Byline Issue 10 by University Express

BYLINE ISSUE X

What’s Inside...

Headlines of Byline: FILM & TV “BYLINE Editor Xander talks Deadpool & R-Rated movies, Gaming Editor Aoife Gleeson talks about the new show ‘You Me & The Apocalypse’ and Megan McCarthy gives us a recap of the Baftas”

MUSIC “We recap the last fortnight’s music news, Hozier releases new single to fight domestic violence, Music Editor Holly Cooney reviews the Dublin Foals’ Gig and recaps the latest Grammy Awards”

By(Line) the people, For the People. What’s better than one election? Why two of course, which is why you’re being harassed on and off campus for votes and signatures this week, as we prepare for the upcoming shitstorm that SU elections always turn out to be. With that in mind, welcome to this edition of Byline, where we sit around and try to pointedly avoid any semblance of political engagement where we possibly can. It is difficult to do when it’s literally the only thing in on and off campus news, but Byline’s never been about news, or at least I certainly hope not or else I’ve completely missed the point this year.

But actually, I am going to talk a little bit, because most of you should be members of the voting public, (And if not, sort your life out) so you probably briefly engage with the political system for the next few days to make sure you don’t vote for someone who wants to do something you actually find completely appalling. Check out smartvote, look at their party manifestos and press releases, (Or in the case of AAA-PBP, videos of them shouting at the sky) and try and figure out if one of them is right

for you. If you want a pointer, it’s probably not the people who are of the opinion that students need to pay more money to go to college. After that, figure out who you want to run the SU, and deal with issues that are going to be much more close to home, like having plugs in the library and some actual working WiFi. There is cool stuff in this issue, but most of you are going to be still dying from a three day hangover that’s turned into hangaround from the abuse you’ve given your body this week, and probably won’t care, and even if you did, I’m pretty sure the only other person who reads this is Rob our designer, and he’d be okay with me just writing the word dick twenty times. Like the Deadpool script. As I come to the close of another weeks inane ramblings, I find myself slightly sad that I only have two more issues as my term as editor, I think, and the manic planning of final year has turned more into morose acceptance of my inevitable leaving of college. Anyway, whatever about the rest of this, go out and fucking vote.

#Votáil2016

ARTS & LIT “Colm Furlong gives a new book suggestion, continues the ‘On Writing’ series and UCC EXPRESS Editor Brian Conmy remembers ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’ author Harper Lee, who passed away recently”

GAMING “Jonathan Soltan asks if new indie game ‘The Witness’ is priced correctly, Aoife Gleeson previews the 20th Anniversary of Pokemon and Aoife talks about Assassin’s Creed’s gap year”

HUMOUR “Langdon Alger talks about the brown bag special & STI tests, Raymond Luxury-Yacht talks R&G Week and the American Dream talks about his fucked-up parents”

INTERVIEW “BYLINE interviews Ray Peacock (voice of reason) & Barry Dodds (gullible believer) of the Parapod, the podcast that discusses and debates the oddities of life, including ghosts & mysteries.”

BYLINE EDITORIAL STAFF Editor: Xander Cosgrave Designer: Robert O’Sullivan Film & TV Editor: Olivia Brown Music Editor: Holly Cooney

Arts & Lit Editor: Colm Furlong Gaming Editor: Aoife Gleeson Fiction Editor: Austin Dowling Humour Editor: Lauren Mulvihill

FICTION

EDITOR - AUSTIN DOWLING

That Time in Spring

by Nicole Johnson

She was drunk on the kitchen floor and I was the fool who took a chance on her. Charlie was a girl of possibility. At the start we were two people playing the same game everyone plays for the night, just to be alone again. But Charlie knew the rules and she knew how to play them in her favour. And being young and drunk I was willing to play. College was supposed to be free. We were a bunch of kids enjoying our twenties, drinking and having fun; reality had not hit our house yet. But when Charlie grabbed me that night at the college bar I knew it was something different. This seemed real. I went home that weekend, leaving Charlie. I was risking the possibility of losing her attention, but reality for me was studying to get high marks on my exams and then helping out twenty-two with the pressure to figure things out and to get on the farm once I finished college. it together. I couldn’t help but think that she was a girl that I It was the four of us. My kind-hearted mother worked at the would drop everything for. It was horrible timing, I knew. local pharmacy. My brother Jason, who was never home, and my father who was always working on his bikes or spending his Later that week, back on the farm everything hit me like a brick time at the local bar. He never hesitated to tell me what was on wall. It came out of nowhere, except I didn’t hit a wall. Instead, I hit my father after he slapped my mother. I could smell the his mind and tell me what he expected of me. whiskey on his breath as he passed me heading into the kitchen. On my usual run to pick my father up late at the pub he decided I recognized that look on his face. I got up, quickly, and once I to tell me exactly what I needed to do after he saw Charlie’s heard the loud sound of my mother’s yelp I went for him. It was a cruel reminder of who he really was to us. picture pop up on my phone. “Who’s the girl?” he asked. “She’s from college, her name’s Charlie.” “Charlie? What kind of name is Charlie?”

I told Charlie I couldn’t be there for her anymore. She didn’t ask any questions. I could tell she was used to this. If only she understood that my father was a drunk, my mom helpless and that my brother was hiding from it all. I wish I could tell her that I had to help out because, like my mom said, if I did then everything would be better at home.

I did not want to pick a fight, especially after he had a couple of drinks, but I told him. And as expected, he told me, a girl like For a moment it had seemed we had everything, but we were that wasn’t for me, she wouldn’t fit right; I was meant to be here. young and drunk on the idea that we were untouchable. We had fallen fast, and Charlie made me see a life that was different to But I didn’t listen; at school I had Charlie back in my arms, the one that I had. But, just like I knew the day I met her, that and the last thing I wanted was to let go of her. I couldn’t life was never going to be mine. find anything wrong with her, but I wished there was, I was

POETRY Thought

by A.S. Cosgrove

I thought of you today, And promptly Squashed said thought. It came back, a little later, So I Squashed another thought. Now as you know, I enjoy my thoughts. So could you go away,

and stay far out of my thoughts? I didn’t think I loved you, That’s not on my thoughts. But similarly I don’t hate you, So I better Hold that thought. Instead of that, I guess, I’ll hold onto these thoughts. Because you are long since gone from me, and all I have are thoughts.

HUMOUR HEADLINES Student Life: Student (18) forgets other meaning of being “on the rag” when captioning photo Politics: Thousands of unfortunate babies forced into photographs with politicians

Crime: Renua seriously think it’s a good idea to model criminal justice system on America’s one Sport: UCC student goes to the gym during RAG Week, is a smug prick about it

Weather: Bright yellow ball reappears in the sky, hurts eyes of public World: Grown adults continue to find it ok to harass children who voice opinions on the internet

TV LISTINGS 4

RTÉ One, Monday @ 2.30PM: Vegan propaganda hour, featuring Peppa Pig and Spongebob Squarepants. MTV, Saturday @ 7PM: Premier of No Direction’s first music video, ‘Drag GE Down’.

Brown Bag of Introspection by Langdon Alger Last year I wrote about a traumatic experience from my past for your entertainment. The gist of the story revolved around my first STI test and how I came out to my father. Yes, those two things happened in the same story, my life is just that upsetting. At the time I held that story up as a low moment for me, among my lowest moments. Well dear readers I come to you today humbled, with an even worse story to tell for your further amusement. I pray I’m not here next year to tell you another story from the slippery slope that is my sex life. So I had a rough time last year, not like a minority at a Donald Trump rally rough time but rough enough. In my 22 year old wisdom I decided that the best course of action for dealing with depression was to fuck my way through it. And fuck I did. If I had endeavoured to do this several years ago I can imagine I wouldn’t have made it very far but in the age of Grindr and Tinder (but mostly Grindr, hallowed be its name) you’d be surprised what a homely gentleman such as myself can achieve. At my best, or worst depending on how you look at it, I was averaging about 3 different guys a week for several months. Shamefully before this period of my life I’d only had the one STI test so once I realised what I was getting myself into, and out of and then into again (repeat until satisfied) I booked in for another. This was a fairly routine affair, no classic comedy tidbits to report. With the knowledge of a clean bit of health on my side I proceeded to play Grindr bingo. Every fifth or so encounter could be an article all of its own here but I’ll save the stories of the floating prostate, the eye of Sauron and the slut shaming threesome for another day. A few months after my second STI test I went back for another, I needed more shots anyway so in for a penny

in for an obvious anal sex joke. This time the experience was somewhat more traumatic. At first all was normal, I got my shots and had blood drawn as usual. Once we got to the questions round of the test the fun began. For those unaware generally these questions involve getting the rough numbers of people you’ve slept with over the past year or so, the type of sex you’re having (receptive, insertive, alone into a sock) and how safe you’re being. Needless to say my numbers spoke for themselves with the doctor taking my history physically embodying the “you are yeah” attitude so unique to Irish people. Whether or not she believed me she carried out her duties dutifully, as dutifully as any one person can shove a swab into your urethra while trying to talk about how long the evenings were getting. Afterwards to finish off my paperwork I was sent to another room to talk to another person working at the clinic, she quickly confirmed some of the details I’d previously given before placing a few condoms from a nearby drawer into a small brown bag. Once she got further down the form she stopped mid-sentence and in an act I can only describe as gas cuntism, opened the condom drawer again and throwing more condoms into the brown bag. Now I know slut shamer shaming is all the rage nowadays but if you can cuttingly make me rethink my sexual habits just by giving me condoms then I respect you as a medical worker. I wish I could say that was me bottoming out but alas, later that week I managed to destroy a personal record of number of guys slept with in one day and so continued my escapades for a time at least. While I’ve calmed down somewhat now I do often think before opening up Grindr, what would the brown bag condom lady think? Has she given anyone else an introspective bag of sass lately?

Students Get Away With Murder During RAG Week by Raymond Luxury-Yacht

Locals have criticised the Cork judiciary after several students were allowed to get away with murder during RAG Week. Judge B. Grant, Sr. decided to let the students, who faced similar charges during RAG Week 2015, go free following a brief trial. When asked to justify his decision, B. Grant, Sr. wrote: “sure, they were only having a laugh. ‘Tis RAG Week.” Speaking to members of the press outside court on Wednesday afternoon, a solicitor for one of the students conceded that “any other week, you’d imagine that a person who committed a crime such as murder or a mugging would be prosecuted for it. But they were only students having a laugh during RAG Week.” The student, who has asked to be named on the basis of their friends thinking they were a ‘ledge’ but was denied, committed murder on the first day of RAG Week.

“I mean, it was a Sunday so it was a bit dodgy,” they said in a recent statement. “I wasn’t sure the Sunday would count as part of RAG Week, so I thought I wouldn’t be able to use it as an excuse. But I have a great solicitor who has been seeing students get away with murder during RAG every year, so she knows what she’s doing.”

The week-long celebration of, we don’t know, charity or something has been a source of controversy for many years, mainly due to an abundance of young people using alcohol as an excuse for being assholes. Several students get away with, amongst other things, murder each year, but sure they’re only students, and the public tend to be alright with this sort of violence as long as we don’t mind the look of the perpetrator. The coming years are expected to see more students getting away with murder on the basis that they also gave a few euro to what they’re pretty sure is a charitable organisation, so they deserve to.

EDITOR - LAUREN MULVIHILL

HUMOUR

Six Years A Child - The Story of My Conception by Dusty Rhodes Age 6 was an interesting year for me. It was the year 2000, not much had changed but we lived under water, some bloke went on a space odyssey and my parents clearly just stopped giving a fuck. The first signs of this were small enough. One evening they sat me down at the dinner table and told me we were going to watch their favourite film (that was also turning 6 that year): Pulp Fiction. The one catch was that there was one scene they were going to skip entirely, to save my innocent young mind. We lit the fire, got wine and orange juice (guess which one was for me) and sat down to watch Tarantino’s masterpiece. Pulp Fiction remains one of my favourite films to this day, but at age 6 as Bruce Willis mounted a motorbike, said “Zed’s Dead” and the credits rolled, I was nothing besides incredibly confused. “What were ye going to skip?” I innocently asked my parents, only for them to fall about the place with laughter, having forgotten to skip the Marcellus Wallace basement scene. While this is funny, and a bit fucked up, it’s not the main event of the fucked up card that was my 6th year on this planet.

skipping...that. Anyway, one night while eating moussaka, the traditional Celtic Tiger family dinner, I asked my parents where babies come from. They looked at each other, nodded solemnly and stood up. Walking me into the hallway, they pointed at a spot on the floor outside our spare room. This wasn’t where all children came from, I was told: it was where I came from.

So now you’re probably thinking: “Jaysus, that’s a bit weird, but it’s not too fucked up.” Well first off, yes it kind of is a bit fucked up, but you can also see that this article didn’t end there. We left the scene of my conception, walked back to the table and my parents began to tell me the tale of how I was made. If you want a quick preview, my mother’s birthday and mine are just about 9 months apart. Apparently my mum came in from work to find my father with flowers, chocolates and nothing else. There was no time to get a condom, no time to go beyond the hallway and no time to take off my mother’s soaking wet trenchcoat. Apparently my father was a prolific lover, and so roughly 9 months and thirty minutes later, out pops Fast forward a few relatively uneventful Baby Me. months...in saying that, I was 6; the most eventful thing that a 6 year old usually does I struggle to process this information now is play football in schoolyard and watch writing this, so you can imagine how I took Pokemon, so if you’re wondering what I’m it then. Actually, looking back, I took it

rather well. I didn’t know that Santa wasn’t real, but I did know where, when and for how long my parents rode to make me. I presumed this passing of information was a normal parent-child exchange, and didn’t know otherwise until talking to someone on a date in college. They didn’t believe me so, of course, the only natural course of action was to bring them home, show them the spot and introduce them to my parents. Nevertheless, that relationship didn’t last long. What will last long is the memory of that day, the image born of that conversation with my parents, and the crippling alcoholism to try and forget both of the former.

1916 Celebrations Inspire Cork to Declare Republic by Lauren Mulvihill

Citizens of County Cork – inspired by nationwide 1916 commemorations - have decided to make the People’s Republic a reality, in a move that An Taoiseach Enda Kenny has described as “not really a surprise to anyone”. A small, pretty much unarmed militia announced the decision outside Washington Street Post Office on Monday afternoon, simultaneously unveiling a new flag which is designed to always be at least 0.5 times bigger than Dublin’s one. The rebels have yet to announce members of government, but it is believed that an invitation has been extended to Angela Lansbury to give being president a go. The Corkonians, as they wish to be known, gathered to

hear the official proclamation read by Roy Keane, having failed to convince Cillian Murphy to have anything to do with the event.

Limerick, even though offers of an official alliance were declined. Limerick County Council have defended their decision in a statement: “look, we tried something similar ourselves “We declare the right of the back in 1919, and we all know called for the Corkonians to “cop people of Cork to the ownership how that went.” on”, and promise that there will of Cork, which was always be no hard feelings if and when the real capital anyway. We When questioned about their Cork returns to Ireland. Inside have long been usurped of this unusual choice of weaponry, sources have alleged that Cork right by nobody in particular rebels responded by saying may be willing to return to the (Dublin). While we’re on the “what’d we be doing with proper rest of the country if the next subject, we would also like to guns, like? People would be government gives them another remind everyone that Michael thinking we were crazy, like airport and works with Britain to Collins was one of ours, and he them Americans.” Reports get Graham Norton back. was the cool one. In addition, allege that at least three people we are not doing this to distract were dampened by rebel leaders For the time being, the from anything we may or may throughout the afternoon, provisional government are not have done during the 1916 including an elderly lady who focusing on consolidating power, Rising, even though we had good “just wanted to send an aul’ beginning by renaming UCC reasons.” postcard, not to participate in and CIT to simply UC and IT, the dissolution of the Republic of since “sure [they] hardly need Corkonians are believed Ireland.” to specify what county they’re in to have obtained hi-tech water anymore”. guns from sympathisers in Members of the Dáil have

GAMING Is ‘The Witness’ Priced Correctly? By Jonathan Soltan Although developer Jonathan Blow’s first-person puzzle game The Witness recently released to rave reviews, the game is really suffering in the eyes of certain gamers due not to the quality of the game but its price. The price of €37 might seem perfectly reasonable to some, but to others it is simply too high due mainly to two factors. Firstly, that it is “just” a puzzle game, and secondly that it is “just” a downloadable game. Puzzle games seem to suffer from this problem a lot in general. Usually puzzle solving is seen to be something more suited to be part of a larger game rather than the focus of a whole game on its own. When a dedicated puzzle game is released, it’s usually a smaller game that can be beaten fairly quickly and, as such, is priced appropriately

somewhere in the €10 - €20 region. As a result, it’s somewhat understandable that, when people hear that a puzzle game is coming out and that it costs almost €40, they suffer a bit of sticker shock. The problem comes when people stick with that initial reaction without finding out anything more about the game, such as the fact that it takes anywhere upwards of 60 hours to complete the main story of the game. Of course, how long a game is doesn’t matter if he game isn’t fun or satisfying in some way. I spent tens of hours beating Assassin’s Creed: Unity and enjoyed myself for maybe 2 of those hours. I know, I should have just stopped playing. But The Witness has received almost universal praise for its clever puzzle design and beautiful environments. My point being: a game’s genre

shouldn’t put a ceiling on its price. The second point is, in my opinion, an even more ridiculous one. Although games have been available to download on various platforms for many years now, some people still perceive them as somehow “not a proper game”. This leads to the issue where a game that costs €37, literally half what a game like Call of Duty costs in our local GameStop, can be seen as too expensive. It’s all about perception and conditioning. Consumers have been trained to see a game on a shelf and to expect to pay a certain amount for it. On the flip side, traditionally, when people see a game on the PlayStation Store or the Xbox Marketplace, they usually don’t cost upwards of €25. Things like free mobile games and Steam sales only further warp

peoples’ perception of value for money. All of this to say: value is subjective and I can’t really tell you how to spend your money, but don’t judge a book by its price tag.

A Break from Assassin’s Creed By Aoife Gleeson A surprising announcement was made last week: this year, Ubisoft would not be publishing a new Assassin’s Creed game. After lacklustre sales by both Assassin’s Creed: Unity (AKA: the one in Paris) and Assassin’s Creed: Syndicate (AKA the one in London) the company says it will be taking a step back in order to evaluate the future direction of the series. Given that the series has become somewhat stagnant in the last few years (with many experiencing franchise fatigue)

this is a positive step for the series. Recent instalments have contained a lot of bloat (no, I don’t want to build up a Parisian real estate empire, I want to stab some guys in the face), with Unity’s co-op multiplayer component in particular being mostly ignored. While Ubisoft removed the multiplayer component from Syndicate, in an effort to bring the series ‘back to its roots’ perhaps it was too late to assuage the series’ marred reputation. While Assassin’s Creed has long been thought of as a yearly derivative cash cow, in the vein of Call of Duty, a lot of the damage to the series’ reputation came from the controversy after Unity’s release. Many players experienced egregious bugs, with g a m e

breaking stalls and bizarre animations (my personal favourite was a mission where I had to rescue the King’s young son, who was rendered as a fully grown man with a child’s voice). Ubisoft were accused of intentionally ignoring bugs, to later patch, in order to make their yearly release schedule – an entirely fair criticism. Although the game is quite good following the patch, the damage had already been done. Now, while this is a positive step, it should be taken with a grain of salt. Assassin’s Creed: Chronicles (three side scrolling games set in China, India and Russia) have still been released this year. The reviews are pretty dire. The Assassin’s Creed film, starring Michael Fassbender, is also being released in December.

Granted, that will probably be awesome but clearly the year off won’t be a complete breather from the franchise, which is what it sounds like at first blush. The series definitely does have a lot to evaluate – the fact that, after so many instalments, free running and movement is still occasionally wonky (“no, behind the box, get BEHIND the box”) is fairly baffling. Also, in this re-evaluation, they would do well to just remove the present day Abstergo stuff altogether. Literally no one likes its incoherent nonsense. You made the right step when you killed future Desmond Ubisoft – finish the job.

EDITOR - AOIFE GLEESON

GAMING

How to Celebrate Pokémon’s 20th Anniversary By Aoife Gleeson This 27th February marks a special birthday: the anniversary of the first Pokémon game. So you, college student who very likely has a nostalgic attachment to the series, should take this time to celebrate. Here are some suggestions to help you along.

Binge Watch the TV show

Replay Red, Blue or Yellow

Get the Pokémon Vinyl

Get Some Legendaries

All 52 episodes of the Indigo League series are available on Netflix (the weird modern cartoons with different voices are available too, but you needn’t concern yourself with that) so take a walk down nostalgia lane and re-experience some of your childhood. You know you remember all the words to the theme song anyway. Also, for extra points, see if you remember Team Rocket’s motto.

On the 27th, the exact 20th anniversary of Red and Blue’s release in 1997, the classic Red, Blue and Yellow games will be released for download on the eShop for 3DS. So, even though you probably don’t own an original Gameboy, you’ll still get the opportunity to get all nostalgic.

If you’re a super hipster you can invest in a Pokémon vinyl with songs from the original game. No one’s going to believe you that you liked Pokémon before it was cool though.

Starting February 1st, certain legendaries will be available for free download on Pokémon 3DS games every month for the rest of the year. Kicking off with Mew, each of the Pokémon will be available at Level 100 so, if you wanted to make the game really easy for yourself or there’s a legendary that you’ve always really wanted, you can check out the whole release schedule online.

Pokemon 20th Anniversary!

Pre-order Pokken Tournament

Get the Special Edition 3DS

Get hyped for Pokémon Go

Also coming on the 27th is a special edition 3DS, which comes preloaded with Blue and Red and depicts Charizard and Blastoise. There are also special editions of the still befuddling 2DS which come pre-installed with Red, Blue or Yellow and are themed accordingly.

Pokken Tournament, a new fighting game for the Wii U and a port of the Japanese version of the game, will be released on the 18th March. Granted, this one pre-supposes that you own a Wii U (which, statistically, you probably don’t) but, given that the Nintendo NX will be officially announced in the next few months, maybe Wii U’s will become super cheap around summer time.

While Pokemon Go still doesn’t have a definitive release date, Nintendo’s first mobile Pokémon game looks to be amazing. Go watch some trailers and get excited.

Ratchet & Clank Film Preview By Kieran Collins

Video game movies have had a terrible history, both critically and financially. From Street Fighter and Prince of Persia, to Tomb Raider, which got not one, but two movies. At this point, most feel that the industry’s best work, being hours long, just isn’t nearly as good when cut down to your standard hour and a half to two hour movie experience. However, things are looking up. Rainmaker and Blockade Entertainment, in association with Sony Pictures and Insomniac Games, are bringing the beloved PlayStation series, Ratchet and Clank, to the big screen this year. What separates this from adaptations of the past is that it’s being done how a Ratchet and Clank movie should be done, using animation. The animation itself is gorgeous. You know how

back when the PS3 first came out, people were comparing R&C’s graphics to Pixar movies? Well now, that’s actually a reality, because this movie looks exactly as it should: beautiful. Based on the trailers thus far, it seems to be a faithful adaptation of the original PlayStation 2 game, with series staples Captain Quark and Dr. Nefarious playing integral roles. The movie’s voice cast is outstanding. Ratchet, Clank, and Quark are all voiced by the same actors that have always played them but there are some serious heavy hitters in the supporting roles. Sylvester Stallone, Paul Giamatti, and John Goodman are just some of the names that will be in the credit roll. I must admit I am a little sceptical of this movie. I’d love it to be great but I have been

burned in that past. Also, considering how little of the movie has been shown and discussed, and the fact that there is not yet so much as a release date, there is always those worries that it won’t live up to expectations. Worst comes to worst, though, it’s another fun family animation film, which really wouldn’t be a bad outcome after all. Ratchet and Clank is set to hit theatres some time in 2016.

ARTS & LITERATURE On Writing

Colm Furlong discusses the craft of writing “Writing is like everything else: the more you do it the better you get. Don’t try to perfect as you go along, just get to the end of the damn thing. Accept imperfections. Get it finished and then you can go back. If you try to polish every sentence there’s a chance you’ll never get past the first chapter.” – Iain Banks The above quote speaks volumes to me in terms of writing; not only in the sense of novels, but in general. Writing is by nature imperfect. It is in its purest form when it is at its most raw. Writing is a craft that is; in my opinion, one of the finest forms of art. Each and every piece of writing in this world tells its own unique story. Each and every piece has its own unique voice behind it; and that is something that cannot be copied. There are those writers who cannot extend their work beyond the early stages, because they insist on instant perfection. Then there are those who

simply allow the words to take hold and flow through them. Each type of writer is equally deserving of their place among the writers of the world. From my experience; I fall into the second category. It works for me. I relish the imperfections; they show there is always room for my writing to improve. Writing is my craft, and writing is all I want to do with my career. Writing is a gift to all it graces. I would encourage everyone to give the craft a try; even if it is just for yourself. As F. Scott Fitzgerald said, “You don’t write because you want to say something, you write because you have something to say.” Everyone has something to say. So get out there and start writing. Write poems, write stories, write plays, or write articles. Write whatever it is you need to write to say whatever it is that you need to say. You might discover a new love at the same time, or it might just provide you with a new avenue of expression to explore.

Listowel Writers’ Week

Colm Furlong takes a look forward at this year’s Listowel Writers’ Week “All year round in Listowel, the committee and the tireless organisers of Listowel Writers’ Week meet to create magic.” – Colm Tóibín. The annual Listowel Writers’ Week takes place this year once again, from the 1st to the 5th of June. This is always a fantastic week with numerous fun and interesting events for people of all ages. One of the hallmarks of Listowel Writers’ week are the writing competitions, and the deadline for these competitions is coming up in just over a week on the third of March. Writing competitions are a great way to get your work out there, and they offer wonderful opportunities. Winning them, or even placing well can get you significant recognition in the writing world (And nice prizes sometimes too), and it can give you great pride in your work. The competitions at Listowel Writers’ Week are very highly regarded. They also have numerous categories; short story, single poem, poetry

collection, full length play and the youth competitions are among those that accept entries from writers of any level. There is also a competition which seeks Irish language writing, as well as a young sports journalist award, and a writing in prisons prize. On top of these are the prizes awarded for published pieces of work. The array of competitions is vast, and I would highly recommend anyone who writes to submit some of their work. The competition details are all on the Writers’ Week website. You never know what might happen. On top of the competitions, Listowel Writers’ Week also offers a significant amount of Creative Writing Workshops over the course of the week. Workshops centre on topics such as poetry, the novel, theatre, screenwriting and more. Most of the workshops are also offered at both the “Getting Started” and the “Advanced” level, and run for two to three days. There is actually a bigger interest for the UCC community this year in the festival, as Dr Eibhear Walshe, a lecturer in the School of English here is leading a three day

workshop on Non-Fiction and Memoir there. Workshops are a wonderful way of learning more about the craft of writing, as well as discovering new ways to work on your own, and also getting feedback on your work. Details of the workshops can also be found on the Listowel Writers’ Week website. Aside from the competitions and workshops, Listowel Writers’ Week offers numerous other activities over the course of the festival. There are readings by novelists, short story writers, poets and more. There are open mic nights where you can read your own work or listen to fellow budding writers. There is the chance to meet fellow writers, readers and all sorts of other people in the industry. There is music, there is atmosphere, and there is a whole community of people who gather solely for the week that is in it. Listowel Writers’ Week is a hive of writing related activity that I would highly recommend anyone, even if you’re not a writer, check out.

ARTS & LIT

EDITOR - COLM FURLONG

Book Recommendation: The Shannara series The Shannara Chronicles, written by Terry Brooks, are a range of fantasy books made up of (currently) ten different solo novels, duologies, trilogies and quadrilogies. They blend magic and primitive technology to create a new world in which the stories take place. Each new series within the wider arc deals with a new plot, and a new set of characters. What ties them together is the world in which they are set, and the heritage of one particular family.

the story in its chronological order. It makes for a very interesting take on how a fantasy world came to be.

Taking us from our world in the first of the trilogies, to a post-apocalyptic fantasy world, Brooks has shown a mastery for the genre. The books have proven popular among fans of fantasy, and have recently been adapted for television, starting with The Elfstones of Shannara, as MTV’s The Shannara Chronicles. These books are wonderful reads for fans of the fantasy genre. You do not need to read the different parts in any particular order to make sense of them, but if it turns out you like the series, I would highly recommend reading

Call for Submissions A new competition in UCC is looking for submissions from budding screenwriters Calling all budding screenwriters. There is a new short screenplay competition happening this year, and we want submissions from you! The competition is open to UCC students from all disciplines. We are looking for your best short scripts from 5-10 pages in length. There is no set theme or genre, we are open to anything. However, we would like the scripts to in some way reflect some element of Cork city. That could be location, character, event or any other link you can make to the city.

This is an excellent opportunity to have your screenplay read by others and possibly even receive the bragging rights of having won the competition. Small prizes will be offered. There is no entry fee, so please send us your entries today. Please include a cover page with your contact information (Name, Age, Student Number, and Email), along with the title of your entry. Submissions should be sent to: uccscriptcomp@gmail.com

We will be looking at a variety of factors, however the key elements we would like to see in your submissions are proper screenplay format, strong characters and strong dialogue. Submissions are open until March 31st. From here, a shortlist will be selected and passed on to our panel of judges to pick a 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place entry.

In Memoriam: Harper Lee

By Brian Conmy - UCC Express Editor

“You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view... Until you climb inside of his skin and walk around in it.” As has become all too common this year we’re sad to hear of the passing of another legendary figure. Nelle Harper Lee was most famous for her first and for a long time only novel, To Kill a Mockingbird. The semiautobiographical account of Lee’s childhood in the southern states of America has long been held as a literary classic discussing race relations and inequality. Lee is also renowned for her friendship with Truman Capote, having had a role in the writing of Capote’s novel In Cold Blood, a book often cited as the first instance of a true crime novel. In recent years Lee was portrayed on screen in the film Capote (2005) by Catherine Keener and more notably however more notably a second novel was released under Lee’s name last year. Originally slated as a sequel for To Kill A Mockingbird it was later revealed that it was instead a first draft of Mockingbird released under some odd circumstances. Harper Lee has left an impossible to measure legacy behind her through her work. Many of us may be familiar with this work from secondary school

English, if you’re anything like me at least, or you may have read Lee’s work out of your own free will. If not then there may never be a better time to finally read Mockingbird or even watch the excellent movie adaptation from 1962, ideally both. The novel’s earnest and poignant discussion of race relations has sadly never gone out of relevance in the United States or anywhere else in the world, with ongoing instances of racial inequality appearing frequently in the news. Despite her limited bibliography and reclusion from public life, Lee has left an indelible mark on literature and the world at large. She will not be forgotten.

INTERVIEW

with...ParaPod

The ParaPod is a paranormal themed podcast now in its second season. Created and hosted by British comedians Ray Peacock and Barry Dodds, the show is a kind of good cop bad cop approach to examining ghosts, demons, the Loch Ness monster and many more mysteries of our world. While Barry has spent plenty of his own time investigating ghosts in haunted locations such as Pontefract (the subject of the upcoming Conjuring film sequel), Ray is a staunch cynic of all the things that may go bump in the night. The dynamic makes for uproariously funny listening while the banter the two hosts maintain on the show also extends to the post show updates on TheParaPod.com or @theParaPod on Twitter where fan interaction has become a common part of the show. The show has even been nominated for a Chortle comedy award recently with voting open at Chortle.co.uk. I recently spoke to Ray and Barry about the show’s origins, what the hosts have taken from the experience and the future of shows like the ParaPod.

BYLINE: What was the impetus for the ParaPod? Ray you seem I’m a little ahead of the herd which gives you a bit of breathing to have a history with podcasts and the like but this seems a first space to try new stuff. It comes from the groundwork of doing podcasts when nobody else was. for Barry Ray: I wanted to do something different to what I had done before – there’s no point in reinventing the wheel, and two or three mates just chatting has been done to death on podcasts, so I wanted something to hang it on. Hence Barry. I’d known all about his ludicrous beliefs and our phonecalls about it were making me laugh to the point that I was confident in recording it. I always record a pilot, have done in every podcast I’ve done, and you get a fair idea if something has legs from that. The pilot of The ParaPod will never see the light of day as it is deeply flawed, but it’s also really interesting to listen to now, as we isolated and improved on every easy trap we were falling into from that one dummy run at it.

Barry: I honestly never thought about it being successful and the penny only dropped that it might be after I saw some chart listings so yeah, quite a surprise for me. BYLINE: Is the ParaPod something you’d both like to continue indefinitely or do you see an expiration date on the show? Barry: I’ll do it as long as it remains to be fun and as long as we both enjoy doing it. We haven’t set any end dates as such. Ray: Everything has an expiry date but as Barry says we haven’t written one down. I’m relatively good at knowing when something either has, or is about to, run out of steam, and I’ve been pretty strict about stopping stuff before it stales. When we realised we could change the format slightly for the second series to include Mysteries rather than just ghosts, it was a relief to not be tied down.

Barry: It came about because of us chatting about ghosts on another show that Ray was involved with. Ray was aware of my passion for this sort of thing and had an interest also but from a more sceptical point of view and the idea of recording some chats came up and that’s what the show now is. I’ve no history with Podcasting but have long been a fan of Ray’s work BYLINE: Barry: How has dealing with the social media backlash/encouragement been for you? (people saying you’re a so jumped at the chance. character/saying they have similar beliefs) BYLINE: Did the success of the podcast surprise either of you? There aren’t too many shows (at least in podcast form) of a Barry: That’s been hard at times as it’s not something that I’m similar nature so the untested nature of the format must have used to. I wasn’t a big Twitter user before this but use it now to be able to talk to the people who listen. I’m not a character, been intimidating? I’m pretty boring and normal, I just have a belief in ghosts and Ray: Not really, to be arrogantly honest. I suppose I was the supernatural that I have had since I was a child. I’ve never marginally surprised by the very high chart position in the had anyone pull me up on what I believe before so it’s all new main chart. Comedy podcasts very soon become accustomed ground and of course I make mistakes in my defence of it all. to filtering the chart to just the comedy section so you can Some people take it far too seriously and need to lighten up see how you are doing against your actual competition, but though, I’m not hurting anyone by believing in ghosts so I don’t when we saw it was number 2 in the main chart of worldwide understand their need to attack me. I’m not forcing anyone to podcasts that was a nicely unexpected thing. I think as I’ve got listen to it. The people who are nice though are lovely and it’s a core audience who will give anything new I do a fair chance, always nice to hear from them, even if they disagree with me.

INTERVIEW Ray: He rings me and cries twice a day. BYLINE: Ray: You seem to get a lot less out of the podcast than Barry does (i.e an education in debating and reason) so what drove you to keep going past season 1? Ray: Well in series two I am certainly very clearly more informed than Barry, in the three episodes so far I’ve learnt a lot of stuff, grasped it, and used it to decimate the meagre arguments that Dodds’ turns up with. I’m continuing to demonstrate the importance of applied knowledge rather than just printing out half a wiki page and reading it with wide eyes. BYLINE: Some people believe very deeply in the idea of the paranormal, either in the form of ghosts or in the form of the mysteries you’re discussing in season 2, does the idea of tackling these topics through a somewhat comedic lens ever give you pause? Ray: Not for a second. I am really interested in the psychology of these things, and basically why people are swayed into believing the most ridiculous fairy stories rather than the glaringly obvious logical explanations. I’ve learnt loads about the tricks employed by those who benefit from blind believers. Pinpointing and deducing what somebody is doing is hugely satisfying. We interviewed a Medium, and in the editing process I was able to pick apart and identify lots of manipulative language and procedures which had me really exhilarated as the picture became clear. If people have deep set beliefs they should have no issue with scrutiny, and if they do, it means there’s something to hide.

BYLINE: The show has started to take crowdfunded donations in recent episodes, do either of you see a future in this type of content production that other podcasts (Comedy Button or Jimquisition for example) have thrived under? Ray: We’ve all said for years and years that this is the future of pure content (namely stuff that hasn’t been interfered with by some producer or production company), and all that is starting to come to fruition now with a vengeance. I was very surprised by the donations, but it was also hugely heartening to be validated in the belief that people will pay for stuff that has a bit more heart and soul than the dross they are given under supervision by whoever. People are craving stuff that doesn’t patronise them or assume they are a sensitive idiot. Jim Sterling isn’t gonna be on TV any time soon, as he is relentlessly aggressive, but what the people in charge of the purse don’t see is quite how exceptional he is at dismantling what he criticizes and quite how well thought through and researched his stuff is. All they would hear is his potty mouth. His audience admire the whole package, and if the only way they can have that in their life is giving a couple of quid a month, they’re gonna fling it at him. Mainstream media has ironically facilitated this in its relentless pursuit of monetizing everything, the fact that society has slowly been indoctrinated into paying for everything from pay-per-view films and sports events, to extra content in games people have already bought, has meant that self-generated content can now comfortably ‘charge’ it’s listeners and viewers, and it has raised the bar of creativity to the point that regular regulated TV and radio can’t compete. BYLINE: What’s been the highlight of the ParaPod experience? Ray: Getting to the point where I no longer worry the night before a recording that we will have nothing to record. The best thing in the world is to have total faith that you will come up with something in the recording that will then be tweeted back at you for several years. It’s honestly really exciting to think that when we record next, one of us will say something without prior consideration that will end up on a badge.

Barry: It’s so hard to pick one. We recently took some of the listeners into a haunted house for the night and I loved that, everyone was so friendly and I really hope I’ve made some new friends out of it, so that’s up there. In terms of the show itself it would be the 2 part special inside 30 East Drive in Pontefract. I was terrified and I think the show itself is funny and interesting Barry: Not really as it’s my beliefs that are being questioned, at the same time. no-one else’s. I’ll admit that I’m not a great representative for the paranormal community but I’ve never tried to be one. I’ve just tried to be me.

MUSIC by Holly Cooney

Campaign to Get Viola Beach to Number One Last weekend the tragic news came through that British four piece Viola Beach and manager Craig Tarry lost their lives in a tragic car crash in Stockholm. An emerging indie pop band Viola Beach formed in Warrington in 2013. After playing the BBC Introducing Stage at Reading and Leeds in 2015 the band were known for their “infectious anthems” with “hints of slacker pop”. On February 13th the band and manager were travelling from the “Where’s the Music” festival in Norrkoping, Sweden and drove through a

gap on a canal bridge opened to allow a boat pass through. Moments later an oil tanker sailed over the wreckage of the car losing any hope of a rescue attempt. In an act of solidarity a campaign has been set up to get “Swings and Waterslides” to number one in the UK. Supported by Liam Gallagher and the Stone Roses all proceeds will go to the families of the deceased. The single is currently in the top forty, though fans hope it will reach number one in the coming weeks as the campaign gets up and running.

Hozier and Saoirse Ronan Unite Against Domestic Violence

Acclaimed singer / songwriter Hozier is making his song ‘Cherry Wine’ a clarion call to highlight the issue of domestic violence. The Valentine’s Day premiere of his powerful new video will address the issue head on while Hozier, Columbia Records, Island Records and Sony/ATV Music Publishing will donate their respective proceeds from downloads of this special single to a series of international domestic abuse charity organisations which provide support to victims and survivors of domestic abuse while also engaging in advocacy and community outreach. The compelling video stars two time Oscar nominee Saoirse Ronan in a moving portrayal of a woman dealing with a physically abusive relationship. The clip also stars actor Moe Dunford (Vikings, Game Of Thrones) and is directed by Emmy winning Irish director Dearbhla Walsh.

Cherry Wine was written by Hozier from the male perspective of an abuse sufferer. The song’s lyrics offer a unique insight into an abusive relationship, shining a light on the cycle of ‘justification’ often perpetuated in domestic violence incidents; that public health experts say 1 in 4 women experience physical and sexual violence from a male partner = 440,000 women living in Ireland

controls the abused, shames the victim, and shifts responsibility for the abuser’s violent behavior. Speaking of his decision to lead this charity campaign Hozier said, “Domestic violence is an ongoing issue in our society, the statistics of which are shocking and the effects of which damage whole families, communities and span generations. With the song Cherry Wine, I tried to get across the difficulty of coming to terms with and facing up to domestic violence and the dynamic of an abusive relationship. I’m honoured to be joined by Saoirse Ronan, Dearbhla Walsh and Moe Dunford in spreading awareness on this issue.” Saoirse Ronan added, “I am equally honoured to join Hozier to create awareness for the #FaceUpToDomesticViolence campaign with the release of “Cherry Wine” as a charity single. The song has always been one of my favourite tracks on his album. I hope through the video and song we can shine light on the issue and complexity of domestic abuse and in doing so help those caught up in the cycle of domestic violence”.

the designated Irish charity in this campaign, expressed her thanks to both Hozier and all involved in highlighting this issue in Ireland. “In the words of French poet Victor Hugo ‘Music expresses that which cannot be put into words and that which cannot remain silent.’ On behalf of all of the women and children that our SAFE Ireland members work with, we say thank you to Hozier and all involved in releasing Cherry Wine. The video featuring Saoirse Ronan captures the complexity of domestic violence and gives us insight into the justifications that can keep people trapped in soul destroying violence. It is only when this is exposed that we can really begin to address the control that is at the heart of abusive relationships. Leadership on this issue, like that expressed by Hozier, can help us all to face up to the daily realities of domestic violence so that together we can make Ireland the safest place in the world for women, men and children.”

Sharon O’Halloran, the CEO of Safe Ireland,

Safe Ireland is the national social change agency for domestic abuse in Ireland with a particular focus on male violence against women and children. According to a recent Safe Ireland report into domestic violence:

79% of women in Ireland never disclosed serious Physical or Sexual violence by a partner to anyone = 347,000 women living in Ireland

1 in 3 women experience severe psychological violence from a male partner = 580,000 women living in Ireland

EDITOR - HOLLY COONEY

MUSIC

58th Annual Grammy Awards: A Popular Success

A quick look into music’s busiest night by Holly Cooney The biggest night in the music calendar took place on February 15th and as always, the Grammy’s didn’t disappoint. For many of us it was a night of colour and surprises with performances from some of the world’s biggest names in music, including Adele, Lady Gaga and Kendrick Lamar. Despite the talent on offer one of the night’s biggest let-downs was the no-show by Rhianna, who bowed out last minute due to a bout of bronchitis. Judging by the rehearsals it’s a shame we missed it as it was sure to have been a killer performance from.

Though most of us sitting at home were more interested in costume changes and collaborations, the stars themselves were there for that all important Grammy award and it’s fair to say there weren’t too many surprises. Mark Ronson and Bruno Mars beat some stiff competition from

Ed Sheeran and The Weeknd to win “Record of the Year” with Uptown Funk as well as “Pop Duo of the year”. As expected The Weeknd didn’t go home empty handed, later winning “best urban album”. Album of the year and best pop vocal went to Queen Taylor Swift for “1989” and Ed Sheeran got “song of the year” and “best solo pop performance” with “Thinking Out Loud”. It seems pops usual suspects were top of the winners list again though this eventually gave way to some more interesting winners such as electronica duo Skrillex and Diplo, winners of best dance recording with Justin Bieber’s “Where are you now” and best dance/electronic album. One of the most deserving winners of the night was “Best Contemporary Instrumental Album” which went to jazz fusion outfit and former Grammy winners Snarky Puppy from Brooklyn whose album “Sylva” in collaboration with Metropole Orkest, the Grammy winning Dutch orchestra was a sure fire success.

non-existent compared to their electronica and instrumental peers which was, for a show that promises one of the best prizes in music, quite disappointing. The Grammy’s are no longer a night of instrumental, vocal and song writing ability, but an E news night, complete with fights, fallouts and wardrobe mishaps. Don’t take it seriously and never take it personally because the Grammy’s are what they are, more concerned with a Lionel Richie melody than allowing Sir Paul McCartney into the after party. Other than that what was there to complain about, the dresses were great and the Kardashians were there so all in all, a successful 58th Annual Grammy Awards!

One major downfall to the 58th Grammy awards was their treatment of success as, generally, the winners were the shining bright stars of pop and the washed up old rockers of the mid noughties. Variety in both categories were almost

Foals Rock Dublin’s 3Arena

Holly Cooney was lucky enough to make it to Foals in Dublin’s 3Arena and she wasn’t disappointed by what she heard. Foals, beloved by hipsters worldwide for their indie rock, with an electronica vibe called to Dublin to kick of their first arena tour for album “What Went Down”. The evolution of Foals from indie kids to cool kids has been at a startling rate ever since the release of 2013’s “Holy Fire” with the mega single “My Number”. Having been a Foals fan from the very beginning I must admit I was sceptical of their new found fame and was willing to find fault with their 3Arena gig. As imagined, Ireland’s alternative types and students all found their way to the Wednesday night gig and surprisingly there was an almost apparent absence of arseholes; beards, woolly jumpers and a stench of marijuana, yes, but other than that the pretention was kept to a minimum. First of all, it’s important to take note of the amazing light show consisting of screens, lasers and smoke machines, which of course added to the buzz in the crowd as they changed effects and tempo to suit every song. Kicking off the night was “Olympic Airways” which moved swiftly on to “My Number”, getting the crowd

hopping around and singing along. Many were surprised they got the big hit out of the way with so soon, but these boys obviously know the effect of “My Number” and the vibe it leaves amongst the audience. Pleasing the crowd, Foals paved the way for new material from “What Went Down” and eased into “Give it All” and “Mountain at my Gates”. There is no doubt in my mind that singer Yannis Philippakis is a born frontman, throwing out three sixty spins in the midst of his thrilling guitar riffs. Not only do his looks appeal, but his energy feeds the crowd and creates the type of purgatory between raucous attitude and wiggy vibes that have become synonymous with the Oxford five piece. Vocally and instrumentally Foals were pitch perfect and the atmosphere in the crowd was a force to be reckoned with. Despite the obvious focus on “What Went Down”, use was made of their extensive back catalogue as well, storming through songs such as “Two Steps Twice” and “Late Night” to reward the indie kids for growing up with them. Performance of the night had to go to NME

“best track” winner “Inhaler” whose opening twanging chords set the crowd alight and had the whole venue up on their feet. It was a kick in the teeth to their indie pop roots as “Inhaler” was a punchy rock performance with Philippakis’s vocals soaring through the highs and lows and ending with an epic sonic guitar solo. The three song encore gave way to frontman Philippakis throwing himself out to the outstretched arms of his adoring audience, ditching his guitar in attempt to cement the performance as a great night for indie and art rock. Whilst we grow up sometimes we forget our favourite bands can too, preferring to see them in the museum of adolescence but Foals have finally caught up and grown up and I for one couldn’t be more impressed.

FILM & TELEVISION Review: You. Me and the Apocalypse by Aoife Gleeson - Gaming Editor You, Me and the Apocalypse has a scene where a bunch of nuns drunkenly party in a convent at the Vatican in anticipation of the end of the world while Jack by Breach plays in the background. While this should be reason enough for you to watch the show be assured that, if you do, you’re in for a bizarre, hilarious, heartfelt and truly memorable season. You, Me and the Apocalypse starts off with the revelation that the world is ending – an asteroid is headed straight on an irrevocable path towards earth. Our narrator (Matthew Bayton) and other assorted misfits, including a convict and a nun, are shown hiding in a bunker, watching a newscast on the imminent impact of the asteroid in earth’s last few seconds. From there, the show time jumps back 34 days and checks in with the characters who are, at the beginning, spread out all over the world. Jamie (Matthew Bayton) is a sad sack bank manager whose wife has been missing for seven years. Rhonda (Jenna Fischer) is a new convict imprisoned in New Mexico for treason due to

allegedly hacking the NSA (despite being a quiet librarian). Scotty (Kyle Soller) is a scientist at the White House who, along with his boyfriend US General Arnold Gaines (Paterson Joseph), tries to develop a plan to deflect the asteroid, as well as a contingency plan in the case of failure. Sister Celine (Gaia Scodellaro) is an Italian nun with a desire to see the world who goes to the Vatican to work with Father Jude (Robb Lowe), who works as a ‘Devil’s Advocate’ (investigates people in the process of canonization to prove they’re holy enough for the title of saint). Together, in the face of the apocalypse, they investigate claims of the second coming of Christ. Somehow, these disparate characters end up in the same bunker together. The season tracks their journey over the subsequent 34 days and it’s a consistently surprising, engrossing and funny adventure. The odd, inventive tone of the show, which takes a bleak concept and infuses it with absurdist humour, is endless endearing. When the tone shifts into darker territory later

in the season, it feels earned as the show is also extremely heartfeltyou’ll become attached to these characters. My only complaint is some inconsistency in dealing with society’s breakdown. After the announcement of the comet, the police precinct is deserted and all law and order has broken down. Yet, when it’s later convenient to the plot, the police are called on a character and they swarm to her location. Overall it’s a fantastic show and a great ride – here’s hoping Sky greenlight a season 2.

It’s Not the First R Rated Comic Book Movie, But It Might Actually Make Money by Xander Cosgrave - Byline Editor ‘Deadpool’ is a step into completely new territory for comic book movies, which makes a nice change from the rather consistently formulaic turnout of the rest of the Marvel universe, or the game of ‘Grimdark’ one upmanship that DC movies seem to be insisting on playing, even though no one asked them for it. As a stark contrast to this, ‘Deadpool’ primarily goes out of its way to make crass jokes, particularly well put together violence, and 4th wall breaking comments that are a key part of the character. Which is great, it’s a good movie and you should go see it, but that’s not the most important thing here. ‘Deadpool’ is being loudly hailed as the first R-rated or mature comic book movie, it’s really not, but it is the first one that is making

real strides into mainstream engagement. ‘Dredd’ from 2012 is substantially more grim and gory than ‘Deadpool’, but at best has a cult following and was a failure in cinemas. ‘Blade’ from the early noughties was successful enough to make two sequels, but didn’t tie itself to its comic origins particularly closely, and if we go further back, to movies like ‘The Crow’ and ‘Spawn’ we see movies with cult followings, but were never able to capitalise on them in their time. (Actually, ‘Spawn’ was awful, it’s fair enough that we let that die.) So what is it about 2016 that makes ‘Deadpool’ a movie more palpable for the cinema going masses, is it the fact that every potentially dark section is punctuated by a quip and a sexual reference. Or is ‘Deadpool’ an example of the success of the comic book movie train, where risky gambits can pay off as long as someone is wearing spandex tights. Is it simply that a bunch

of nerdy jokes and references wrapped up in violence are really the natural conclusion of where movies were going, becoming more and more of a joke about themselves. Regardless of all of these potential factors for why it exists or is successful, you should still see the movie just to remind yourself that sometimes superhero movies can be fun, so pretty much why you watch ‘Guardians of the Galaxy’ in 2014. Just don’t take your parents.

EDITOR - OLIVIA BROWN

FILM & TV

BAFTA Recap by Megan McCarthy It’s that time of year again. This year’s awards season is now well and truly underway. Nominations for the BAFTA’s were revealed all the way back at the start of January. With lots of predictions flying around the place, film lovers were put out of their misery on Valentine’s Day. If you somehow didn’t tune in to see all the glitz and glam, here is all you need to know about the 2016 BAFTA’s. As many predicted, Leonardo DiCaprio won his first BAFTA for Best Leading Actor for the film, ‘The Revenant’. This category was quite tough, with Leo battling it out with the likes of Eddie Redmayne and Michael Fassbender. Hopefully, this is a sign that times are changing for Leo and there will be more first time wins in his future – If not for his own sake for the sake of the rest of us so that the we can stop pitying him for not having won an Oscar.. Anyway, Leo’s speech was adorable as ever. He never seems to forget about his mum who got a shout out and a happy birthday.

performance in “Room” was absolutely sublime. There was no way that she wasn’t getting this award. Larson was also nominated for the Rising Star Award but left the ceremony with only one of the iconic bronze masks. The Rising Star award was given to newcomer, John Boyega. His performance in the latest “Star Wars” instalment has sent him rocketing into fame. This young actor is definitely someone to keep an eye on, he’s going places. It was a close call as to who would be winning the Best Supporting Actress award. Predictions were up in the air between Rooney Mara and Kate Winslet. In the end, it was Kate who won out with her performance in ‘Steve Jobs’. This was Winslet’s third BAFTA, having previously won best leading actress in 2009 for ‘The Reader’ and best supporting actress in 1996 for ‘Sense and Sensibility’. Winslet’s acceptance speech was fabulous, as always. Sticking to her feminist ways, Kate made sure that all women should feel empowered by dedicating her award to all the young women who have ever been put down by people around them.

“The Revenant” was the big winner of the night with a grand total of 5 wins including Best Film and Best Director. “Mad Max: Fury Road” followed in a close second with 4 wins. As always, there was a bit of controversy to spice up the proceedings with Stephen Fry referring to Jenny Beavan, the costume designer for `Mad Max` as a “bag lady” due to her dressing casually. His comment received quite a bit of backlash. Fry headed straight to twitter and put everyone in their place, “Will all you sanctimonious f****** f*** the f*** off Jenny Beavan is a friend and joshing is legitimate. Christ I want to leave the planet.” Fry wasn’t the only one to have a controversial moment. Rebel Wilson also jumped on the band wagon and made reference to the diversity debate surround the Oscars. The BAFTA’s got Rebel’s seal of approval on the diversity scale, however the same cannot be said of the Oscars though. The buzz around the Oscar’s “Best White Actress/Actor” has caused for a real stir this awards season and that was clearly evident across the water at the BAFTA’s. The Best Supporting Actor award was received by Mark Rylance for his performance in “Bridge of Spies”. This was the second time Rylance received the BAFTA award, he also won BAFTA TV award for Best Actor back in 2006. Similarly to Best Actor, the category of Best Supporting Actor was also extremely tough, with all actors nominated giving spectacular performances in their respective films. It was predicted that either Rylance or Idris Elba would win this year. The predictions for the BAFTA awards were pretty spot on in the female categories too. There really was only one winner for Best Actress. Brie Larson’s

I’d be insane not to mention that the Best Animated Film went to ‘Inside Out’. This feel good film won out against ‘Minions’ and ‘Shaun the Sheep’. ‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens’ was also a winner having won Special Visual Effects. Best Documentary was deservedly won by ‘Amy’, a documentary on the life of the late Amy Winehouse. Best British Film went to `Brooklyn` starring our very own Saoirse Ronan. The Fellowship award was received by the legendary actor, Sir Sidney Poitier. Poitier has only ever received one other BAFTA award, best foreign actor, in 1959 for his wonderful performance in ‘The Defiant Ones’. He also has 2 Oscars to his name. The award couldn’t have gone to a more worthy actor. All in all, there were many praiseworthy winners and a superb night was had. The excitement for the Oscars is escalating and there’s only one question on all of our minds. Will Leo finally get his Oscar? If you didn’t see him and all these other excellent actors, actresses and filmmakers receive their BAFTA’s, then make sure to take a look at the Oscars at the end of the month.