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Day: 2 February 2017

Top 5: Films about food

Written by Myriam Raso on . Posted in Film.

1. Julie and Julia (Nora Ephron, 2009)
Based on a true story and a book written by Julie Powel. It focuses on one woman’s story (Julie Powel) in finding herself. With the help of food and Julia Child — a pioneering woman who ‘taught America how to cook’ —   Powel’s challenge is to work her way through Julia Child’s cookbook containing 500-ish recipes in 365 days. Not only will you delve into the life of Julie, but the director has explored the life of Julia Child during her time living in France with her husband Paul as she struggles to complete and publish her cookbook. It explores a whirlwind of emotions from both parties, including the traumatic event of killing a lobster, something magically made humorous; and Julia’s eye-watering scene of chopping kilos of onions as she tries to be taken seriously in an all-male cooking class at Le Cordon Bleu. Definitely a great watch for anyone who loves the beauty of food.

2. The hundred-foot Journey (Lasse Hallström, 2014)
A family’s tragic loss of their house and mother leads them to leave behind everything they know and their home country, India, and try to rebuild their life in Europe until they finally land in France. With the father’s fiery ambition to open a restaurant, a son with an intense passion for cooking, but, despite some of the children’s wishes, they decide to open a classic Indian restaurant, 100 feet away from a Michelin-star French restaurant. We are shown the beautiful home-style cooking of traditional Indian cuisine and the meticulous classical French cuisine. After a rough and competitive start, both restaurants learn to appreciate each other and come together to create a phenomenal Michelin-starred chef.

3. Chocolat (Lasse Hallström, 2000)
A beautiful, liberal, open-minded woman, Dianne Rocher played by the wonderful Juliette Binoche, and Dianne’s daughter Anouk, move into a small remote town to open a delicious chocolate shop. In this town the church reigns and because of this and the way she behaves they become rather unwelcome. However, through her kind desire to help others; including a woman abused by her husband, an elderly lady with family problems, a group of travellers referred to as ‘river rats’ — with Johnny Depp as the clan leader — and two lonely unmarried people who seek to have each other, she becomes welcomed into the community. This true passion for helping others is celebrated with a dinner party where everything — and I mean everything! — is covered in chocolate.

4. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (Tim Burton, 2005) & Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory (Mel Stuart, 1971)
“Come with me and you’ll be in a world of pure imagination”. In case you don’t already know, this film explores the story of a poor young boy, Charlie Bucket, who is lucky enough to win a golden ticket to enter Wonka’s chocolate factory. These films allow for one’s imagination to completely take over with the creation of chocolates and sweets. In the world of Willy Wonka, there is nothing he cannot create to eat. A magical garden where everything is edible and chewing gum can taste like a three-course meal. Although we must give credit to the original cinematic recreation of Roal Dahl’s book, personally I find Tim Burton’s version more mesmerising. The combination of bright colours and unimaginable confectionery, along with the brilliant actors cast in this film, is truly a feast for the eyes.

5. Chef (Jon Favreau, 2014)
Carl Casper played by Jon Favreau is a talented chef who doesn’t seem to be appreciated in his job: forced to cook traditional old recipes and unable to let his creativity flow. With his career on the line, a video going viral of his crazy rampage towards a food critic, and his family life breaking down, his wife gives him an eccentric idea to take up an old food van and transform it into a Cuban street food van. This film is not only about his passion for food, but his passion for life: do something that makes you happy and enjoy life, don’t just do something because it pays well. The film will not only open up your eyes to the glory of food but open your heart to the beauty of happiness.

Thousands march against Trump

Written by Barney Weston on . Posted in News.

On Monday, the 30th of January, an estimated 5,000 people gathered in Manchester’s Albert Square to demonstrate against President Trump’s executive order on immigration.

In the region of 1,000 students were at the demonstration, some opting to meet outside both the University of Manchester and the Manchester Metropolitan University Students’ Unions half an hour before the rally to attend the event together.

When asked, one said that it was important for students to get involved as they were “privileged to be educated”, and that Trump’s executive order dealt with “the moral issue of prejudice: xenophobia.” He had “had enough of sitting behind a keyboard typing”.

Photo: Lucy Fletcher

A British-Iranian citizen and Iranian History lecturer for the University of Manchester affected by the ban expressed concerns over the “barriers” that were being put up in regards to academic research and academic exchange, “destroying” the notions, and “depriving” everyone. “We should steer clear of these measures […] We have to stand up now.”

A range of speakers, including an NUS delegate and members from the University of Manchester Palestine Society spoke at the event. They said; “it is our duty to fight with everything we have […] In our spaces of learning and tolerance, we must do everything we can.” There were also calls for students to write motions to their student unions in solidarity with Muslims, using their “educational and outraged voice against injustice”. The NUS delegate told the crowd she was “unapologetically Muslim, Pakistani, Mancunian”.

Ron Senchank, President of the Manchester Stop the War Coalition was granted the greatest applause of the evening. “Donald Trump has come deep, deep, deep, from the very asshole of America. He’s bought with him every racist, every bigot, every anti-Semite, everybody we despise, has come out of that asshole.”

Both Ahmed Mohamed Mohamoud, President of Somaliland, and Haider al-Abadi, Prime Minister of Iraq, are alumni of the University of Manchester, both serving countries affected by the ban.

Somaliland students have voiced their concerns about the ban. The Abaarso boarding school in Somaliland has become a feeder school of sorts for elite United States universities.

“I feel lucky that I’ve been accepted to an elite college in the U.S., but also sad that I might not be able to start my college education”, said Shukri Ali, a 19-year-old Abaarso student speaking to CNN, who was accepted last month to study at Wellesley College in September.

However, Ali accepted Trump’s explanation that the ban was intended to keep the United States safe. “I will not take this personally because I know I’m not a terrorist.”

Photo: Lucy Fletcher

A University of Manchester student from Kenya, speaking to The Mancunion, expressed a similar sentiment. He applauded Trump for being “selfish towards his own country.” Admitting the policy was a harsh way to deal with Islamic terrorism, he stated “do you think this sort of thing can be done politely?’

Although Trump was the rally’s main target (referred to as an “orange, backward-looking, thick-skinned narcissist”, “he who shall not be named”, as well as subject to chants such as “you can’t build a wall, your hands are too small”), May was also targeted. Signs featured a picture of Trump and May with the caption, “The Undateables”; another read “Shame on Theresa — the fascist appeaser”.

Theresa May has rejected calls to withdraw Trump’s state visit invitation. Andrew Gwynne, local Labour MP for Denton and Reddish has voiced concerns over whether Trump may be invited to the Conservative Party Conference, due to be held in Manchester in October.

MPs will discuss whether Trump should receive a state visit at a Westminster Hall debate on the 20th of February following an official petition receiving over 1,800,000 signatures at the time of writing. 100,000 signatures are required to merit a government response.

Watch Fuse TV’s video from the march here.

Review: Narvik

Written by Brogen Campbell on . Posted in Theatre.

Narvik is a play that features songs written by Lizzie Nunnery. The play revolves around the central character Jim Callaghan (played by Joe Shipman), a liverpudlian sailor who is reminiscing about his life during world war two, a man who sailed under the Royal Navy to liberate the Norwegian port of Narvik in April 1940.

The play begins with Jim as a 90 year old man clearly coming to the end of his life, who falls and struggles to get back up all alone. The physicality by Shipman to showcase the pain and weariness of the 90 year old version of Jim is outstanding.

Throughout the play the actors physicality was beautifully used to create haunting and memorable images.  The story reminisces about Jim’s Norwegian sweetheart Else Dahl (played by Nina Yndis), who he meet before the war but keeps in mind throughout.

The other major character is Kenny Atwood (played by Lucas Smith), who was Jim’s naval comrade and best friend during the war. All these memories are interwoven throughout the play along with recollections about his parents. All three actors and the three actor-musicians remain on stage at all times.

The 90 minute play certainly packs a punch and takes you on a rollercoaster of emotions as it revolves around love and war. The fact there is no interval means the audience are really drawn into the world of the characters, along with the exceptional acting of the three actors.

Shipman carries the show and his seemingly effortless switch between child to man to old age continuously throughout the play is a pleasure to behold. Shipman has to be commended for his physical encapsulation of his character as with a simple body shift the audience were quickly transported to a different memory in a different time period.

Smith was able to carry an easy charm and was the source of most laughs. This cheerful character clearly had a troubled past and Smith was able to showcase both aspects to keep the character from simply being one dimensional. Yndis had a mysterious nature, which resulted in a truly haunting end with the last physical pose leaving a truly unforgettable image.

Music is integral to this play.  The few songs, which I would classify as folk, are entwined into the play. They add to heighten the emotions that drive this play. Yet the music does not simply stop and start again. The musicians create a stream of music to accompany the acting, from creating the atmosphere of a naval boat wading across the sea to the upbeat nature of a drinking tavern.

Melodies mysteriously appear and disappear seamlessly it is a testament to both the incredible talents of Lizzie Nunnery and the band (Vidar Norheim, Maz O’Connor, Joe Hirons). The seemingly effortless use of music definitely sets this play apart from others.

The play explores the themes about what actions are acceptable during war and what can be forgiven and forgotten. Is the war real or is it simply an illusion before you get back to real life. The staging was simple yet extremely effective as the box shaped piping allowed for all cast members to weave around the set.

There was no set changes. Different locations and time periods were instead highlighted by a simple light change. Yet this was not a drawback of the play. Instead the simplicity aloud the audience to be truly engrossed and not distracted as the play seamlessly moved though time and different locations.

Director Hannah Tyrell-Pinder’s production for Box of Tricks is truly mesmerising. It is both chilling and haunting. There was more than a few tears flowing by the end of the performance. Narvik is at Home till the 4th of February as part of its national tour. Tickets can be found here.

Greater Manchester’s upcoming metro mayor election

Written by Tom Patterson on . Posted in News.

As part of the Government’s devolution agenda, Greater Manchester will be electing its first metro mayor on the 4th of May. In addition, six other combined-authority areas across England will also be holding mayoral elections this May.

The appointees will be responsible for growing the economy and managing things such as housing, transport and skills across the region. A lot of the powers that the new mayors will have are currently held by local authorities. Going forwards, the coordination of cross-boundary plans, such as new transport links and housing construction, will depend on agreements between the new office and the local authorities within the area.

The BBC recently reported that the Greater Manchester Combined Authority has estimated that the creation of the office could cost up to £5.4m, with an annual expenditure of around £2m. But a council spokesman told the BBC that the costs will be covered by “existing reserves and additional business rates income”.

The Centre for Cities is an “independent, non-partisan think tank” that produces research on economic growth and change for “cities, business and Whitehall”. They found that 34 per cent of adults in Greater Manchester think that “health care provision should be the most important priority for local politicians” and 12 per cent think emergency services and housing should be the next two priorities.

Drawing on their research, the Centre lists their top three policy priorities for the new metro mayor as; building new offices and housing (a quick-win policy), making a case for a new congestion charge in the city centre (a strategic policy) and developing a sustainable social care budget (a long-term policy).

Manchester is traditionally seen as a Labour stronghold so the Centre for Cities is predicting a Labour win for Andy Burnham. Continuing in the order of party vote-share in the region from the 2015 General Election, also standing are; Sean Anstee (Conservative), Shneur Odze (UKIP), Jane Brophy (Liberal Democrat) and Will Patterson (Green Party). Will Patterson is representing the Green Party after the tragic and unexpected death of Hulme-based candidate Deyika Nzeribe earlier this year.

Former party leader Natalie Bennett told the BBC in January that “Deyika’s death is a huge loss for the Green Party, but also for the city of Manchester.” In addition to the more well-known parties, Peter Clifford will be standing for the Communist League and Stephen Morris for the right-wing English Democrats.

The BBC has called the upcoming mayoral elections the “biggest change to our local political landscape for 40 years”. Ushered in as part of the government’s Devolution Deal, the new metro mayors are expected to have a swift and direct effect, as well as a lasting one.

Manchester reveals world’s first graphene dress

Written by Serena Holloway on . Posted in News, Science & Tech.

During January, shoppers at the Trafford Centre witnessed a fashion first; a little black dress containing the University of Manchester’s wonder material – graphene.

The dress, which was produced by a collaboration between the National Graphene Institute at the University of Manchester and Cute Circuit, a London fashion company that produces wearable technology, is being hailed as the world’s most ‘hi-tech’ dress. Graphene was used to power small LED lights within the dress whilst also acting as a sensor of the model’s breathing. The result: a dress that is able to change colour by adapting to the wearer’s breathing patterns.

A million times thinner than a human hair, graphene is thought to be the thinnest, strongest, and most conductive material in the world. It was discovered in Manchester in 2004 by university professors Kostya Novoselov and Andre Geim, who received the Nobel Prize in physics for their work with the material.

A form of carbon, graphene is thought to be 200 times stronger than steel, and the fastest, most efficient conductor of electricity out of all known materials. Just in case that does not impress you, despite being just a single atom thick, graphene absorbs 2.3 per cent of light, which makes it visible to the naked eye.

Photo: CORE-Materials@Flickr

With this in mind, Francesca Rosella, the chief creative director for Cute Circuit, who has also produced futuristic dresses for the likes of Katy Perry and Nicole Scherzinger, described it as a “real honour [to] showcase graphene’s amazing properties”. Meanwhile, Dr Paul Wiper from the National Graphene Institute said the dress is an example of what “creativity, imagination and a desire to innovate can create”.

Away from the catwalk, scientists at the Graphene Institute believe the Nobel-prize winning material holds an abundance of potential for future technologies including flexible mobile phones, lightweight planes and electric sports cars. The wonder material is also being researched for its role in water purification, by using graphene membranes to produce clean drinking water.

In June last year, advancements in graphene research came under threat following Britain’s decision to leave the EU. Manchester’s National Graphene Institute is an important part of the EU’s Graphene Flagship project, which is set to supply £830m worth of funding to graphene research. As a result of Brexit, there are worries that the University will lose over £1m in EU funding for the Institute.

Review : Pangaea – Land before time

Written by Hannah Brierley on . Posted in Music.

I can honestly say I have never missed a Pangaea. Whether you think that’s sad or impressive doesn’t really matter. My 9th Pangaea in and still going strong.

For the most part, things were as usual, but many things had changed and this was not necessarily for the better.  It must be said that the building work between the Student Union and the Ali G, literally put a dampener on the mood as the peculiar one way route between Academy 1 and the Union made it difficult to get anywhere in haste.

It wouldn’t have mattered so much if the tents outside had made an appearance as per, however due to the changes this wasn’t possible. Such a shame, because this is where the usual buzz and hub of people tend to gather, and without it the night lost an element of magic.

That long, sodden walk was cheered up, however, with the sight of Piggie Smalls and their huge cheesy chips and burgers — can’t go wrong really can you?

But I wasn’t going to let the rain get me down, no way no how. I pandered over to the Union with my food where I was met with amazing cheesy tunes with everyone singing and dancing along together. I feel we need more cheesy music to make for some variation — ultimate cheese room anyone? So hats off to you guys in the Union Bar, you were class.

As the night went on, the enchantment began to resurface as all the rooms began to fill up with glittery dinosaurs, questionable cave girls and other strange mystical creatures. 

Headliners, Wild Beasts were less than impressive. They fit the recurring theme of  EDM music and while they were good and I did enjoy their set, the room seemed pretty empty considering they were the headliners. A shame considering in the past we have had HUGE names headlining like Example, Everything Everything and even Sister Sledge — whether you openly like them or not is debatable but you can’t deny that they’re huge. I was more bothered about finding my cigarettes than listening to the rest of their music.

My highlights of the Night included Zak Abel who performed in Academy 1, despite the being dribs and drabs coming through the doors at the time, the music was hypnotically enticing and really grabbed the audience.

Horse Meat Disco who also played Academy 1 with their infamous disco revival, delivered an impressive mix of songs from the well known to the more obscure. Horse Meat Disco have the right ingredients for a good time and always keep it vibrant and fun. Go check them out if Disco is your thing, they will be right up your street.

Also quick shout-out to Gold Teeth too, again as upbeat and energetic as always.

There was a great vibe on the upper floors of the Union; music blared from every room and with such a range of different themes there was a array of places to choose from. This is where it was really going off — or at least it felt like it did, probably because of the size of the rooms and because this is where the majority  stayed as it meant avoiding the outdoors, which makes sense really.

I know the building work can’t be helped, but please can we have some kind of variation in music style? And where has the outside silent disco gone?!

But, despite this, I still love you Pangaea and I’ll see you in June — you must be doing something very right to bring us all back every time. And after living in Manchester for nearly 3 years, I really should be used to the weather by now…