to keep his long-term fiancĂŠe Adelaide happy. The show sees Nathan's usual venue for his game discovered by the police, so he has to find a new location for his gambling. Later, Nathan bets another gambler, Sky Masterson, that Sky can't take a "doll" of Nathan's choosing to Cuba for a date. Nathan chooses prim and proper Evangelist
CULTURE // CARYS SVENDSEN
Sergeant Sarah Brown, and the love story between Sarah and Sky begins! Guys and Dolls began with a fantastic musical number "Fugue for Tinhorns" by three gamblers, NicelyNicely Johnson, Benny Southstreet and Rusty Charlie depicting the craziness of gambling and the hustle and bustle of life in New York. NicelyNicely, Benny and Charlie, played by Rory Colman, Cameron Goodman and Joe Dickinson respectively, created a New York buzz on stage and really set an excited atmosphere for the performance. Later, Rory Colman and Cameron Goodman's performance of the highly acclaimed musical number "Guys and Dolls" was brilliant and really encapsulated the optimism and excitement of the 1950s musical. I also want to note that Rory Colman's rendition of "Sit Down, You're Rockin' The Boat" was incredible. The Crapshooters and the women of the mission provided fantastic additional singing and dance moves whilst Colman performed an amazing version of the Guys and Dolls hit song. Other main characters included Nathan Detroit being played by the incredible Nathan WoodfordRôtt, who created a humorous and likeable Nathan Detroit. He had the audience in hysterics and rooting for his relationship with the bossy and intense Adelaide (Emma Price) to work out. Not only did Emma Price shine as the crazy and demanding Miss Adelaide but audiences were wowed by her fantastic singing - particularly in the popular number "Adelaide's Lament". The dynamic between Caelan Sailes as Sky Masterson and Tess Morgan as Sarah Brown was also incredible. Caelan Sailes presented Sky as a misunderstood criminal, a criminal with a heart, while Tess Morgan's Sarah Brown made audiences cry and sigh with empathy for the upset and virtuous "doll". Caelan Sailes' musical numbers were brilliant, audiences particularly loved
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"Luck Be a Lady", sung by Sky and the Crapshooters. Tess Morgan is the only member of the Guys and Dolls cast who is a member of Show Choir and her singing provided a show in itself! Tess Morgan's performance during Sergeant Sarah Brown's demanding musical numbers, including "I’ll Know" and the fantastic duet with Adelaide in "Marry The Man Today" were outstanding and stunned the whole audience. The relationship between Sky and Sarah was presented brilliantly, as were
...the musical tells the story of con-man Nathan Detroit's attempt to find a "new life" for his illegal "crap game", whilst trying to keep his longterm fiancée Adelaide happy.
the friendships between Sky and the Crapshooters. The passion from the actors was evident throughout the performance, and the chemistry between all the characters throughout the show was overflowing. Geri Smits played Arvide Abernathy, Sarah's grandmother and a member of the Save-a-Soul mission in New York. Geri Smits' musical number "More I Cannot Wish You" gripped audiences and Arvide's support and reassurance for Sarah was certainly uplifting. Not only did Guys and Dolls feature fantastic singing, but gripping acting too. Hannah Brindley made an excellent and amusing gambler
Harry the Horse, whilst Ellie Bergin was a superb and hilarious Lieutenant Brannigan, with Ariana Bello as a great harsh-but-fair General Cartwright. Kojo Otu acted a hilarious and intimidating Big Jule and Jinte Heijnen was a cute and sassy Mimi. Ruth Wilkins made a likeable and lovely Agatha, and the mission band of Maisie Whiting and Merlin Wadge added atmosphere and optimism to the stage. The crapshooters Eman Omar and Sam Binnie created a real gambling environment of tension and chaos and the hotbox girls, (Sophie Aplin, Rosie Seddon and Angharad Turner), danced elegantly and beautifully throughout the performance, undoubtedly aided by fantastic choreography by Sophie Bishop and Sarah McIntyre. The orchestra (Nick Brown, Bryn Tawton, Maia Smart, Jocelyn Churchill, Rebeka Angstmann, Daniel Moore, Tom Ormsby, Tyler Cuddy, Oliver Kennedy, Bel Young, Edward Dibley, Andrew Cooper and Lizzie Findley) really encapsulated the various feelings and moods of excitement, guilt, surprise and relief throughout the musical and really added to the whole performance. This, accompanied by the antics of the stage crew (John Baddeley, Karen Ecsedy, Zita Ki, Kris Si, Jack Knight, Henry Apsey, Samantha Seeley, Laura Naidenov and Rebekah Sheppard, with the Arts team comprising Sophie Thomas, Lauren St John Jenkins, Chess Hutin and Maribel Esdaile), created a fun atmosphere between scene changes (note Jack Knight’s new pearl look) and made going to the play a great night out. Shoutouts also need to go to John Fish (PA rep and Producer), Ash Cole (Sound Engineer), Tom Hunt (Sound Assistant), Tatiana Webb (Assistant Stage Manager), Michael Jeffrey (Lighting Designer) and Niall Carribine (Lighting Assistant.) Thank you for providing such a fun night and I can’t wait for next year’s musical!
SWANSEASTUDENTMEDIA.COM
ISSUE 278 // MARCH 2018
A beautiful scene showcases the lavish production
The Embroidery Girl
@ Grand Theatre Swansea, 30th March '18 After Swansea losing the ‘City of Culture 2021’ bid last year, it’s exciting to find that despite the loss, Swansea is still wealthy in the currency of culture. This is particularly seen with The Embroidery Girl, a worldwide renowned production coming to The Grand Theatre on the 30th March. So, what is it about this production that is leading me to write this article? For this I invite you to look at the other page. This is the first time within the Waterfront that an English- Chinese feature has been written in the paper’s recent history. Just like Embroidery Master Xiu Niang (the main character within The Embroidery Girl), we’re leaving
a legacy for years, perhaps even ages with some wishful thinking, to come. The show is centred and adapted around the real-life embroidery masters Shen Shou and Yang Shouyu. For the embroidery history fans out there, Shen Shou founded the Shen style of embroidery and eventually wrote the Xue Huan Embroidery Bible; the first ever artisanal embroidery handbook which revolutionised the embroidery world at the time. Yang Shouyu, on the other hand, is famous for inventing the Luan Zhen Fa embroidery style; a style that makes embroidery look like the oil paintings found in western art galleries. Xiu Niang is the fictional embodiment of both women and her character provides not only a window
into Chinese history due to the show being set in the Qing Dynasty, but the show resonating the gender struggles that women have faced throughout history as Xiu Niang fights to have her vision seen in a male-dominated society. With the story sewing such a historically rich narrative (pun intended), including old Chinese customs such as matchmaking, The Embroidery Girl is bound to appeal to both history fanatics and embroiders alike, or just somebody who wants an evening filled with culture and spellbinding dancing. However, the show doesn’t just tell a tale on stage, but the tale backstage really brings a new element to the production. The Embroidery Girl has a team of highly-esteemed
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artists, including Zhao Ming; a man known for modernising Chinese Folk Dance and combining it with the elegance and strength of modern ballet. Alongside Ming is famous costume designer Li Ruiding, and Zou Hang, who is famously known for his work on the opening and closing ceremonies of the 2008 Beijing Olympics. With Chinese dance superstar Zhang Yashu in the starring role, you’re in for an astounding and phenomenal night.
Like what you’ve read and can’t wait to see the production? See The Embroidery Girl at the Grand Theatre on Friday 30th March at 7:30pm! Tickets cost from £20.50 and are available to purchase via the Box Office (01792 475715) or online at www.swanseagrand.co.uk
Zhao Ming with dancers
很遗憾，去年斯旺西没有争取 到“2021年文化之城”的荣誉， 尽管如此，仍然抹杀不了斯旺西 与外界有着丰富的艺术文化交流。 比如说3月30日中国的优秀舞剧 作品“绣娘”（The Embroidery Girl）将在斯旺西大剧院演出。 是 什么触动我写这篇文章呢？你自己 可以搜索看看，这是我们西南海边 地区第一次将这样有特色的中英文 化交流记入这里的史册。正像舞剧 刺绣大师留下刺绣遗产，‘绣娘’ 这部戏也給我们斯旺西海岸留下宝 贵的文艺财富，也不知什么时候才 能在这里再看到这样特别的戏。 舞剧‘绣娘’是以刺绣大师沈寿和 杨守玉的人生经历为背景改编的。 为了追求苏绣至真至美，沈寿创立 了沈氏刺绣风格，写下了“雪宦绣 谱”。 这是第一个部手工刺绣手 册，这在当时历史条件下是很了不 起的成就。另一为刺绣大师杨守 玉因创建了‘乱针法’的刺绣风格 而闻名，刺绣的风格借鉴了西方艺 术油画的特点。绣娘是这两位女 性一生奋斗的缩影，她的性格命 运， 不仅向我们打开了一扇中国 近代晚清历史的窗口，而且通过绣
娘在男尊女卑社会里挣扎的故事， 反映了妇女争取自由平等的时代共 同心声。绣娘绣出的不仅是一幅 幅画，而且还缝制了一个历史丰 富的故事，比如古老的中国习俗： 说媒 等。从这部绣娘作品， 你可 以欣赏到文化历史,了解到苏绣艺 术，或者更简单一点，你可以轻松 陶醉于那优美动人的舞蹈夜晚。 值得一提的是，这个节目的精 彩，还在于它背后拥有一组备受 尊敬的一线艺术家，如编舞总导 赵明，他将中国民间舞与现代 芭蕾舞的优雅和实力相结合，为 中国民族舞现代化铺路。与赵明 一起创作的还有著名服装设计师 李锐丁，和为2008年为北京奥 运会开幕式谱曲的音乐家邹航。 更令人兴奋的是， 中国舞蹈尤 物巨星张娅姝将领衔此舞剧，一 定会带给你一个惊艳的夜晚。 读到这，你一定迫不及待地想知 道绣娘是什么时候来演出？ 记 住， 3月30日（星期五）晚上 7点半， 斯旺西大剧院！票价 为20.50英镑，可通过票房购买 （01792 475715）或在线购 买www.swanseagrand.co.uk
SWANSEASTUDENTMEDIA.COM
ISSUE 278 // MARCH 2018
SUSU CIVSOC by Thomas Edge CIVSOC is Swansea University’s brand new Civil Engineering Society. CIVSOC aims to enhance students’ university experience, CPD, networking opportunities and broaden their understanding outside of the curriculum. The society particularly wants to encourage students from different years to interact, take care of freshers and help them settle in, and create a strong network between Civil Engineering alumni, lecturers and the ICE (Institute of Civil Engineers).
Our CIVSocialites enjoy a variety of networking opportunities such as talks and site visits held in partnership with the ICE and SEA (Swansea Employability Award Team) as well as awesome social gatherings. Socials range from ‘themed nights’ around the town to ‘dry socials’ at venues such as limitless trampoline park, TenPin Bowling and much more. The main aspects are to encourage a work hard, play hard healthy lifestyle, integrate students from across the college, improve students’ employability skills and open doors to new opportunities. Talks between the engineering societies have involved possible plans for sports days, an engineering summer ball and various events throughout
the year, but for these to be possible, we need your support. It’s an exciting time to become a member of a society on Swansea University’s Bay Campus so here’s what you have to do if you are a current Civil Engineer at Swansea To become a CIVSocialite, first sign up with the Student Union for just £1 and then request to join the Facebook Private Group (Only SUSU CIVSOC members will be accepted). Facebook: goo.gl/YSKjaN SUSU profile: goo.gl/dUXXMz Find us on Facebook and Instagram. @SwanseaCIVSOC
SOCIETIES // HEATHER DIMMER
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Hobbies & Interests quiz
by Heather Dimmer
Every year, coinciding with Refreshers, societies participate in ‘Give it a Go!’ week, where we host taster events open to the whole student populace to try and garner more interest in our societies. These events can range from anything from the usual weekly socials to themed parties, outings and competitions. This year for Give it a Go! week, eight Hobbies and Interests societies banded together to host a massive collaborative quiz; through the work of the presidents of Anime, Cartoon, Disney, Gaming, Hogwarts, MADCAS, Sci-Fi and Tolkien, a 10-round 99 question mega quiz on ‘all things pop-culture’ was hosted on the 2nd February. the quiz included a round themed to each society plus a music round and a picture round, as is
GIVE IT A GO! WEEK & THE MEGA QUIZ tradition. These rounds featured questions of varying difficulty and bonus points were available for things like the best team name (won by #NoRoomBookingsForYou), and correctly counting just how many presidential faces appeared on the quiz presentation (including but not limited to faces replacing Skyrim swords, the moon and Marge Simpson’s hair). Most, if not all of the participating societies will run their own, smaller quizzes throughout the year but, despite being used to the format, quizzing students on categories they might not be familiar with always leads to interesting results - and the perfect opportunity for joke answers galore. Only the winning team got more than half marks. Other societies running Give it a Go! events were the Business Society,
Choral, Conservation and Ecology, Debating, English Society, Quidditch, Show Choir, and Soapbox; There was also a collaboration hustings run by the PCL societies Conservative Future, Labour Students, Liberal Democrats, and Plaid Cymru, and our volunteering group Discovery hosted a litter pick in conjunction with the Students’ Union. Even if you missed or were unaware of these events and are still wondering what a society is like, just go along and try it out! We’re always looking for new members and societies are one of the best and easiest ways to find people you share common interests with. Give it a Go! week is what this focuses on for sure, but that doesn’t mean it stops there. With most societies you can join them at any point throughout the year and still fully participate in what they’re all about.
GET OUTSIDE Sunshine has recently returned to Swansea Bay. Fresher’s should learn to make the most of the sun on its brief visits to South West Wales. Although it can still be cold, now is a perfect time for walks on the beach. If you're feeling slightly more ambitious, you can catch the bus out of the city and soak up the rays out on the beautiful Gower coast. Location: Oystermouth Road Photography: Hamish Lawson
WELLBEING // OLIVIA ROGERS
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OVARIAN CANCER AWARENESS MONTH March 2018 is Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month. Ovarian cancer is the biggest gynaecological killer of British women, with UK survival rates amongst the worst in Europe. Ovarian cancer is hard to detect early on because the symptoms are similar to those of less serious conditions such as ovarian cysts and endometriosis. Symptoms of ovarian cancer include but are not limited to: feeling constantly bloated, loss of appetite, and abdominal, pelvic and lower back pain. Further symptoms include changes in bowel habits, persistent indigestion and constant exhaustion.
by Emily Maybanks
My story is an interesting one because I didn’t know I had ovarian cancer until a few months after an operation to remove what was believed to be a 28cm ovarian cyst. I started to get symptoms associated with ovarian cancer and ovarian cysts in late 2016; I was referred to the gynaecology team at Singleton Hospital in Swansea where I was informed that I had a cyst of around 15cm growing off my ovary. I was constantly bloated, I had an alarming loss of appetite, to the point where I couldn’t eat solid food without feeling horrendously nauseous, and I was in consistent pain, and had to suspend my studies from University for the year. At no point did my GP or gynaecologist suspect that I could have ovarian cancer, which is why there was a five month wait between diagnosis and having surgery. I was fortunate that after my surgery – which was a major laparoscopic operation – my symptoms lessened significantly and I was physically so much better. I was diagnosed with post-operation depression (another
story in itself) following surgery. In July 2017, I was called back into the hospital to see a gynaecologist and a Macmillan nurse where I was informed that the cyst was in fact a tumour. I now have regular tests and further appointments, and am living with the fact that the cancer could return at any point which is difficult to comprehend sometimes and it certainly doesn’t help my existing mental health conditions. On the other hand, since having my operation and my diagnosis, I’ve become a lot more determined to make the most of every single opportunity thrown my way. When faced with an illness like ovarian cancer it makes you realise in life, things happen that challenge and test us intensely and you can either stand up and face it head on, or you can give up, and I chose the first option. Throughout my cancer journey, there have been times when giving up has felt like the best or at least the easiest and sometimes the only option. Life is for living and having had cancer has highlighted this for me.
I firmly believe that it is vital to raise awareness of ovarian cancer, especially for younger women, where an early diagnosis of ovarian cancer is often missed due to the similarity of symptoms with other less serious conditions. One of the best ways to raise awareness of anything is by being brave enough to share personal stories and experiences, if only to prove that there are cases where the cancer is treatable. It is important to see your GP if you suspect that you have any symptoms of ovarian cancer, as all it takes is a simple blood test to begin with to detect the cancer. I have been both fortunate and unfortunate with my experiences of ovarian cancer. More information about ovarian cancer, including symptoms and where to get advice and support can be found on the Macmillan Cancer Support and the NHS websites. Furthermore, the ASC, the Disability Office and the Wellbeing services at University can provide advice on coping with academic work alongside dealing with long-term illnesses.
SWANSEASTUDENTMEDIA.COM
ISSUE 278 // MARCH 2018
ELECTIONS 2018
Nominations for our 2018 Elections are officially closed, so here are the candidates hoping to win your votes and become next year’s Full-time and Part-time Union Officers. Studio photography by Oluwaseyitan Oluwatosin
CANDIDATES FOR PRESIDENT
Gwyn Aled
Peter D'Rozario
Bronwyn Satterly
President
President
President
As your current elected Sports Officer, I have made many positive changes within our University and student community. I have successfully delivered on numerous manifesto promises such as decreasing gym membership prices, bringing supplements and more healthy foods to campus and co-ordinated charity events raising over £10,000. I have also carried out legal and financial duties as a Trustee, established vital relations with the University, trained and supported our sports club committees and have been heavily involved with the organisation of events such as Varsity and Freshers. Last year I graduated with a Maths degree and throughout my time at University I have been a member of a wide variety of sports clubs and societies. In my second year I founded Clwb Rygbi Tawe and was president of the sports club for two years. I have also been both a member and leader of the Sport Swansea Executive Committee.
I am a third year, Social Policy student and I hope to be your next SU president. The SUs role is to ensure your welfare, provide you with new opportunities and get your voice heard. I believe I will be able help provide these services because of the experience I have. I have experience in volunteering and running societies. I have been a student trustee of the charity Discovery SVS, helping in its running and further success. I have also been President of the LGBT+ society, where I have run many different socials. I have loved help running the SU LGBT+ Mental Health Campaign, which was a brilliant success in November. I hope you will consider voting for me to be SU President because of my experience and my policies.
Hey! I’m Bronwyn, I’m a final year Law and Criminology student and I’ve worked at the Students’ Union for the last two years. University has been the best experience for me. From meeting new people to trying new things; every opportunity has been unique and now it’s my turn to give something back! Working on events such as, Fresher’s, International Food Market and all the behind the scene jobs, the SU has provided me with the invaluable skill set to make your University experience amazing! I want to make the SU your ‘home away from home’. By providing job opportunities, encouraging student’s into trying a new sport or society and providing support and guidance. The SU won’t be leaving anyone out! Student approved improvements on campus need to happen and they need to be changed fast. I’m the person who can succeed in this change, but only with your support.
VOTE NOW @ SWANSEA-UNION.CO.UK/ELECTIONS
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CANDIDATES FOR EDUCATION
Hugh Kocan President My name is Hugh, I'm a third year politics student, and I hope to be your next SU president. In my view, the job of the SU is to ensure the best possible student experience for all. However in my view, Swansea SU has been failing in one key regard: the climate. Cold and wet weather is a major cause of student dissatisfaction. Therefore, I aim to make Swansea warm again, with a selection of heat based policies.
Tomos Watson Education
Adam Powell
Ash Holloway
Education
Education
I’m currently in my fifth year at Swansea studying Physics, during that time I have been a subject rep for 2 years and a College rep for Science for another 2. Representing students and making a real change is something these roles have allowed me to carry out. Among these changes have been adjusted assignment deadlines, introducing subject specific employability events and improvements to feedback on all submitted work. Outside of Swansea I have worked with other institutions across the country including a short-term exchange to Newcastle to investigate their student experience. Other posts I’ve held within the SU include President of the Physics society for nearly 3 years and a societies assistant. The opportunity to put all the experience I have gained in these roles is an exciting new challenge that I’m ready to take on.
I’m Ash Holloway, a student of psychology and now of management. This cross-campus experience has given me a glimpse of the challenges faced by students and imbalances between the campuses. Furthermore, as part of the LGBT+ community, I understand the importance of equity, equality and diversity in an inclusive experience. Over the years I’ve developed good communication/collaboration skills and networks with staff and students from my work in the ambassador scheme, and this year I have worked very closely with the school of management and have learnt a great deal about the services offered by the university. It is one of my strongest beliefs that for students to get the most out of their student experience, the Union, support services and Colleges of the University need to be in harmony with each other to provide the best support and teaching excellence possible.
Hi, my name is Tomos Watson, a third year Geography student and your current Welsh Language Officer. During my time at Swansea University, I have had the privilege to represent the student body in my current position as part-time Welsh Language Officer. I have thoroughly enjoyed this role as it has provided an insight in to the administrative structures and procedures necessary to effect change within the university and the level of effort and
determination required to take action as a representative of student needs. My commitment to the role is evidenced by successful changes regarding university and student communication. Welsh students previously suffered due to a fault with the email correspondence. The new system will now ensure that all Welsh students receive all emails sent by the College Office and all other university departments, providing equal levels of communication for every student.
SWANSEASTUDENTMEDIA.COM
ISSUE 278 // MARCH 2018
CANDIDATES FOR EDUCATION, SOCIETIES & SERVICES
Rachel Pambianchi
Chloe Hutchinson
Chris Freestone
Education
Education
Societies & Services
Hey everyone! My name is Rachel, I am a fourth year Law student now studying my Masters and am Treasurer/Teacher for the Dance Society. I would love to be your Education Officer for the next year! Having spent almost four years studying at Swansea I have become very much aware of some of the frustration and issues that have arisen which could negatively impact on your studies, therefore I now want to help by resolving some of these so as to try and make studying here that little bit less stressful. I consider myself as being a ‘people person’ and very approachable which I believe to be massively helpful for this role as the whole idea focusses on good frequent communication with students and their course reps and the desire to help make positive changes in relation to
I’m Chloe, a final year History and Politics student running to be your next Education Officer. Over my time at Swansea I have had the privilege to study abroad, be subject rep for third year politics, and get involved in many fantastic societies. However, studying a joint honours degree and abroad has highlighted problems that I want to help fix!
Hello! I’m Chris, your current Societies and Services officer. I came to Swansea four years ago and in my time here I’ve seen just how much our city, societies, and campuses have to offer. I’ve been involved in societies since my first year, and served on the Geology Society committee for three years, as president and postgraduate rep. Throughout the current year I have gone the extra mile for societies numerous times, improved our services and made the union more environmentally friendly. There is still so much important work that needs to be carried out and that is why I am standing to be re-elected as your Societies and Services officer.
I’m Joshua Little, a third year Chemical Engineering student and the President of Swansea University Skate Society. My time at Swansea University has been more than expected, not only have I enjoyed studying I have also felt supported while doing so because of the services provided for students. My involvement in the Skate Society has improved my quality of life throughout university by making friends and I have expanded my interests through
participating in other societies socials and events. My positive experiences with the Student Services has driven me to want their continued development, ensuring student involvement for the ever changing needs of future students, so they can experience university to its full potential. I have numerous ideas and great willingness to listen which I believe will achieve the best possible outcome for support for students.
Joshua Little Societies & Services
VOTE NOW @ SWANSEA-UNION.CO.UK/ELECTIONS
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CANDIDATES FOR SOCIETIES & SERVICES, SPORT
Georgi Andrew
Charlotte Sloan
John Fish
Societies & Services
Societies & Services
Societies & Services
I’m Georgi, currently a third year Business Management student, and I’m running to be Societies and Services FTO. I’m also currently the secretary of the Dance Society, the largest society in the University, as well as teaching my own class of 15 students. I’ve been a member of the Christian Union, which has helped me gain experience communicating and presenting to large groups. I’m well versed in issues that can arise in running societies and how to effectively manage them, as I’ve been very busy this year! I would love societies to grow and show students that they really make the student experience memorable!
James Maxwell Sport
Hello! My name is Charlotte Sloan and I will be running for Societies and Services Officer. I am extremely excited for this opportunity, as I am very capable of this position and will fulfil it to the best of my ability. By standing for this position, I aim to get more students involved in the University. In my eyes, the Societies and Services Officer is the bridge between the students and the University. Therefore, I will constantly strive to be available to the student body and to make sure your voice gets heard, whether that be by representing your views or by ensuring fair support to all societies. Likewise, I want to improve the social aspect of University, by upgrading and expanding the current facilities on both campuses. I have a great deal of passion to make the social life of Swansea students as inclusive and accessible as possible.
My name is James Maxwell and I am currently running for the Sport Officer position in the Student Union. I am completing a Masters degree in Mathematics, after graduating in Mathematics and Sport Science last year from Swansea. During my time at Swansea, I have competed in both BUCS and Varsity for the Basketball 1st team, whilst also being involved with the committee. I have been
Hi, I’m John Fish, I’m a postgraduate Digital Media student and have been studying at Swansea University for four years now. The societies and services provided by the Student’s Union have been a hugely important part of my university experience and now I’d like the opportunity to give something back and make SUSU even better for the next generation of students. During my time here, I have been a Course Rep, first the Social Media Rep and now President of Shoreline Theatre, and am currently the Performing Arts Representative on our Societies Executive Committee. Thanks to these positions I am already comfortable with representing many different groups of students, and have a good insight into what being an FTO involves. As your Societies and Services Officer, I promise to support societies, services and the student body.
the Treasurer and Vice President for the basketball club, and this year I have taken on the role and responsibility of the Sports Swansea Executive Committee. By working my way up from a player, to a committee member and now a Sports Executive, I have seen how sport at Swansea is enjoyed and functions at every level. From this experience I believe I can take the Union and Sports Swansea forward for the next year if I am successfully voted in.
SWANSEASTUDENTMEDIA.COM
ISSUE 278 // MARCH 2018
CANDIDATES FOR SPORT, WELFARE
Sophie Hargreaves
Luanne (Lulu) Thornton
Ciaran Caple-Williams
Sport
Sport
Welfare
My name is Sophie Hargreaves and I am running to be your Sports Officer for the Student Union. I am a thirdyear geography student. This past year I have been the Captain for the Women’s Water Polo club. I was one of the first members of the Women’s Water Polo club and have always been involved in developing the team. Since I became Captain I have worked with my team to see us sitting on the top end of our league. This is a massive feat considering in our first year of BUCS we came last! The role has given me experience of the organisational work that goes into developing and running the sports clubs. I want to use the skills I have learnt to help build new clubs, improve existing ones, and to help more people become involved in sport at Swansea University.
Hey, my name is Luanne (Lulu) Thornton I am a 3rd year English Literature student, running for the position of SU Sports Officer. I was elected as the first woman to oversee the Intramural 11- a -side league and the first person to oversee the league on their own. Furthermore, I have set up the Intramural 5 - A Side League to increase sports participation on Bay Campus. In my Second Year of University I was Social Secretary for Women’s Football which gave me the opportunity to organise Socials, Tour and Charity events. These experiences have shown that I am focused, motivated, and capable of getting things done. In my final year I have taken up Korfball and been one of the Co-Editors for the sports section of the Waterfront. Both experiences allowing me to increase my sports versatility and show my dedication to the Sport Swansea Community.
Hi! I’m Ciaran, a final year American Studies and Law student. I’m approachable, open to suggestions, supportive and sympathetic towards others. I recognise the importance of the various support facilities available. Whilst struggling with mental and physical disabilities, I’m aware of the necessity of these services as well as their strengths and weaknesses. They are always in constant and high demand, often leaving students on various waiting lists for lengthy amounts of time. This can be improved, and, as someone who knows their ins and outs extremely well, I am confident I will be able to do this. As a bigender person, I recognise in particular the struggles LGBTQ+ students face, especially regarding mental health, thus one of my main aims is to provide LGBTQ+ students with further support. I am hoping to help others with similar issues, making the University a safe and pleasant experience for those who struggle.
Hello, my name is Sharon SilvesterHughes, and I am a very mature student on the DACE degree course. I love my studies and feel privileged to be learning here. My degree is English Literature with Humanities. Before attending University, I worked with youth locally. My careers were Music, writing lyrics, composing music, and performing, and Hotel/Catering Management. My famous workplace was St
James’s Palace, London, where I set up the catering contract. I have various hobbies, Art, Travel, Music and Entertaining (the ex-chef in me). My degree and my proposed TEFL qualification will help me achieve my life-long goal to teach English in the Third World. Although disabled, I have never let that hold me back. My bucket list is huge! I care deeply about our planet. I believe in World Peace!
Sharon Silvester-Hughes Welfare
VOTE NOW @ SWANSEA-UNION.CO.UK/ELECTIONS
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CANDIDATES FOR WELFARE
Emily Maybanks
Chloe Morgan
Grace Hannaford
Welfare
Welfare
Welfare
I’m Emily and I’m running to become your Welfare Officer. In terms of skills and experiences which I believe make me suitable for this role, I’m an excellent listener and observer; I empathise easily with students from a variety of backgrounds. My increasing involvement with Swansea Student Media and Waterfront specifically has given me confidence in myself and my abilities and indeed given me the confidence to run in these elections. I’ve developed my communication, creative and IT skills; I’ve written about topics including mental health, stress and bereavement. During my degree at Swansea University (BA Modern Languages, Translation and interpreting), I’ve studied abroad so I am able to empathise with international students; I’ve faced many personal challenges myself, therefore I fully understand that students’ welfare and wellbeing is vital. I am a kind, approachable and trustworthy individual which I strongly believe are important qualities to have as Welfare Officer.
Hi I’m Chloe. I’m a postgraduate student doing my masters in Long Term and Chronic Conditions management. I did my undergraduate degree in Swansea too, BSc Medical Sciences and Humanities. I love Swansea University and really want to make a difference for students here. I’ve been working as the Students with Disabilities Officer since September and I love my role. It’s great to see how I can make a difference in the union, but I really want to make more of a difference and help more students in Swansea. This is why I am running to be your next Welfare Officer. I want to make changes for the better in the university and think I am well-suited for the role (if I do say so myself).
Hi! My name is Grace Hannaford, a final year Geography Student and I am running to be Welfare Officer. I feel this role is ideal for me as the welfare of others has always been in my best interest. Over the past two years I have rejuvenated CoppaFeel! at Swansea University, and as president of the Uni Boob Team have increased the society’s influence across both campuses. During my three years I have actively been involved in both societies and sport and feel I have the passion, ability and experience to create a more involving student community at our university.
SWANSEASTUDENTMEDIA.COM
ISSUE 278 // MARCH 2018
PART TIME OFFICERS BME
Travis Brown
LGBT+ (OPEN) OFFICER
Tulani Dario Mlambo
GENERAL SECRETARY
Harvey McCabe
Harri Evans-Mason
INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS' OFFICER
STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES OFFICER
Marcelo Reka
Jasmine Fulcher
Sam Mann
Jamie Goddard
MATURE STUDENTS' OFFICER
Saira Jawaid
David Clark
SWYDDOG IAITH GYMRAEG (WELSH LANGUAGE OFFICER)
Elysia Cartwright
Rebecca Martin
VOTE NOW @ SWANSEA-UNION.CO.UK/ELECTIONS
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ETHICS OFFICER
MENTAL HEALTH AWARENESS OFFICER
Adam Davies
Greta Vaiciunaite
Nathan Burke
Shin Yie Mon
WOMEN'S OFFICER
Ashleigh Warner
Lucia Vazquez Vaquero
Barbara Majewska
ENVIRONMENT OFFICER
Alexis Ciunek
James Wood
Kaloyan Angelov
Eleanor Bean
Ana Guri
Elliott Galvin
MARCH 2018 • WEEKLY EVENTS
01 THURS St. David’s Day University Mental Health Day Sin Savers Sin City
10 SAT 14.15
Ireland v Scotland JC’s (S) & 52° (B)
16.45
France v England JC’s (S) & 52° (B)
til
18 SUN 20:30
Quiz Night 52° (B)
02 FRI 16:00
Eating Disorder Awareness Talk Lecture Room C
19:00 23:30
Karaoke JC’s (S)
22:00 03:00
Tooters Divas (S)
11 SUN 20:30
Quiz Night 52° (B)
04 SUN 20:30
12 MON 11.00
20:30
19 MON 20:30
Open Mic 52° (B)
Quiz Night 52° (B)
05 MON 20:30
Open Mic 52° (B)
22:00
Bermuda Mondays Bambu
13 TUE
Elections Voting Opens
Open Mic 52° (B)
20 TUES 20.00 23.00
Open Mic JC’s (S)
20.00
Pizza Night 52° [B]
22.00
Sin Savers Sin City
20.00
Open Mic Wonky Sheep [HSV]
Elections Voting
20.00
Pizza Night 52° [B]
20:00 23:00
Open Mic JC’s (S)
21 WEDS 22.30
GWA - End of term Idols (Wind Street) Captains Bar Cocktail Night 52° [B]
06 TUES 20:00 23:00
07 WEDS
08 THURS
Open Mic JC’s (S)
17:00 19:00
Elections Hustings JC’s (S)
17:00 19:00
Elections Hustings JC’s (S)
Pizza Night 52° (B)
22:30
GWA Idols (Wind Street) Captains Bar
22.00
Sin Savers Sin City
15 THUR
Elections Voting
22:30
GWA - Elections Idols (Wind Street) Captains Bar
14.00
22.00
Cocktail Night 52° 20.00
22 THURS
16 FRI
Elections Voting
13.00
Elections Voting Closes
Puppy Petting Day Digital Technium
21.00
Elections Results
19:00 23:30
Karaoke JC’s (S)
Sin Savers Sin City Beer Pong 52°(B)
23 FRI
22.00
Sin Savers Sin City
19.00 23.30
Karaoke JC’s (S)
20.00
Beer Pong 52° (B)
22:00 03:00
Tooters Divas (S)
(S) Singleton Campus (B) Bay Campus (HSV) Hendrefoelan Student Village
For further information on our events head to our Official Swansea SU Events Facebook page.
19.00 23.30
Karaoke JC’s (S)
22.00 03.00
Tooters Diva’s [S]
Beer Pong 52°
Cocktail Night 52°
14 WEDS
09 FRI
22:00 03:00
Tropical Tooters Divas (S)
17 SAT 12.20
Italy V Scotland Refectory & 52°
14.45
England V Ireland Refectory & 52°
17.00
Wales V France Refectory & 52°
SWANSEASTUDENTMEDIA.COM
ISSUE 278 // MARCH 2018
INTERVIEW: NEWTON FAULKNER by Sarah Harris Newton Faulker is a talent of virtuoso standards; carving a path from his Guildford Music Academy education, through the rite of passage in various bands – a Green Day cover act and a funk-rock band noted – he fingerpicked, hand slapped, striked, scraped and fret danced his way to become a solo star with an impressive six albums to his name. I caught up with Newton before his headline show in Cardiff to chat about his new album, his thoughts on the music industry and an intriguing upcoming project.
Your new album ‘Hit the ground running’, has a more soul-y vibe; has anything in particular influenced the sound of the new album and the step away from your older sound? The main thing that guided this record, I suppose, was the lack of guidance. No one was telling me what to do. There was no label; there was no one telling me to produce sound that sounded more like one thing than another. I had avoided doing soul in the past, just because there were too many British, soul singers that were males of the same age kicking about, I thought I’d just wait it out
until they’d all stopped. So I went full Gabriel for a bit; I went down a completely different vocal route; I was doing layered stuff, quite harmony based. On this record, I made the decision that I wanted it to be not just achievable, solo and live, but I wanted it to be at its very best when solo and live. Therefore, vocally it couldn’t be a vocal style that needed production for it to work. It needed to be a single vocal that sits proud right in the middle. That’s where I think the soul side came from. Also the ability to do it now, which I didn’t have when I started. There’s tracks on this that I wouldn’t have been able to sing, even four years ago. I’d never have got up to that top note in ‘Hit the Ground Running;’ for ‘Fingertips’ I wouldn’t have had the air. I like learning. I love learning about singing, and I love learning about playing the guitar, so I’m constantly trying to balance out the two. I feel like with this record, they’re both on a similar level and I’d like to continue to keep stepping it up again and again. Step up the guitar next and then try and step up the vocals and just try and keep building it up on this weird balancing act that I decided to give myself as a career. All your previous albums have found success commercially. Do you place any importance on the charts? No, not anymore. I put far more emphasis on what people think. So if everyone bought it, and everyone was like, ‘yeah it’s not great’, it’d be really annoying. The fact that the people who have bought it tend to genuinely like it means a huge amount to me. It’s about connection and communication for me. The charts have just got more and more confusing. Now streaming is lumped in as well, it doesn’t really make any sense to me. I think it’ll settle down again at some point and they’ll find a way of making it work. But at the moment, I don’t think it makes
MUSIC // SARAH HARRIS
enough sense for me to use it as a defining factor. At one point I did kind of want top 10 with this one, but then I analysed why it wasn’t top 10. Other artists who I have huge respect for released records around the same time, so I thought ‘let’s see how they do, let’s see how I’m doing’ and I just realised it’s just really hard at the moment. What’s your opinion on the music industry at the moment? It’s a very interesting time to be in music. In terms of what’s happening in the music industry, it’s interesting because a lot of doors have opened; people can make records that would not have been able to make records before. If you go back to the days of massive studios, someone had to see you and want to pay a lot of money so that you were able to record. This kind of filtered out a lot of stuff that never got a look in; it was like you needed something that was kind of close before you recorded it. Nowadays, you can start recording immediately and the whole trajectory has changed. Spotify is fascinating: the ability to listen to music from anywhere in the world, any time you want. I think we were incredibly musically welleducated when Spotify first came out because people got excited and people went off the grid. I think it’s changed, I don’t think people are doing it that much anymore. I think people are now using Spotify in the way that radio used to be used. Spotify is now adapting to that space, whereas when it first appeared, especially amongst musicians and friends, it was very much an exploratory tool. You just kept getting influenced by it, you just kept going until you resonated with something and was like ‘Wait! What’s that? Azebedwin? What does he play? I don’t know what that is, let’s try it.’ That was fascinating and I learnt a huge amount from that. Records that I have made have been influenced
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by singular Spotify trips where I had gone down a rabbit hole but I feel like people aren’t really doing that as much anymore. Playlists have become more prevalent and that’s led to it kind of taking the space of radio. What I wanted the internet to do was mean that someone could sit at home and write a song that’s just really good and put it out and it just goes to number one globally, for the simple reason that it’s just really good. That can’t seem to happen yet and I’m looking forward to a time when it
"Playlists have become more prevalent and that’s led to it kind of taking the space of radio."
can. I still think that the majors still have a stranglehold on things and people like being told what to listen to which is quite a weird realisation for somebody who makes music for a living. It’s like, but what if they’re not being told to listen to me? How does that work? It’s a very strange thing. You used ‘PledgeMusic’ to fund this album. Would you recommend it as a platform to other artists? I think if you’ve got an existing fan base it’s a really interesting proposition to be able to kind of bypass a lot of the faf that comes with recording an album. I’m not sure how it’d work if you were an artist
trying to break out. I think you need the numbers and the people who are there and interested to be able to make it work. For the position I’m in, it’s great. In terms of starting out, it’s probably not quite right, there are probably better ways of doing it. I heard that you produced a lot of your new album in your home studio. Is that a better environment for you to work in? I’ve done a lot of the last three records there, all of Studio Zoo was done there, most of the guitar and vocals were done there for Human Love, it was kind of between those two records that I learnt how to make this one work. So on Studio Zoo I really got into recording acoustic instruments and everything was played, there was no programming. Then in Human Love, I learnt loads about programming and got into that and then out of that I kind of learnt what I actually liked and how I wanted to sound recorded. This record just sounds simpler than anything I’ve done for a long time, it’s a sound I’ve been searching for for years. I’ve just got enough of everything without having too much. Previously I’ve swung violently from one side to another, all the production, then no production, maybe a little bit? I’ve found a middle ground now, where it all sounds real, and it all sounds played and there’s loads of mistakes which I love. I hate the modern sensibility to fix and retune and nudge everything all the time. In terms of what music is, it kills it for me. It takes all the emotion from any performance. Even if you’re playing the synth, it’s still an emotional performance, you’re still putting something into that. If you just automatically correct everything without even thinking about it, it loses all its humanity for me. I think singing when it’s done well and isn’t messed with can be such a powerful tool of communication. So I fell
ISSUE 278 // MARCH 2018
Photography: Wikimedia Commons
SWANSEASTUDENTMEDIA.COM
against that, I did very little correction and very little editing. It was more about getting the right performance. You’ve previously played Johnny in American Idiot the Musical. How does it differ performing in a musical as opposed to your own show? It’s completely different. The main difference is that the audience doesn’t exist if you’re pretending to be a Californian heroin addict. Whereas my shows are so interactive. I will play anything people shout out. This tour has been particularly fun for it, because instead of fighting against it or doing the entire whole show as planned, I have allocated pockets where I ask the crowd, ‘alright guys what do you fancy, okay, you want that song, and you want that.’ At one point, it suddenly dawned on me, I don’t have to just do one of those and make that choice. If the songs are in the same tuning I can actually write a medley and just make it up as I go along because it’s just me, and no one has to know what I’m going to do. So on stage I’ll get like three songs shouted out and I’m like, right that one, that one, that one, so I can change the key of that, move that two frets to the left, and then if it’s got a kick drum or a sub-octave on it I have to tell the sound guys so they know what to open up. So yeah, I’ve just been making it up as I go along and it’s been great fun. I mean, it has the potential to go horrendously wrong but that’s why I like it. I think live shows should be exciting and interesting. What I don’t want to see when I go and see people, is just those who step out, play the record and go off, because that’s just boring. What I’ve started doing recently is that I’ve grown on fun crowd participation stuff, now I get the crowd singing different bits while I’ll harmonise with each half of what the crowd are doing and then when you kind of take a step back and listen to it, it sounds
Netwon Faulkner at V Festival Chelmsford, 2014 like a really expensive, massive choir with loads of harmonies. There’s this thing you can do when you’re playing guitar, you can imply stuff that people just hear, whether it’s there or not, if you have something up high, and something down low, peoples’ brains kind of imagine the thing in the middle so that you don’t really need the thing in the middle. So if you’re harmonising one part and another part, it sounds like it’s completely harmonised, even though it’s not. You can make this massive noise. You’ve been working on songs for a film. Are you allowed to tell us anything about it? No. Nothing except that I’ve done six of them. The most fun thing about it was that it was just a completely polar opposite challenge to usual. Normally what I have to do is stuff that sounds like me. With this as soon as I realised that it didn’t have to sound like me at all, I got all the instruments out that I
never get to play. Vocally it was really fun as I was doing these bizarre vocal impressions of other people that I like. Half taking the piss, half just having a really great time. There’s one that sounds like kind of a bit like Nick Cave, a bit like the guy from Interpol with a bit of Iggy Pop chucked in there. There’s another one where I go full Bowie in terms of this massive vibrato that I never do but seeing as I can do it, I thought I should. It was a really interesting challenge. It was that thing of being given a brief. When I first started making the album I was really tempted to be like, can you just send me a brief, just make one up. They were so bizarre, there were things like ‘feeling like a broken music box in a misty forest’. I think I did most of them in one day because I got so excited, it was a load of fun and I got to work with a lot of my friends. Newton Faulkner’s album Hit the ground running is out now. Take a listen and discover some new vibes!
RELATIONSHIPS // HEATHER HARVEY & EMILY JANE GRIFFITHS
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Friendships are often the most valuable relationships we will experience throughout our lives, especially at University where we’re all thrown together during Freshers’ fortnight and almost forced to bond. I’ve been lucky enough to have made some of the strongest friendships at Swansea University; I’ve always been someone who has kept themselves to themselves throughout pretty much all of my pre-University life. However, this isn’t the point of this article. Recently, I’ve experienced the heartbreak of what I believed was strong, genuine friendship falling apart.
by Emily Maybanks
It’s normal to lose friends over the years. Not everyone we’re friends with is supposed to be our friend forever. People are brought into our lives for two reasons; either to stay there permanently or to teach us a lesson. Friendships fall apart for many reasons they totally suck and have a real emotional toll on us too. Apart from simply falling out another reason why friendships fall apart is quite simply drifting apart. You were close friends with someone, but as time passes, you both get busy, make new friends and have both gone your own way. Similarly, you realise that you don’t have that same bond that you used to have. Friendships can also become quite negative – this is something that I have found recently – while it is really hard when friends no longer seem to support you or your dreams, the best thing to do is cut yourself off from that negativity. You need friends who lift you up and encourage you.
FRIENDSHIPS Furthermore, a strong, real friendship relies on being vulnerable with one another. So it is natural to drift away from a friend if you feel as though you should hold things back and not be honest or open about things. There are things that you can do to salvage a friendship that is important to you. I am a huge fan of sending cute cards and handwritten letters, however, a nice text message or even a phone or Skype call can work just as well, particularly if the friendship is a long-distance one. If you truly want to make a friendship last, you need to invest in it. Talking about how you’re feeling if you feel as though the friendship is falling
apart is a good idea. By talking, I mean talking and not messaging. Sending messages often mean that things get misinterpreted and blown out of proportion. Open and honest communication is the key here. It is really difficult and very upsetting when friendships drift apart, but focussing on those friends who genuinely adore you is a good idea.
“A real friend is one who walks in when the rest of the world walks out.” – Walter Winchell
FILM // BECKY ELMS
Critics continue to be outraged at John Ford’s 1941 film about the Welsh valleys beating Orson Welles’ noir classic, Citizen Kane, for Best Picture at the 14th Academy Awards. Adapted from the novel of the same name by Richard Llewellyn, How Green Was My Valley is still upheld as a token from the Golden Age of Hollywood for offering audiences an escape from urban and rural America into the green Welsh valleys.
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WALES AT THE ACADEMY AWARDS: How Green Was My Valley
by Carlos Tseng
The film is told from the perspective of Huw Morgan (Roddy McDowall), the youngest son of Gwilym Morgan (Donald Crisp) and Beth Morgan (Sarah Allgood). Whilst his brothers work in the coal mines, his sister Angharad (Maureen O’Hara) helps look after the household with her mother. However, this harmony is disturbed when the mine owner announces that wages will be reduced and two of Huw’s older brothers are made redundant. Consequently, the miners go on strike. Gwilym attempts to make amends by refusing to endorse the miners’ strike, this ultimately backfires as the Morgan family becomes estranged from the rest of the mining community. Even Gwilym’s older sons threaten to leave the house because of his conduct. Meanwhile however, Angharad slowly falls in love with the village chapel pastor, Mr. Gruffydd (Walter Pidgeon). For contemporary audiences, How Green Was My Valley may seem dated with its story and rather twodimensional characters. Furthermore, disappointingly none of the actors are Welsh and due to World War II, the film was shot in the Santa Monica Mountains, California. This being said,
Clint Eastwood has previously declared John Ford’s 1941 classic to be his favourite film of all time and, indeed, it would be unfair to completely dismiss How Green Was My Valley. Its portrayal of Wales is truly a celebration of its culture and history, and a testament to a country too often ignored in popular culture. It won more than just Best Picture at the Oscars; it also won John Ford his third Best Director Oscar and wins for Best Cinematography and Best Art Direction. Donald Crisp also picked up Best Supporting Actor. Personally, I really enjoyed How Green Was My Valley. I watched the film on Blu-ray (bravo to the restoration team for delivering an excellent presentation of the film) and immediately appreciated Ford’s
keen eye for detail and great effort to replicate the gentle nature of the Welsh valleys and coal mine villages. Although Donald Crisp won the Oscar, Maureen O’Hara and Walter Pidgeon also deliver very commendable performances. It’s hard to fault any of the actors’ performances once you start watching it as even a 12 year old Roddy McDowall plays Huw in a manner which earns the hearts of his audience. It may not be authentically Welsh but it would be a lie to say that it’s not endearing. I wholeheartedly recommend How Green Was My Valley and urge you all not to be discouraged by the film’s age; it contains timeless flair and deserves the praise it has received over the years.
FILM // BECKY ELMS
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UNDER MILK WOOD
Charlotte Church plays the village’s promiscuous beauty, Polly Garter
by Fin Basketfield
A statue commemorating Captain Cat at Swansea Marina
As March is the month of St. David's day, the patron Saint of Wales, it would be apt to acknowledge that Wales is a unique place. Coming from an English background, as I’m sure many of you have, highlights this individuality even more. Its people, places, language and enduring fixation with the rugby are just some of the reasons Wales is so special. This individuality is captured perfectly in 2015’s Under Milk Wood. Based on Dylan Thomas’ famous story, the film stars Rhys Ifans (The Amazing Spiderman) as Captain Cat, a blind sea captain who narrates over the lives and dreams of the people who live in the small fictional town of Llareggub. The film starts with a
monologue as the camera sweeps over beautiful Welsh scenery before showing scenes of the people’s dreams that, rightly so, are lucid. The film overall is an amusing look at life in a small village, from the gossip that is spitefully shared amongst the villagers to the more tender moments of togetherness and community. Under Milk Wood also touches on more hard-hitting elements of life for some villagers. This film is funny in parts - even the name of the village is a joke (say it backwards) - and emotional in others as we realise why Polly Garter takes so many lovers. Under Milk Wood is a great representation of Wales by its most famous writer. Also, it wouldn’t be in true Swansea spirit if we didn’t plug Dylan Thomas.
FILM // BECKY ELMS
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NETFLIX BINGE by Alexander Udraufski-Osborne March. Here in the Northern hemisphere, it marks the beginning of Spring. The plants begin to make a return, and so do the bugs - many, many bugs. More specifically for us Welsh, March marks St David’s Day and—perhaps more importantly for us at Swansea University— it’s the beginning of the infamous Varsity. However, as a break from all the Welsh and sport related articles, I’d like to discuss a hard-hitting war documentary. Restrepo follows a single platoon of American soldiers on their 12-month tour in Afghanistan’s Korangal Valley. We witness the trials of the modern battlefield and glimpses into unexpected humanity in unimaginable situations, as well as the determination of the human spirit. The title itself, Restrepo – which is explained during the first quarter of the movie – is a prime example. All of this is captured by British photographer Tim Hetherington and American journalist Sebastian Junger - famed for his bestselling non-fiction, Perfect Storm - as co-directors. The opening sequence is very reminiscent of pictures seen in the Vietnam-era of war films. We are treated to the view of helicopters flying over the Korangal Valley, which to us as viewers may seem quite astonishing – the sprawling mountains, and sun kissed landscape looks great in comparison to the Swansea weather. However, it becomes clear through
the soldiers’ interviews, that for them, the beautiful landscape did not have quite the same effect. Although one example of many Afghanistan films out at the moment (12 Strong), Restrepo is an eye-opening insight into what is happening on the other side of the world. Despite how unconnected to spring and Varsity as it may sound, there is a solid reason for my recommendation of this. Whatever your opinion on the Afghanistan war, it’s still an
example of strength in the human mind and the unbridled forte of determination. These soldiers fought through hell on earth. It serves as an extreme instance of how we can apply a similar mindset of fortitude and drive to our own pursuits. This documentary, and the soldiers and videographers that made it, are models from which we can learn something: a strong mentality is the kindling to success. And it’s a darn good documentary.
SPORT // GREG STONE & LULU THORNTON
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RUGBY LEAGUE MATCH REPORT Aberystwyth University 4-42 Swansea University by Lulu Thornton The final game of the first term for Swansea University RL took them west to Aberystwyth but with only 15 players. The game started as an arm wrestle, with both teams carrying hard through the middle and defending resolutely. This tight start led to knockons from both teams in the opening 20 minutes, making the game scrappy. However, Aberystwyth increased their intensity, forcing a number of penalties by Swansea to give the home team field position and a chance to score points. After repeat sets, Aberystwyth crashed over through strong carrying on their left edge to make the game 4-0. This was a catalyst for Swansea to increase their skill levels and up the aggression; after a good break down the middle, Jack Richards was on hand to run in under the posts and the conversion was successful, making it 6-4 at half time. Swansea played the second half as they finished the first, scoring three tries from their first three sets - Sam Baker grabbed two of these from loose forward. Swansea also defended much more enthusiastically, forcing errors from the home side and not allowing any easy yards. The skill level remained high on attack and tries remained frequent for Swansea in the second half, with Seb Engel, Sam Baker again and Ollie Beale on debut amongst the scorers. A strong second half resulted in a Swansea University win of 4-42 and kept the unbeaten season going. Why have you been so successful so far? There are a number of reasons for our successful season, starting with
the depth of our squad. We have had over 30 boys involved in a match day this season, which is hugely important as everyone has different university deadlines and we have been unfortunate in suffering a number of injuries. However, the boys in the club have stepped up and played brilliantly, resulting in a real competition for places. Our link with West Wales Raiders RL has proved invaluable also; the standard of coaching we receive from the club has improved all players and has provided a number of opportunities for individuals to play at higher standards. A lot of the players come from a rugby union background. Consequently this coaching has been brilliant in order to get the team playing proper rugby league. The desire to get promoted back to the BUCS Western Premiership
is pivotal to our success as well. The boys in the club feel like we could compete in the top league, and thus we have to prove that we are the best university rugby league team in the South-West and Wales. What are your ambitions for the rest of the season? Having gone undefeated thus far, we intend on continuing this feat for the rest of the season. We have two big league games left to play, and then two play-off matches to gain promotion and a cup competition. Ultimately we are looking to gain promotion to BUCS Rugby League Southern Premiership and win the cup. We also want to improve our links with local side West Wales Raiders and attempt to get more students in Swansea involved in the club.
SPORT // GREG STONE & LULU THORNTON
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What is Octopush? You may not have heard of Octopush (or ‘Underwater Hockey’) but this unusual sport is growing all across the country, especially in universities. The sport is played 6-a-side in a swimming pool, with each team using small sticks to push a puck along the bottom into the opposition’s goal. Using fins, a diving mask and snorkel, this fastpaced sport focuses on teamwork, and rapidly improves players’ fitness and breath-holding ability. Here at Swansea University Sub Aqua Club (SUSAC), we run training every Tuesday night (starting again in the new term) in Pontardawe
Korfball – An Opportunity Awaits Most of you will have little idea of what Korfball is, never mind ever thinking about taking the sport up, but now is that opportunity. Korfball is an exciting, dynamic sport that takes the rules from basketball and netball and crosses them together. This wonderful ball game relies on passing, movement and collaboration; the fact that it is a mixed-gender sport makes it extremely unique. Teams consist
pool, playing for an hour at 8:30pm. Any member of Swansea Uni is welcome to come along to try out the sport (as long as you can swim). We meet at 7:30pm at the SUSAC kit room (down the road in the car park to the right of the Welsh National Pool entrance) and each session costs only £5! To join us permanently, membership costs just £10. These costs help us cover transport to the pool for all players each week, pool hire, and all the equipment you need (although you can bring your own if you want!). To get involved, find our Facebook page/group (SUSAC) or message me on Facebook (Toby Humby). See you there!
of eight players, four male and four female, so korfball is a great way to get everyone involved. This semester is the perfect opportunity to take up Korfball as we look for players for a weekend long BUCS tournament in Manchester. If you want to give it a go, training takes place between 4pm-6pm on a Saturday and we are a very welcoming bunch. Get in touch via our Facebook group ‘Korfball Swansea University’ or email korfball@swansea-sports.co.uk.
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ISSUE 268
SWANSEASTUDENTMEDIA.COM
ISSUE 278 // MARCH 2018
The university experience is often described as existing within a ‘bubble’, flush with responsibilities and pressures which may well shape our lives for years to come. Our whole world shrinks down to the campus on which we work, the homes in which we rest, and the routine of day-to-day student life. Our University begins to feel like an independent society, with its own unique structure of groups and institutions. Sometimes, it’s easy to forget that we belong to the world beyond, a world to which we ought to lend our attention.
by Polly Manning
The prison is situated on Oystermouth Road
SWANSEA PRISON: The hidden suffering on our doorstep It is no secret that Swansea faces huge obstacles. The city is not immune to the poverty which has sunk its claws into much of the rest of Wales. The 2014 Welsh Index of Multiple Deprivation identified 12% of Swansea's local areas as falling within the top 10% of those most deprived in Wales.
Gross value added (basically a measure of the value of goods and services produced in an area) per person in Swansea is 28.3% below the UK average. At least 1 in 6 children live in extreme poverty and 6,100 adults living in Swansea are unemployed. Just across the waters of Swansea Bay stand the steelworks of Port Talbot – the symbol of an industry so much in crisis that, last year, workers took a cut to their pensions in order to keep it open. These problems have been ruminated over by citizens, politicians, and council representatives for years. Now, however, awareness of an old
injustice is just coming to light. Swansea prison was built between 1845 and 1861, and today functions as a Category B/C men’s prison located on the side of Oystermouth Road in the Sandfields area. Most of us will have passed it on our way into the city centre: a block of Victorian stone punctuated by a reddish arched door, the respective flags of the UK, Wales, and HM Prison Service flapping proudly behind its railings. In the August of 2017, the watchdog HM Inspectorate of Prisons (HMIP) carried out an unannounced inspection of Swansea prison. Details of its conditions have emerged since the publication of the
FEATURES // EMILY WILLIAMS
report in the January of this year. The findings are shocking. In the past six years, eight inmates have taken their own lives – all within the first week of their arrival at the prison. In the six months prior to the investigation there were 134 reported instances of self-harm amongst prisoners. It was also noted that violence between inmates had risen since the previous inspection in 2014, and the city-centre location of the prison itself presented a higher risk of contraband – in particular, drugs - being thrown over walls to inmates. The report also noted that 17% of inmates had become addicted to drugs after the start of their sentences in the prison, and the provision of clean bedding and clothing was described as ‘unacceptably poor’. The report added that the prison had a ‘complacent and inexcusable’ attitude towards the safety of the most vulnerable prisoners in its care. The report further detailed how ‘prisoners usually had to eat their meals next to their toilets, which did not always have seats or lids’, due to overcrowding and a shortage of staff. Peter Clarke, Chief Inspector of Prisons called the report ‘very disappointing’. ‘Between our last inspection in 2014 and when we went back in the middle of last year there have been four further self-inflicted deaths - all in similar circumstances, all in the early days of the individual's imprisonment at Swansea jail,’ Mr Clarke said. ‘Quite simply, not enough has been done to understand the sort of problems they may have been facing and to prevent them inflicting harm and death upon themselves.’ He added that rates of self-harm described in the report were ‘clearly unacceptable’, and pointed out that,
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health, there's going to be drugs and violence and assaults, and it puts the staff at serious risk.’
Inside a typical prison cell
of 63 recommendations made to the prison following the 2014 inspection, only eight had been put into action. ‘As it stands at the moment, our conclusion is that it's not fit for purpose in that its standards are not acceptable.’ It is not the first time that Swansea prison has come under fire for the living conditions which its inmates face. In the November of last year, Alun Davies of the Welsh mental health charity Hafal – who closely works with members of the prison and criminal justice systems – spoke to BBC Wales’ Newyddion 9 of the ‘pressure cooker’ conditions facing inmates. ‘The stories I hear from different sources who have been in [Swansea] prison is that very often on the weekend prisoners are locked up from Friday afternoon to Monday morning through lack of staff.’ Chief executive of the Howard League, Frances Crook, described the situation at the prison as 'really disgusting'. ‘It's smelly, people can't get showers, they've got nothing to do, they get very little food,’ she said. ‘Of course, there's going to be as a result of that deteriorating mental
It is worth noting that these issues are not unique to HMP Swansea. Indeed, the Prison Governors Association said that the ‘issues highlighted in the Swansea report are fairly systemic across the prison system.’ In particular, overcrowding and the poor level of mental health and personal safety this enables are symptoms of the prison system throughout the country. However, the problem has arguably come to a head. Swansea prison was designed to hold a capacity of 268 prisoners – at the time of this report it houses 438. As such, it is the third most overcrowded prison in all of England and Wales.
Why should students care? Wherever we are from, we have chosen to make Swansea our home for three, four, perhaps many more years. We belong to the city and it belongs to us in the give-and-take relationship of any human being with their environment. The prison nestles itself comfortably between our coffee shops, our takeaways, our streets, and our homes. It is a visible presence right on our doorstep, and yet the degradations within its walls are hidden to us. Just as this city belongs to us, these degradations do. As University students we have been granted privileges that many will never know, and we have a responsibility to employ these to help those who, for structural reasons, have found themselves relegated to different circumstances. Let us summon up some of that classic student radicalism, and raise our voices against this product of the prison system which has allowed such human degradation to fester right in the heart of our city.