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Day: 13 November 2017

What the Weinstein case tells us about the culture of sexual harassment

Recent events have quite rightly drawn out criticism of a culture whereby it is seen as a perk of power to be able to get away with harassment of one’s juniors.

Harvey Weinstein’s appalling exploitation of his position in Hollywood has shaken those in the media and has forced them to assess their structure and systems for dealing with such issues.

But this explosion of unsettling revelations gives us an even more striking opportunity not just to improve complaints procedures and the minutiae of workplace legislation, but to look at the culture of sex and power that has put us in this position in the first place.

Despite massive changes in the attitude towards sexuality in the last century, there are still taboos that cage our understanding of desire. We have pushed women into ever more protected positions that have exacerbated the asymmetry of power in the relationship between men and women.

Young girls are made constantly aware of the danger they face simply by being female or young. The distributing of rape alarms to school girls and the panicked warnings against walking home alone are not only part of a culture of blaming victims, but one where we live in a perpetual state of terror.

Creating female bodies as forbidden objects, rather than the simple facts of biological beings deserving of as much physical respect and boundaries as any other human, has created a counter-culture of a misogynistic desire to violate them.

If Weinstein was abusing his power against those women, it is not just the fact that the system allowed him to do so that is disturbing, it is the fact that he even wanted to.

Assault and coercion are not naturally relatable to the biological necessity and emotional joy that sex should exist to give, rather it is power and taboo that have created the perversion.

The swaths of allegations coming out against people in positions of influence across the world, from the media to politics, highlight how this culture of sweeping sex under the carpet pervades all walks of life. The controversy surrounding Kevin Spacey shows just how dangerous our inability to be open about intimacy can be.

If Spacey really was so threatened by his own sexuality enough to hide it until it became public in the most perverse and destructive way, can we really afford to dismiss his actions as endemic to some twisted personality? If we keep punishing these individuals without looking at the culture in which they developed, we will never rid ourselves of sexual assault.

Of course, this not at all to take the blame away from the perpetrators of such horror, they must take full responsibility for their actions, but it is important to understand what drives unwanted and unsolicited advances.

At times there is too much esteem given to positions of authority or prestige, that those who hold them are granted a dominance beyond reason, creating a superiority which can be mistaken for intangibility. Office bullying and discrimination in hiring practices, not just surrounding gender, but class and race as well, are a result of managers and bosses seeming to be outside the boundaries of acceptable behaviour, or even in extreme cases, the law.

In the case of sexual harassment, arguably the motivation lies as much in accruing more control as it does with any kind of pleasure.

If Weinstein’s impetus was to prove that he was more powerful than the women he victimised, he not only dominated them, but proved himself to be greater than any concepts of privacy or safety which they felt themselves naturally entitled to. Establishing his own ascendancy over their wishes, almost as if he had won a profoundly unequal power struggle.

That struggle embodies the problem with how we as a society treat sex. It has become a point of contention, something to be hidden or covered by cheeky emojis. The ‘Free the Nipple’ campaign is a brave example of the defence of the organic human body, which has been locked away behind socially constructed barriers in an arguably to a Victorian-esque sense of morality.

This prudishness is not just a quirk, it’s unhealthy — inciting shame within ourselves and power complexes which cloud even the most innocent or professional relationships. To combat this, it is necessary to understand that every human form has the right to their own sexuality and complete autonomy over that.

There is no difference between men and women, between managers and employees, between the famous and their fans. Let us not hide our bodies behind a myriad of fear, they are one of the few things we should never have to dread.

Safety petition to be reviewed by Manchester Council

After five weeks of campaigning, the Fallowfield safety petition was presented to Deputy Mayor Beverley Hughes, representatives from the local council and Greater Manchester Police.

At its close, the petition reached 9,638 signatures. In an interview with The Mancunion, Matt Harvison said “at the beginning, I only thought I would get a few hundred [signatures] at most, but this has exceeded my expectations. I am so over the moon about it.”

When asked how he felt about the petition coming to an end, Matt said: “In a way, I don’t feel it’s come to an end, it’s far from the end. We have facilitated the creation of a big noise. With the backing of almost 10,000 students, we cannot be ignored.”

Community officer Jack Houghton seconded this by adding: “The journey has not come to an end. Change doesn’t happen overnight.”

At the meeting with the Deputy Mayor Matt presented charts and statistics he had gathered from student feedback. The majority of responses asked for police patrols, for less police to be stood at bus stops and for more streetlights. According to Matt and Jack, these ideas received a positive response from the Deputy Mayor.

Volunteer night watches were on the list but received minimal support. Many thought volunteers would simply be put at risk. However, Jack is going ahead with plans for his ‘Night Owl’ scheme.

The project, which has been introduced at several universities across the country, involves trained student volunteers patrolling the streets in Fallowfield. Matt told The Mancunion, “the students union proposed night owl scheme, in my opinion, is a great idea. These volunteers will be trained by the police in self-defence, bystander training and be on hand to students between peak hours for crime in Fallowfield.”

He continued, “this is a plan that will be linked to the police force, with the night owls having a direct line to the police and providing safe spaces in areas that crime is most prevalent according to what students themselves have reported.”

The meeting with the Deputy Mayor is one of many meetings Matt has had since the release of the petition. To raise awareness of the criminal activity in and around the Fallowfield area, Matt has also spoken to BBC Radio Manchester and the Manchester Evening News.

“Even though the petition was made by Matt and he facilitated the meeting, it was students in the end that made all this possible.”

Most of the reports of crime and discussion on the topic took place in the Fallowfield student Facebook group. But after his discussion with Greater Manchester Police Matt has some advice for students. “The police are looking for real concrete evidence and crime figures, I urge any victims of crime to report it to the police. The more real crime statistics they have for Fallowfield the more effort the police will make in stopping criminal activity in the area”.

The message that Matt and Jack want students and residents to take away from this experience is one of determination. Staying engaged and putting pressure on the authorities is the only way that real change will happen.

Matt’s final message to all those who have supported the petition is this: “Thank you to all those who have signed the petition. We all need to hang on in there because this process isn’t something that is going to happen overnight. Be patient and eventually we will reap the rewards.”

In Conversation with Andy Serkis

To play performance capture roles you need to study every movement of the creature you are to become. You need to put in painstakingly hard work and have a meticulous eye for detail. Andy Serkis has been at the forefront of this for over 16 years, a longevity that deserves overwhelming praise. But he is hanging up his performance capture suit for now in favour of sitting in the director’s chair.

It’s early on Friday, October 27, in Media City, Salford. Andy is bearded, in a black leather jacket and jeans. A radio interview completed, he strolls into the cafe, the strain of tirelessly promoting his debut film, Breathe, visible under his eyes. Yet the moment our conversation began he perked up dramatically.

From playing The Fool in a stage performance of King Lear to Gollum in The Lord of the Rings, there are few who could make such a transition. Serkis has a versatility that very few actors possess. Not only that, but is renowned for being one of Hollywood’s nicest men, with a true passion for film.

“I love the power of the shared experience. Watching people go through an experience together and being totally transported by characters in whatever world they exist in. That you are moved and educated and changed by something that is an emotionally powerful experience.”

16 years ago was a different world; franchises and universes were few and far between and CGI was in its infancy. People were skeptical when The Lord of the Rings was announced, the 1978 animated version still leaving a sour taste in their mouths.

Serkis wasn’t interested in the role at first. Three weeks of voice work for a CG chapter in New Zealand, “it sounded dull as hell. There must be a dozen good roles in this film.” Then he started looking at the book and his opinion flipped, “Oh my god, this is amazing, he’s the best character in it.” Serkis auditioned and the rest, they say, is history.

There have been very few moments in cinema where you witness the birth of a star: Natalie Portman in Léon: The Professional, Tom Cruise in Top Gun, Robert Redford in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. In The Fellowship of the Ring when we meet Gollum, the audience can’t help but ask the question: who the hell is that? His movement and acting seemed so innovative yet so natural.

2001 seems a far cry away from today. Just like The Lord of the Rings is a far cry from Breathe, his directorial debut. “When you’re telling a story as a director you are also creating the world of the story and how you choose to frame it” he says, pausing to take a sip of water, adding: “In terms of: is it naturalistic, or documentary style, or cinematic, or poetic? You’re making all these choices.”

This new world of directing can be overwhelming, but Serkis had training, working as second unit director on the second and third Hobbit film. ‘In The Hobbit I was serving Peter Jackson’s vision for the most part. I did big aerial shots, battle sequences and dramatic scenes, it was a very full-on exposure to directing.”

A large part of that work involved green screens, and often he didn’t see the results until months later. The focus was on directing people not performances. “Whereas for Breathe, I was very much focusing on the performances, the joy of really seeing what you’re shooting was very special.” He could take the broad techniques he’d learnt and really focus them down.

“Obviously on smaller scale films, you don’t have the budget and support as you do with a big studio, you have to be very creative. There are often things that can twist and turn and go wrong in a small movie and you have to roll with the punches and dance around those.”

In making Breathe, Serkis has learned a lot more about directing, and strives to improve. “I’d like to have more confidence in leaving the camera in and getting the shots purely from performance, having that confidence and trust in your actors to carry your vision.”

His next film, Jungle Book, is actually one he began first. Having so many A list actors, they could only find short window of time for filming with all of them, so the motion capture work was finished long before the rest of the film. Then it was time for principal photography, on real locations and sets.

“In our minds we had a cut of the film, so we knew how we were going to use the animals in those real locations having filmed the performances.” In a way this is very similar to The Hobbit, in that you can only imagine the end result while shooting. “You don’t see what it will eventually look like till a year into post production, that was a big challenge.”

Serkis wasn’t nervous about the performance of his Kipling adaptation, as it comes so soon after Jon Favreau’s version. “I think it’s tonally so different from Favreau’s. Ours is a lot darker and much closer to the tone of Kipling’s original book. Rather than live action we used performance capture so it was shot on real locations. It wasn’t CG animals in a CG world.”

“The story of ours is a lot different, as it focuses on Mogli’s identity. It’s about a boy who’s a feral child, brought up with animals and has a sort of idyllic childhood, but then realises the laws of the jungle don’t work for him fully. Instinctively because he’s a human being he finds himself challenging that but also in the world of man, the customs and ways of man, cannot ultimately stop his instincts of, well, an animal. He has to create his own identity and that what our film is about.”

After convincing me that his version is world apart from Favreau’s he jibes “Look, we live in a culture where we’ve had three Spidermans in the last ten years, so I don’t think people will have a problem with watching a different Jungle Book. With any great classic work, such as Hamlet with Benedict Cumberbatch and Tom Hiddleston, or the numerous adaptations of Charles Dickens, people are used to the idea of reinterpretations and new interpretations.”

A lot of his work rises the wave of technological advancements, but he thinks the industry is only getting started. “I think performance capture usage is still in its infancy. It’s being used predominantly in big budget blockbuster movies, because of the cost of the technology. With the rendering costs coming down and using video game engines, such as Unreal, in the filmmaking process to get real time rendering, you can now use performance capture for television and even on stage.”

The stage, where Serkis plied his trade, building up his reputation before making the leap to film, is still a big part of his life. “My company, Imaginarium, has been working with the Royal Shakespeare Company on an actor portraying a character using performance capture on stage.” When asked if he would consider going back to his roots he paused, look down at his glass of water and said “It’s been 15 years, I’m a little bit nervous about it, but I can definitely see it happening.”

So what’s next? Well he has plenty more in the pipeline, although not on stage just yet. “We’re working on Animal Farm by George Orwell and that will be a very interesting challenge in seeing how we create those characters. It’s really good use of the technology because you get all of the performance of human beings but translated into, not apes as they are fairly straightforward, but quadruped animals. We have been doing this with Jungle Book but Animal Farm will be taking this a lot further because we will see the pigs transform into almost human-like pigs.”

Some films are so technologically significant that they change cinema forever. James Cameron’s Avatar the most recent example, was almost solely responsible for every cinema changing from analog to digital projection. Cameron transported viewers into a CG world so revolutionary that the world they came back to was revolutionised as a result. George Orwell’s Animal Farm will be one of those films, paving the way for a fresh use of CG.

Another of those films was 2014’s Dawn of the Planet of the Apes. When all blockbusters around were hammered to fit through the same hole, Matt Reeves tried something truly different. It was essentially a foreign language film, with the language being that of the great apes, and Serkis was their leader.

As the first two of the trilogy was released, critics and audiences couldn’t believe what they were seeing, and there was discussion for a Best Actor Oscar nominations, but they never came. This year, with the release of the epic conclusion, that discussion is greater than ever before. “I can’t judge my own performance but there is certainly more discussion about it this year because it is a very central role. It’s also a role where there is a lot more dialogue, Caesar actually speaks and people can connect to that.”

Forever humble, he downplays the potential of a nomination, but insists that performance capture roles should get considered. “The process of acting is no different if you’re wearing costume and makeup or a performance capture suit with dots on your face. The performance isn’t created by someone else, it’s created by the actor, and how they manifest that character.

“You could say well, when John Hurt played the elephant man and got nominated for Best Actor, he was totally in disguise and it was created by a great team of artists. Their artistry was augmenting his performance, but only in the same way that digital artists are augmenting a performance. Not by changing the performance but by creating a digital mask. I’ve always maintained that what we do in a PC role isn’t different to any form of live action acting.”

Only time will tell what happens at next year’s ceremony. For now, Serkis is sneaking his way into more franchises, as Supreme Leader Snoke in Star Wars and as Ulysses Klaue in the Marvel Universe. “They approached me for the Avengers. It was because at Imaginarium we were working on the performance capture for the Hulk, with Mark Ruffalo and for Ultron, with James Spader. I also worked physically with Mark Ruffalo to embody the Hulk to greater effect, that was with Joss Whedon. Then Whedon approached me and said ‘Look Andy I’ve got this role and I’d love you to play it’, I couldn’t turn that down.”

From the trailers to next year’s Black Panther, it seems his character is among the main cast. To wrap our time together up I asked Serkis if this was it for Klaue, or whether he survives to be seen again. In return I got a coy smile, “I can’t really say that, but I can say he certainly makes his presence known.”

Live Review: (Sandy) Alex G

(Sandy) Alex G has had quite the year. He came out of 2016 with writing credits on both of Frank Ocean’s new albums, Blonde and Endless and earlier this year released his critically lauded third — or seventh if you include his Bandcamp back catalogue — album Rocket.

Support came from the fantastic Ó, formally Eskimeau, who kept the crowd enthralled and dancing under the mirror ball lights. The New York based band played tracks from the 2016 EP Year Of The Rabbit and 2015’s O.K as well as some new tracks their lo-fi indie rock, sounding like a more confident Frankie Cosmos. They were the perfect opening for (Sandy) Alex G.

The sold-out crowd, who I would describe as people who own the newest Mac Demarco record on vinyl, burst into a rapturous applause as (Sandy) Alex G and his band took to the stage, excited to see if Alex G’s live shows live up to his recordings.

The first half of the set consisted mostly of tracks from the new album opening with ‘Judge’ and then jumping around the track listing and sprinkling a few tracks from his last couple albums, with the crowd swaying and singing along throughout. A personal highlight of the night for me was his performance of Rocket’s opening track ‘Poison root’, a softly sang Americana folk track followed immediately by ‘Brick’, a distorted noise song that features Alex G screaming the lyrics backed by a discordant melody.

For the last half an hour, rather than play a pre-planned set list he instead asked for requests from the crowd and, despite his vast back catalogue, he and his band had clearly cared enough to rehearse almost all of it so everyone could hear their favourite Alex G song. When the set finished and the band started packing away their equipment, the crowd screamed for more, eventually managing to convince the band to do what is the only sincere encore I’ve ever seen, even if it took a few minutes to find the bassist and get him back on stage.

(Sandy) Alex G has the talent to make a performance to a sold-out crowd feel as perfect and intimate as his recording and an effortless charisma that draws you in, making you hang on every syllable, every word. Maybe it’s from his many years playing house parties at a college or somewhere else but watching him live you get a sense that he just wants to play and make sure the audience has the best time they could possibly have.

After the gig, he hung around taking photos and answering questions from people, cementing the fact that he loves his fans as much as they love him. If you get the chance to see (Sandy) Alex G you will not regret it.

Thursday 19th October, Deaf Institute

9/10

Firefighters attacked in Manchester on Bonfire Night

Firefighters across Greater Manchester were attacked during the bonfire night of 2017.

A reported 413 calls were made to Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue between 5.30pm on Sunday the 5th of November and 8.30am on Monday the 6th of November. This resulted in reportedly half the service’s total resources being deployed during the busiest hours of the evening. During this time, firefighters across Greater Manchester were attacked, reportedly by youths.

Manchester’s Mayor Andy Burnham accompanied a firefighting crew in Bolton on Sunday, and witnessed the chaotic evening first hand.

Mayor Burnham tweeted that it was a “Bit of a shock to see a firework thrown at us” and later went on to state “Unbelievably the firefighters said it was actually very common. This is fundamentally unacceptable.”

Bolton was not the only area to suffer from unrest. In the early evening of the 5th of November, Oldham Firefighters were called to Hillfarm Close to deal with a bonfire. Upon arrival the firefighters were attacked with fireworks. A spokesperson for GMFRS said: “There were no injuries or damage to the fire engine. Fire crews were on scene for approximately ten minutes.”

Firefighters bore the brunt of the attacks that night, however a resident in Longsight reportedly had a lit firework posted through their door. A car was also torched in Rochdale, and it us not the only car to have believed to have befallen this fate. There are reports across Manchester of other cars being torched

However, there have been no reported injuries during these incidents.

The numerous attacks on Sunday followed violence and arson on Saturday the 4th of November. Glass bottles were thrown by youths at a fire engine that drove past Edgehill Close in Salford. Later that evening, the playground in Ordsall Park, Salford was set alight.

Salford Fire Team condemned the arson as “a waste of our time”.

Firefighting is a “tough job” said Mayor Burnham condemning the events, though the minor arson and attacks across Manchester were believed to be short lived.

Lessons from Western Australia

It used to be that cricket tours would sprawl across a whole summer, endless warm-up matches against made-up teams with Roman numerals suffixed. It’s a drag frankly.

They do things better these days. Four practice games, two of which only take up two days. It’s the right amount — the players learn a bit and so do we, but it doesn’t take away too much of the home advantage — cricket’s great strength — and it doesn’t actually give us, the spectators, a definitive feel for the series ahead.

Indeed, it would be silly to draw conclusions about the forthcoming war from one two-day jolly against Western Australia XI.

And here they are:

1) Over-reliance on James Anderson. I’ve been suppressing this thought for the best part of a decade, that Stuart Broad is no good. Where does contrarianism end and concrete opinion begin? It’s unclear in this instance, but the week’s events have boosted the latter.

1/64 at a rate of nearly five an over against a team representing a third of a country is a poor showing. Especially when you bear in mind that only a few hundred gnarled convicts live in that third.

And who makes up the rest of our pace attack? Chris Woakes, Craig Overton, Jake Ball? Players immortalised in Wisden but not in memory.

Of course, Anderson helped us out with 4/27. He is the greatest English bowler there’s been, and I say this not only to taunt the starched collars at the SF Barnes Appreciation Society. But Jimmy will turn 43 during the Adelaide test and it’s downright unfair to make such an old man take so much responsibility.

2) Drop the dead weight. Cook and Root made zero and nine respectively. It’s time they made way for a fresh face, or, alternatively, Mark Ramprakash. The Australians have always had a tough time against the steely Surrey man.

From his dazzling 133 in the dead rubber innings defeat at The Oval to all his other great performances. Never faltering, never flinching, the glue that held together the all-conquering England side of the 1990s. Brearley must return as captain.

3) Ditch the spin. All the WA wickets came off of the quicks, and Mason Crane’s high-economy 2/75 has done little to convince me that spin bowler will ever achieve success in Australia.

Noted alien conspiracist and cheese griller Shane Warne aside, this is a country that welcomes chin music. Cricketing culture tends to reflect the national culture, and in Australia they are hard bastards.

Heck, it worked in 2009 — bring Steve Harmison back into the side. We all remember staying up and watching the first ball of the 2006-07 series, that wiiiiiide that went straight to Flintoff at ninth slip. It supposedly set the tone for the whole tour. But people forget, that first over also brought an edge.

4) Let Ben Stokes come along. Honestly, who cares that he glassed that bloke? A lot of these Aussies will have Seen and Done Things worse, you can read it in their swagger and eyes.

I fear these complaints and recommendations will be too radical for the small minds at the ECB so I will have to go with Glenn on this one. 5-0 Australia, we’re just no good.

Students’ Union unveils living wage plaque

On Wednesday the 8th of November, the Students’ Union unveiled a new plaque in the Students’ Union building to commemorate the accreditation of the Students’ Union as a living wage employer.

The unveiling of the plaque was part of Living Wage Week, which took place across the UK from Sunday the 5th of November to Saturday the 11th of November. The aim of the week, set up by the Living Wage Foundation, is to raise awareness about the need for the living wage and to encourage employers to pay their employees the recommended £8.75 per hour (or £10.20 in London). Events took place across the week, including the announcement of the new living wage rates and events hosted by employers all over the country.

The unveiling of the plaque was attended by several leading living wage campaigners and speakers in Greater Manchester, including Furqan Naeem from Citizens UK and Conor McGurran from Unison North West, both addressing why they believe a living wage to be important and celebrating the union’s status.

Speaking to The Mancunion, Naeem said: “The living wage is incredibly important in Greater Manchester because it’s an independently calculated figure that means that those on the lowest pay get paid a decent, fair wage, with dignity.”

He also pointed out that there is a pound difference between the government’s “living wage” and the “real living wage” (as set out by the Living Wage Foundation) and added: “I think it’s so important that Greater Manchester, that champions itself to be a region of social justice, participates in this campaign that is about helping people get out of poverty.”

Campaigns Officer at the Student Union Deej Malik-Johnson also spoke at the event, highlighting the importance of the living wage in the organisation. “We say we are a values-led organisation, and we need to show that we mean what we say”. He also suggested ways for students to get involved with the campaign, such as joining the University of Manchester Living Wage Campaign and talking to the cleaners in hall and around the university.

Currently, the University of Manchester is not a living wage employer. The Greater Manchester Living Wage campaign, along with the Students’ Union, said that they are determined to keep putting pressure on the University to achieve this status.

“The University of Manchester is one of the biggest employers in the city,” stated Malik-Johnson. “It’s also the largest university in the country. I think it would send a really powerful message if they were to pay the living wage.” There are currently over twenty living wage accredited universities in the UK, including Oxford University and Queen Mary University of London.

A spokesperson for the University of Manchester said: “Salaries for University staff have consistently met with the Living Wage Foundation’s levels in previous years. At present, we’re reviewing our current benchmark pay rates in relation to bringing them in line with the recent living wage increase.”

The events in Manchester also included a campaign in the social care sector for the living wage to be paid to all staff. On Thursday evening, Greater Manchester Citizens and Care Workers for Change held a candlelit vigil outside BUPA’s Gorton Parks residential home. One of the organisers, McGurran, said it was a “peaceful community vigil” with the aim of asking BUPA to meet with them to discuss becoming a living wage accredited employer.

During the week it was also announced that the Greater Manchester Combined Authority has been newly accredited as a living wage employer.

Eamonn Boylan, Chief Executive at the Combined Authority said: “The accreditation is a signal of our commitment to continuing to be a good employer who will work to improve employment conditions and wage levels.” Mayor Andy Burnham added that the authority was “hopefully paving the way for other organisations in the region to follow suit.”

Vetements: Keeping it Unreal

Airport terminals, bank lobbies, high street shops: they all feel unreal. They are the places Demna Gvasalia designs for at Vetements. His AW17 ‘Stereotype’ collection cast ‘real people’ in a run of suggestive characters. He has since moved the company from Paris to Zurich and eschewed the runway for the empty spaces of the SS18 collection, to evoke (if anything) the international movement of capital. Vetements is real, in its most sharply unreal expression. Though an unlikely reference point, we can approach Gvasalia’s knowing sociology by way of August Sander’s similar, now remote documentary portraits of Germany in the Twenties.

Sander identified his subjects by social class, yet time has given them a sense of humour Gavasalia would appreciate. ‘Police constable’ sports a shoulder-breadth moustache, ‘Communist leader’ styles himself like Lenin, ‘The architect, Prof. P’ dons a bowl cut. Details come to seem like wry gestures, here a button missing, there a creased shirt. ‘Unemployed’, with his large shaved head, lanky gait and loose clothes, could walk straight into a Vetements show. Suits of this period were cut thinner for the leisurely rich, so when working people wore cheap copies they look misshapen, grotesque. Yet now he shares the angelic repose of Vetements’ so-called ‘chavs’, who wear their tracksuits like robes. In becoming representative, these figures become unreal and more fashionable.

Gvasalia refines the process. His colour scheme replicates the smearing effect of sepia, not at all wistful but shockingly present. In the mutes that temper our apparel (ensembles of beige and fawn, stonewash jeans), or in the sudden alarm of a prison-orange hoodie or a motorway-blue puffer – this is the bulk-blurry signage of public life. His synthetic designs effect a distance from the wearer. A suit is a net of tubes to re-route the limbs; one fur coat, hemmed from two; the puffer jacket so heavily wrought Jeff Koons could have done it. These ‘Stereotypes’ swallow rather than express individuality; as Gvasalia says, ‘It’s less subculture and more about product design’. He also said that casting ‘real people’ meant more, not less couture to accommodate their body types.

Gvasalia’s designs present in the moment, what a century has brought to bear on Sander’s portraits: our individuality gets smeared across us, makes us unreal. By ‘really observing the way we dress’, he means to pin down the strange haze surrounding the emo, the office worker, the old man. If this is scary then Gvasalia knows it. His homeless man in an EU flag, his booted UN soldier intimate real horror. In the coming years, Sander would photograph SS Officers and Hitler Youth. These Vetements characters lead a precarious life, any moment they might pop – leave a heap of baggy clothes, a splatter on the check-in lounge.

MMG Live: Check Your Exec

Manchester Media Group, an umbrella of The Mancunion, Fuse FM, and Fuse TV, will be hosting ‘MMG Live: Check Your Exec’ on the 23rd of November.

This event is an opportunity for all and any students to ask questions of the Students’ Union Executive team on their work since being elected.

Attendees will be able to discuss any student issues with the panel, whether that be recent concerns about crime or University staff redundancies, or more long-standing issues such as university fees.

To attend, select ‘going’ on the Facebook page and send your name, student ID, and questions you would like to ask the Exec in an email to [email protected]. MMG will sift through these questions and draw up a list of the most interesting and commonly-asked.

The event will be held them 5pm to 7:30pm in the Council Chambers of the Students’ Union building. It will be covered and published at a later point in radio and video format by Fuse FM and TV. Refreshments will be provided during an interval.

Manchester to take part at the Free Education Demo

Frustrated at tuition fees and the apparent increasing marketisation of the education system, thousands of students are expected to take to London’s streets for the Free Education National Demo on the 15th of November.

The demo, which demands for the taxation of the rich to provide for the abolition of fees, provision of living grants for all and the termination of campus cuts, has been argued to have gained momentum after Labour’s General Election pledge to tackle student debt brought the issue to the heart of mainstream political debate.

Organised by the National Campaign Against Fees and Cuts (NCAFC), the demo will also aim to tackle the ‘cash cow’ treatment of international students, of who were expected to pay between £10,000 to £30,000 in fees per annum for those who enrolled in the 2016-17 academic year.

The march will commence from 2pm on Malet Street, London and will explicitly target the Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF). Their aim, to “drive up standards in teaching”, has allowed for universities that receive a subsequent TEF award to increase their tuition fees in line with inflation.

Significantly, the NCAFC believe the allocation of a TEF award has propelled universities towards a increasing marketisation of education, triggering both staff cuts and a decline in education standards. This has been seen most recently at the University of Manchester itself, with staff taking industrial action on the 23rd and 24th of October in protest of the 171 proposed redundancies within the academic community.

One student told The Mancunion: “I think it’s important for students to be as vocal as they can against any changes that further decrease the chances for prospective students, especially those from disadvantaged backgrounds. This is especially important when you have a government that insists on implementing such policies.”

Deej Malik -Johnson, Campaigns and Citizenship Officer at the University of Manchester Students’ Union, also welcomed the demo, commenting: “The national education demo is a hugely important annual event for students from around the country to get together and demand the education system we deserve.

“Now with free education back on the agenda with the Labour Party backing it as policy and with a weakened Conservative government, desperate to woo young peoples votes, now is the time to act!”

The University of Manchester Students’ Union have organised a coach to London, leaving from the Armitage Centre at 7am. Student tickets cost £5, and non-student/staff tickets £10.

Fitting the Student Budget – 4 meals that cost less than a Chesters

A student budget doesn’t have to mean eating beans on toast for dinner everyday. There are plenty of flavourful meals you can create at home which are not only tastier but also cheaper than a Chesters. Shopping at Aldi or Lidl is one of the best ways to stick to your budget. Most of the prices you see below are from Lidl, although those from other stores are labelled.

1. Vegetable Stir Fry

Price break down:
Ready to Wok noodles                   28p
Stir Fry sauce sachet                       33p
Onions                                               8p each
Garlic                                                 6p for ¼ clove in Asda
Vegetables of your choice
E.g. ½ Broccoli                                50p
Bell Peppers                                     35p
Spring Onions                                 22p per half pack
TOTAL                                              £1.76

This low budget meal is the perfect way to spice up your student budget. In a pan, heat some sesame (or olive) oil and fry one chopped onion. Next, add some garlic and chillies for some fiery flavour. Chop and stir in the vegetables of your choice, for example bell peppers, broccoli, and spring onion. Once the vegetables are hot and a little chargrilled, add in a stir fry sauce sachet, for example the chow mein flavour. Spice with salt, pepper, and chilli flakes to get a flavour that beats even Chesters’ peri-salt. Finally, break up and add your noodles. Stir fry until the noodles are soft and covered in sauce. Voila!

 

2. Vegetarian Curry

Price break down:
Lloyd Grossman’s curry sauce         £1 in Sainsbury’s (2-3 servings)
2 Bell Peppers                                     70p
½ Broccoli                                           50p
1 small cup of Lentils                         15p/100g in Tesco
Red Kidney Beans                              30p
¼ clove Garlic                                    6p per ¼ in Asda
Red Onion                                           8p each in Lidl
Tinned tomatoes                                 29p in Lidl
TOTAL                                                  £3.08 for 2-3 servings, £1.02 per serving

With this recipe you can get the pleasures of the curry mile from the comfort of your own home. To begin, boil the kettle to cook your lentils. After rinsing off any debris, add one small cup of lentils to a saucepan, then add 3 cups of boiling water. Turn the hob onto a high heat and bring the lentils to boil. Then cover the lentils, reduce the heat, and simmer until they are tender (usually 15 or 20 minutes). During this time you can also cook your rice. Once the lentils are nearly cooked, using a separate pan, fry your diced onion in oil until soft (about 8 minutes) and then add the garlic. After 1 minute, add your bell peppers and broccoli and continue frying. Next, add the whole jar of sauce and reduce heat to simmer the curry. Drain and add the red kidney beans, then pour in ½  jar of tinned tomatoes. Let the curry cook on a low heat for another 10 minutes and serve with rice.

 

3. Fajitas

Price Breakdown:
Fajita Kit                                             £1.29 (3-4 servings)
2 Peppers                                            70p (35p each)
2 Red Onions                                     16p
Red Kidney Beans                             30p
(Chicken Breast                                 80p/breast)
TOTAL                                                 £2.45 Vegetarian for 3-4 servings, £3.25 with Chicken

This dish is perfect for a Mexican Night with your housemates, adding tequila and nachos for some flavorsome fun. Simply fry the onions, peppers ,and kidney beans with the flavoring provided in the pack, adding some chilli flakes if you can handle the spice. Serve with cheese, guacamole, and the salsa provided in the pack. Enjoy!

 

4. Pasta Bake

Price Breakdown:
250g Penne Pasta                              15p (30p for 500g)
1/2 Tin Chopped Tomatoes             15p (29p for whole tin)
1/2 Tin Sweetcorn                             20p (39p for whole tin)
1 Tin of Tuna                                       70p
1 Chopped Onion                               8p
100g grated cheddar cheese            48p (95p for 200g)
TOTAL                                                 £1.76

A classic student favourite, the pasta bake. This dish gives you all the carbs and cheese you need, whilst still sticking to your budget. Firstly, boil the kettle. Then fill a saucepan with the boiling water and add your pasta with a pinch of salt. Cook until soft, which usually takes 8-12 minutes. In a frying pan fry your chopped onion in oil until they are soft and golden. Next, add the tomatoes, sweetcorn, and tuna into the same pan and stir. Then drain the pasta and add the contents of the frying pan into the saucepan with the pasta. Stir to ensure all the pasta is coated. Next, put the mixture into a heatproof bowl, or deep baking tray, and cover in cheese, placing the tray under the grill. Take the tray out when the cheese is golden.

Happy Cooking!

Model Profile: Kaia Gerber

Kaia Gerber is the stunning model daughter of Cindy Crawford and husband, model-turned-business-man, Rande Gerber. It’s no surprise that Gerber is as beautiful as she is given her set of genes. Gerber’s resemblance to her supermodel mother is striking; she has inherited Crawford’s signature full brow, killer bone structure, and tanned skin and, just like her mum before her, is making waves in the fashion industry.

Earlier this month TIME released the list of the top 30 most influential teens in the world, and who should feature but none other than rising supermodel Kaia Gerber? After a run of successful fashion shows and big brand deals, the TIME list is a nod to Gerber’s flourishing career.

Despite being just aged 10 when she secured her first modeling job with Young Versace, this SS18 saw Kaia Gerber take to the runway for her debut season, walking for the likes of Miu Miu, Prada, Saint Laurent, and Alexander Wang. At 13 years old she was signed to IMG models, a whole three years before her mum’s first signing with Elite at aged 16. She then went on to appear on the front of LOVE magazine at just 14 years old. Her first big fashion deal came in 2016 with Alexander Wang in 2016 when she made the face of #WANGSQUAD. Since then her career has gone from strength to strength.

During fashion week she was also given free rein of Vogue’s Instagram page, which saw her document her first experience at fashion week. However, her most show-stopping moment of the latest fashion season saw her hit the catwalk in Milan for Versace’s now iconic show that reunited the original supermodels, including her mum Cindy Crawford. The show paid homage to Gianni Versace and his famous prints; Gerber donned a yellow leopard print two piece suit for her first look and an equally bright yellow and green catsuit embellished with Vogue covers for her second look.

The finale will go down in history for being the biggest and best revival of the supermodels. And what’s more, the show saw mother and daughter walk together, marking the beginning of what is sure to be a long and successful career for Gerber, the young and talented supermodel in the making. Watch this space.

Photo: kaiagerber@instagram

Recipe: Beef Wellington with a Steak Diane sauce

Serves four

Ingredients:
Fillet of beef 500g
Roll of shop bought puff pastry
Wild mushrooms 500g out of preference
English mustard
Horse radish
Butter
Salt and Pepper
3 Shallots
300ml of red wine
6 Cloves of Garlic
Thyme (fresh if possible)
Eggs

Method:
The Beef Wellington

1. Take your fillet of beef and sear it in a medium to hot pan, containing an emulsion of melted butter and chopped thyme and then add a dash of olive oil on all sides, constantly basting the meat with the emulsion.
2. Once gently seared, put to the side and leave it to rest for 10-15 mins wrapped in tin foil.
3. Roughly chop or tear 300g of the mushrooms, the size is down to personal preference.
4. Add the mushrooms, 3 cloves of sliced garlic and some thyme to the same pan and fry off for 4-6 minutes depending on mushrooms being used.
5. Remove the mushrooms to a clean cloth to remove any excess liquid. This is essential to keeping the pastry dry, because let’s face it, no one like a soggy welly.
6. Roll out your pastry on to a tray lined with baking paper, paste a healthy helping of English mustard and horse radish. If need be, you can roll the pastry out onto cling film to assist with the rolling.
7. Lay the mushrooms in the centre of the rolled pastry where you will place your meat, then gently place the meat on the mushrooms.
8. Roll the pastry around the meat away from you, and use an egg wash to help bind the pastry together.
9. Stab a little prick in the top and bottom of the pastry in order to allow the steam to escape.
10. Now place your wellington in a preheated oven at 190°/Gas Mark 6 for 15 minutes. Now you can start on your sauce.
11. Take it out of the oven and egg wash the outside of pastry and place back in oven for another 10 minutes.
12. Repeat the previous step but this time why not try sprinkling some sesame or sunflower seeds over the pastry to make that pastry even more flavoursome. Put back for 5 minutes.
13. Take it out of the oven, and rest for 5 minutes.
14. Ready to carve.

Steak Diane Sauce

1. Finely chop the rest of the mushrooms, 3 medium to large shallots, 3 cloves of garlic and a sprig of thyme.
2. Sweat off the shallots, mushrooms and garlic with a dash of olive oil until tender and season with a salt and pepper.
3. Add 300ml a red wine of your choosing and simmer to reduce to 2/3.
4. Once reduced add a knob of butter and stir until you get a lovely thick consistency.
5. Further season to taste.
6. If preferred drain to get rid of the shallots and mushrooms but personally I like that added texture especially if drizzled on some new potatoes or mash.

The last straw: 42’s takes action against plastic waste

Since introducing a 10p charge for straws, Manchester nightclub 42nd Street (a.k.a ’42s’)  are estimated to have reduced straw usage by 95 per cent, The Mancunion has learned.

In early October, the nightclub announced that it would be introducing a charge for its straws backing the ‘Straw Wars‘ charity, with all proceeds raised from straw charges going to charity. Explaining the rationale behind the policy, a spokesman told The Mancunion that “straws just seem so unnecessary.”

They added: “We have always tried to have responsible policies, from not having high ABV drinks in our promotions to donating our lost property to homeless charities. This just seemed like another cause we could get behind and we already recycle all our other waste.”

When asked about the impact of the charge, the spokesman said“[we] guess we’re using about 5 per cent of the straws we used to.”

The club also told The Mancunion that they will “soon change to vegetable straws which are even better for the environment.”

James Shuttleworth, a third year Geographer at the University of Manchester, praised the campaign and said: “42nd Street’s campaign charging straws has highlighted an important issue. Up until now this consumption was an everyday event, done without thinking and had become invisible.

“A 95 per cent reduction in the amount of straws used is a massive success for the campaign. I hope this will encourage other people and venues to think about what they consume and to reduce or change it to reduce their impact on our planet.”

Luke Blazejewski of Zero Waste UK, a Manchester-based non-profit organisation who campaign for the uptake of waste reduction practices, backed the initiative and told The Mancunion: “We’ve all seen that traumatising video of that turtle having a plastic straws removed from its nose. Once upon a time that straw was probably in someone’s drink, and then casually thrown away. I think anything we can do to reduce our plastic consumption makes a positive change in the world.”

More jokingly, third-year student Callum Kirby said: “It’s comfort to us all that, when on a night out at one of Manchester’s foremost student haunts, we can rest easy in our beds knowing that, upon buying our vodka and tonics, the straws from which we sip them are doing that little bit extra to make this world a better place.”

Speaking to The Mancunion, the nightclub also hit out at the brewing industry more broadly and added: “You could say it would be good if the brewing industry got it’s act together and started going plastic or cans. As most nightclubs in most cities in the UK now decant into plastic under guidance from the licensing authorities, we are producing twice the waste (recyclable or not) that we used to. And just the think of the health benefits for the people who have to lift the waste sacks!”

Ocean pollution from plastic is a problem that is thought to cause the death of 1 million seabirds and 100,000 marine mammals a year and the night club has become the first location to support the “Straw Wars” cause in Manchester.

As well as their anti-straw initiative, 42nd street also support homelessness charity Barnabus and have recently offered free entry to the club if punters bring “urgent items” for Barnabus’ homeless drop-in.

Last year, Wetherspoon’s similarly announced it would be reducing its plastic straw usage. A spokesman for JD Wetherspoon said: “We have decided to stop using plastic straws across our 900 pubs in the UK and Republic of Ireland by the end of this year.

“In addition, and with immediate effect, straws will no longer be automatically added to drinks, although they remain available for customers if requested.

“From January 2018, all of our pubs will use biodegradable paper straws.”

At the Students’ Union Senate of November the 9th of November, a motion was passed to replace plastic straws used in the Students’ Union buildings with paper straws.

Women in Media networking event at The Botanist

Manchester Media Group’s ‘Women in Media’ committee are hosting a networking event at the Botanist in MediaCityUK, connecting the public and students with some of the media’s leading women.

From 7pm on the 15th of November, guests will be able to mingle with experts from areas such as PR, broadcast journalism, television production and more, all over cocktails at The Botanist in MediaCityUK. Media City, located in Salford Quays, is home to ITV, the BBC, and more, providing Manchester residents with close access to some of the biggest companies in the media industry.

Co-chair of the Women in Media group, Zoë Dukoff-Gordon, advocated the event saying: “It’s a great way to hear more about the industry, whether it’s something you may be considering as a career or if you are set on it already. It’s also a really nice space to just learn a bit more about the female faces behind the media, whether or not it’s a career you want to pursue.”

The networking event will also work to promote the Women in Media Conference, taking place this March, which will celebrate women in media, providing keynote speakers and information on current media issues and trends.

The ‘Women in Media’ conference will take place a month after the centenary of the 1918 Representation of the People Act, which gave women over the age of thirty who owned property the right to vote.

The networking event taking place this November, and the conference in March, come at arguably a pivotal time for women in the workplace, as sexual harassment accusations shake both Hollywood and the House of Commons. As of this week, eight Conservative MPs and four Labour MPs have been accused of sexual misconduct. In addition, a TUC report in 2016 found that 52 per cent of women had experienced some level of sexual harassment at work, with nearly a quarter of women experiencing unwanted touching in the workplace.

The media is, according to a 2016 study by City University London, 55 per cent male, and in July this year the BBC pay gap scandal displayed the gendered disparity in the media industry, and an arguable need for more gender diversity and equality within the industry.

Dukoff-Gordon commented that “it’s important for any industry to be open in accepting anyone. If they have a disability; or are Black, White, Asian, gay, straight, man, woman, transgender.” She then concluded “I think it’s people’s traditional perception that normality — in Britain anyway — is to be a white male; when this is just not the case!”

In addition, co-chair of Women in Media, Len Cotton argued that “at present, a very thwarted sense of reality is being portrayed, as predominantly men are involved in more ‘serious’ topics, such as politics.” Cotton contended that “this omits the image that women are incapable of tackling such issues which is completely wrong.”

The issue of sexual harassment has also struck universities, when earlier this year an investigation by The Guardian found harassment to be an “epidemic.”

Examining the years 2011/2012 to 2016/2017, the investigation uncovered 169 claims made by students towards university staff, with a further 127 complaints made by staff members towards their colleagues. Whilst Manchester Metropolitan University did not have any statistics in the report, The University of Manchester had less than five reports of sexual harassment from 2011.

The ‘Women in Media’ networking evening will work to promote women in the media industry and hope to be what Dukoff-Gordon describes as a “safe support network for women” in light of sexual harassment and general gender inequality.

The event will have guests such as Katie Thistleton, who has been presenting ‘the bits in between the shows’ live on CBBC for almost 5 years and now also presents ‘The CBBC Book Club’.

Summarising, Cotton said: “We need female reporters to be covering every aspect of politics to show that we are just as capable, knowledgeable and talented as our male counterparts.”

The event is at capacity but those interested can email [email protected] with their name and organisation to be added to the waiting list.

Review: Elnecot

Freshly opened in Ancoats, Elnecot is a new bar & kitchen that can be found on Blossom Street. Situated alongside extensive construction work and on a low-lit street, this hidden spot is difficult to find.

The modern venue greeted us with welcoming bartenders, contemporary artwork, and a buzzing atmosphere. It’s very ‘industrial chic’,  with neon lights and orange upholstery contrasted with muted greys.

Resisting the restaurant traditions, long benches lend themselves to the communal dining experience that the menu simultaneously encourages through providing a range of sharing dishes. The communal feel extends to the open plan kitchen. We were placed at the bar and discussed all things food with the friendly chefs.

Whilst Elnecot refuses to be pigeon-holed as either ‘bar’ or ‘restaurant’, the kitchen offering excels even the best of Manchester’s restaurants. Chef Michael Clay delves into Ancoats’ rough and ready heritage to inspire his food, where cuisines from all over the world are made-Manchester by adding locally sourced produce and taste.

Elnecot recommends 2-3 dishes each, but 5 dishes were plenty between two hungry students. After a discussion with the host as well as a few interjections from the chef’s cooking in their open kitchen right at our bar stools, we ordered:

Pearl barley arancini
British buffalo burrata with pea puree and savoury tuile
Carrots with pine nuts, goat’s cheese curd and coriander shoots
Thyme and sea salt fries
And a special: Plaice fishcakes

As you can tell, Elnecot’s industrial influence stops at décor and influence. The dishes are meticulous and potentially award-winning. The attention to detail makes it hard to dive in and ruin it all, but of course this doesn’t stop us. In typical small-plate style, the dishes arrive as they’re ready. The reluctance to create ‘traditional’ meals is part of Elnecot’s charm; they see nothing wrong with starting your meal with ox cheek and finishing with Bombay mix.

Despite the duteous amount of effort that clearly goes into creating these dishes, Elnecot refuses to hike their prices. It really is luxury food at an affordable cost; five dishes and two large glasses of local red wine cost just £37.

Elnecot is early to the game in establishing itself in the up-and-coming district of Ancoats. But, if the entire district can master Elnecot’s relaxed, ‘come as you are’ feel – a true reflection of Manchester’s style – then Ancoats will be wildly popular, an great extension to the city’s vibrant culinary scene.

Manchester University under pressure to divest from fossil fuels

Students at The University of Manchester are planning a National Day of Action to pressure the University to divest from fossil fuels.

In a bid to pressure the University to divest, campaigning networks People and Planet and Fossil Free UK in Manchester have joined forces with environmental organisations and student campaigns from other universities who have not committed to divestments including Cambridge, UCL, Leeds, and UEA.

A National Day of Action (NDA) will be held on the 22nd of November. This will include a march from Manchester Metropolitan University to the Whitworth arch, where they plan a sit-in to obstruct the walkway under the arch.

Despite three years of campaigning and protesting, including sending a letter signed by over 90 academics to the board of governors, finance committee, and vice chancellor Dame Nancy Rothwell, and collecting over 12,000 signatures on a petition to divest, students had only been told that the University will “review the issue” of their investments in fossil fuels.

Deej Malik-Johnson, Campaigns Officer at the University of Manchester Students’ Union, called the lack of University action “plain contemptuous,” commenting that “the Students’ Union has clear policy to lobby the university to divest from fossil fuels.

“Fossil fuels are an environmental disaster [as] they are a key causal factor in climate change, the effects of which we are seeing now and that our generation throughout the world will be burdened with the task of attempting to mitigate [sic]. For the university to continue to use our money to profiteer from the ruining of our planet goes beyond social irresponsibility.”

Earlier this year, the growing campaign held their biggest protest in March, followed by a joint protest with the Boycott, Divestments, and Sanctions (BDS) movement at the Social Responsibility Awards in May.

Following the protest, the University Board of Governors stated they had decided to rewrite their Social Responsibility Policy to “incorporate environmental, social and governance factors into their selection criteria when deciding where to invest” and, “committing to publish a quarterly snapshot of investment shareholdings on the corporate website.”

However, students campaigning for the cause do not think this is enough. Callum Tyler, chair of the People and Planet campaign in Manchester said they “never received a real answer as to why they [The University] have not made any commitment to divesting their funding in the fossil fuel industry.”

Lizzy Haughton, former ethical and environmental officer at the University also told The Mancunion: “at a time when the University has repeatedly ignored efforts from various campaign groups, for example a commitment to full divestment from the People and Planet Society, several FOI requests from the BDS campaign, a re-opening of the boycotted NSS, as well as a blatant disregard for staff with the announcement of 171 job cuts last June, there is little faith in both staff and students for the management of the university.

“The university have used their get-out-of-jail-free card by announcing a re-writing of their Social Responsibility Policy, in which it states that they must look closer at where they invest their money on ethical and environmental grounds.”

“This, however, already comes under the remit of ‘Social Responsibility’. It is not an answer, and they will not silence us again.”

The Mancunion also contacted a University spokesperson who commented on changes to the policy, saying that it “will see the University change its relationship with its Investment Managers, which will allow it to pursue an ethical investment approach whilst minimising any potential negative impact on its investment returns.”

They added that “this approach includes a commitment to identifying and promoting low or zero-carbon investments.”

However, the University did not comment on Freedom Of Information requests and have still not confirmed they will consider divestment from fossil fuels.

In 2015, Fossil Free research found that, as of April 2014, the University had £9,528,823 worth of shares in oil and gas companies, including £2,963,822 in Royal Dutch Shell and £2,735,859 in Rio Tinto.

According to the Times Higher Education and The Guardian, 54 Universities in the UK including Oxford, Glasgow, SOAS, KCL, Edinburgh, and Manchester Metropolitan have divested from investments in fossil fuels, which is over a third of all campuses in the nation. More than half of these are Russell Group Universities, whose total commitments to divest stand at around £10.7 billion. 110 Institutions in over 70 countries have pledged some form of divestment from fossil fuels, but the University of Manchester has yet to join the list.

Universities are not, however, the only organisations that have been under pressure to divest from fossil fuels. Recent data released by the website Go Fossil Free reveals that UK councils invest £16.1 billion of their workers’ pensions into companies that extract coal, oil, and gas. Data released by 350.org, Platform, Energy Democracy Project, and Friends of the Earth ranks councils by their fossil fuel investments and allows residents to see every company or fund their local council has invested in.

Compared to 2015 data, these figures show that councils have not made any significant changes to their investments in response to calls from the climate movement, governments, and shareholders to take climate risk into account in the two years since the Paris Agreement on climate change.

In June 2017, UNISON, the largest trade union representing local government workers in the country, passed policy to “seek divestment of Local Government Pension Schemes from fossil fuels over five years”. UNISON’s conference motion passed earlier this year stated: “By divesting the £14 billion currently invested in fossil fuels, local councils can take an important step forward in challenging climate change.”

When it comes to implementing divestment at Universities, government policy is expected to continue to have an impact. Abigail Dombey, The University of Brighton’s environmental manager, says that the financial incentives for generating electricity from renewable sources have been slashed by the government and she argues that there is much less incentive to invest in renewable energy.

Dr Victoria Johnson from the University of Manchester’s sustainable consumption institute thinks that divestment campaigns are worthwhile and said: “Divestment campaigns are clearly symbolic actions, with the aim of creating the sense that an industry is a pariah.”

“They certainly aren’t a magic bullet to industry destabilisation. But they can be the precursor to change across multiple domains: industry, technologies and infrastructure, public policies and political power, knowledge base, user relations and markets and culture.”

Review: Murder on the Orient Express

“My name is Hercule Poirot and I am probably the greatest detective in the world.”

Kenneth Branagh channels that same self confidence as he acts in and directs this adaptation of Agatha Christie’s iconic novel. Branagh aims for a pensive, if camp, take on Poirot, but he falls short of that and instead it feels like watching a live-action game of Cluedo, as if another Jumanji film wasn’t enough.

This isn’t the first adventure on the Orient Express to hit our screens and it isn’t even the most star studded. Sidney Lumet directed the 1974 version featuring the likes of Albert Finney as Poirot, Lauren Bacall, Ingrid Bergman, Sean Connery, and Jacqueline Bisset. Comparisons are inevitable and the difference between the two is night and day. Lumet’s got nominated for six Oscars, with Bergman taking home Best Supporting Actress, and I cannot foresee any category in which Branagh will get a nomination.

It is Jerusalem where the film begins in a truly bizarre opening. We get an aerial shot of some Jewish men approaching the Wailing Wall when suddenly a small child runs past and the chase is seemingly on. He is carrying something in his hands, although it is obscured by a cloth. When he reaches his destination he reveals four eggs and offers them to a shadowy figure, but they are refused, so the child runs away and gets more. The shadowy figure is revealed to be Poirot, who wants the perfect boiled eggs for his breakfast but then declines them once more when they aren’t to his taste.

The whole purpose of this seems to be for an anecdote a few minutes later. The Jewish, Christian, and Muslim citizens of Jerusalem are up in arms about a stolen religious artefact with a rabbi, a priest, and an iman as the suspects. Poirot lines the three up against the wall as an angry mob forms around them, then makes a quip about how he shares their frustration, as he couldn’t get the perfect boiled eggs for his breakfast, and then another about how similar the situation is to the old jokes. I’m not sure which demographic these jokes were aimed at, but they felt off compared to the rest of the humour.

Poirot quickly dispatches the mystery and decides to take some well earned R&R, but unsurprisingly it doesn’t last long and he is summoned to London for another case, travelling on the renowned Orient Express to get there. In the scenes leading up to the train leaving the station, Branagh introduces every character in quick-fire fashion, with no time to get a good look at one before the next appears on the screen. The desire is clearly to do all character development on the train, especially after the murder happens, but it would perhaps have been better to only show a selection of passengers as they board and continue the introductions on the journey.

Branagh attempts to juxtapose the claustrophobia of the train with the landscape around it by sprinkling in aerial views of the snowy mountains the train passes through, but the CGI work looks incredibly fake. The train’s initial departure point, Istanbul, is similarly painted with computerised images and there are a lot of parallels in design to 2016’s Assassin’s Creed. I want to be engrossed in the world he is trying to create, but when the inside of the train is meticulously detailed and in high definition and the outside looks like The Polar Express (2004) I can’t help becoming detached.

The main downfall is that the intrigue and mystery about the murder on the train relies solely on the twist at the end. If you have read the book or are otherwise aware of how it ends then the glossy finish won’t mask the lack of depth, however if you were, as I, unaware of the story you’ll find enough here to entertain you for two hours.

Branagh’s vanity project suffers from just that, vanity, by trying too hard to make every moment meaningful. As the credits roll, his intent is crystal clear — to proclaim “My name is Kenneth Branagh and I am probably the greatest writer and director in the world.”

3/5

Is 3-4-2-1 going to win England the World Cup?

In an interview towards the end of the qualifying campaign Gareth Southgate said the 3-4-2-1 formation is what he plans on using for the World Cup, drastically different from the usual formations England have been using. So how does it work? And is it the right choice for our squad?

The most obvious difference from a conventional formation is that there will be one fewer defenders on the pitch, with three defenders playing in front of the keeper. There are two main styles of play for the defence in this system, the first used by Chelsea in their title winning season last year, and the second used by Argentina to help lift the World Cup in 1986.

If we start with the Chelsea variation of three at the back, it sees two traditional centre backs play slightly wider than usual either side of a sweeper, or libero. David Luiz played the versatile libero role which seems him ‘sweep up’ the ball when the opposition breaks through the defensive line and helps turn defence into attack quickly.

The criticism of a system like this is, especially with Luiz last season, if the centre backs either side of the libero are competent, then there is often not a lot of work for them to do, and that player needs to maintain very high concentration to not make mistakes when called into action.

Photo: James Gill @The Mancunion

The Argentine variation, adopted by manager Carlos Bilardo, sees three traditional centre backs play in front of the keeper. All three are focused solely on defensive play and man-marking the opposition’s attacking players. This is a great system, especially with the current squad, as it allows the ball to get quickly passed to the wing backs or to a central playmaker coming deep to collect the ball. It is most effective when the transition between defence and attack is quick, with three or four passes between a centre back getting the ball and a winger in a dangerous position.

If we look at the defensive options for the squad we have multiple high level centre backs. Jones and Smalling have both been outstanding for Manchester United this season, a defence with eight clean sheets in eleven games. John Stones in Manchester City’s team has been improving massively with each season that passes, netting three goals in four Champions League games. They would, in my opinion, make up the back three; Everton’s Michael Keane and Leicester’s Harry Maguire would act as strong replacements if necessary.

In order to maximise the effectiveness of this defensive strategy, we need wing backs who understand their dynamic roles, both in overlapping with the wingers, and also coming inside to overload the midfield and give the wingers 1v1 opportunities. The 3-4-2-1 formation is used by Pochettino’s Spurs side and a similar system at Man City, and as a result we do have three wingbacks who flourish in these roles. Kyle Walker and Danny Rose would be the first choices. Kieran Trippier has also proved himself this season, firing accurate balls into the box as Walker did before him.

Photo: James Gill @The Mancunion

All in all this is an incredibly solid defence; if we have to sit deep against a great opposition team it can easily become a back five, but when play gets turned over the counter attack can be ruthless. Players like Cahill and Jagielka, however reliable in the past, should remain just that, in the past, and focus should instead shift to players that have proven themselves to be on the top of their game in this season and the last, especially in this new system.

The remaining two players in the four-man midfield would be central midfielders, one of whom needs to be a creative influence. For that playmaker the media have thrown around various names, most notably Adam Lallana, Jack Wilshire and Harry Winks. In my opinion, with regards to Wilshire, if you aren’t playing regular first team games for your club how could you possibly get called up to represent your country. As much as I think Wilshire has moments of brilliance, unless something changes he shouldn’t get called up for the World Cup.

That leaves Lallana and Winks, and the decision I think is obvious. Winks has broken through into the Spurs side this season, starting consecutive games in the absence of alternatives such as Wanyama, and has been outstanding. If we take the double header against Real Madrid recently as examples, he was a solid defensive midfielder in the first, picking the safer passes to ensure Madrid couldn’t break and in the second leg he was simply magnificent, with fantastic passes in the build up to the first and third goals.

It may be too early to call him the Messiah but if he can perform that well against the — admittedly weakened — twice reigning European Champion’s with many months left still to improve, and while also playing in the exact formation and system England will, I think he is the man for the job. Lallana, when back from injury, will make a great replacement when needed, and I hope Southgate sees Winks’ performances and takes the chance.

Who Gareth Southgate plays next to the playmaker should be tailored to the teams we are up against, more so than any other part of the pitch. Against a weaker opposition we can afford to play a more forward minded player, in my opinion this should be Dele Alli. Whilst he hasn’t had the best start to the season he seems to be finally getting into his stride netting two against Madrid, albeit one deflection and one offside. The familiarity of the system and players around him, Walker, Rose, Winks, will make him more comfortable and a threat going forward.

Against a more favoured team such as Spain, France or Brazil, Southgate should play a more defensively minded player, with Eric Dier the clear option. Dier, another Tottenham player, therefore familiar with players, systems etc, would be pivotal in the defensive midfield role. When defending he can sit just in front of the centre backs, filling in that gap and forcing the opposing team to pass the ball backwards, to the wings, or to take potshots from distance.

Now we move onto the two wing positions. On the right hand side, there is no argument that Sterling should start every game. His form is astounding this season, scoring seven times, and assisted twice so far. With teammate Walker on the right hand side, he will have to change little tactically going into the tournament. His role will have two main functions.

Photo: James Gill @The Mancunion

The first is to move into the centre of the pitch with the left hand winger, forcing a favourable three vs two or three vs three match up against the central defenders. At the same time the wing backs will push up on the wings making five players in the attack. The opposition will therefore have to bring back midfielders to stifle the attack, thus inhibiting their own ability to attack.

The second function is to allow the wing backs to invert and come centrally giving the wingers one vs one situations against the defence. You would favour Sterling here, as his burst of pace will leave most players in his dust. To go alongside Sterling on the left I would suggest Marcus Rashford. He currently plays on the left for United and would cherish the opportunity to move centrally, his favoured position, in this system. Jesse Lingard and potentially Walcott can come on late in the game to provide fresh legs and pace against tiring defenders.

To cap off the 3-4-2-1 we should play Harry Kane. Scoring 13 goals in 14 games in all competitions there is no striker who comes close. He knows the system inside out and would thrive alongside Sterling and Rashford, whose first instinct when getting the ball is to run at defenders. I don’t think there is a country in the tournament who won’t look at that attacking three and get worried.

I also don’t think there is a fan in England who doesn’t look at our goalkeeping position and get worried. Goalkeeper is the position of most concern for England fans. Butland at Stoke and Hart at West Ham are having poor seasons with their teams. Heaton is out injured and his replacement, Pope, although making joint second saves with his team in 7th, is quite inexperienced. Based upon current performance, Pope could get a call up, but is he good enough to start against the best in the world? And if not who is? I would suggest Everton’s Pickford.

Based upon Everton’s abysmal league position you may disagree, but Pickford looks head and shoulders above every other player on that team. In the summer I can’t foresee a world where a bigger club doesn’t throw him a lifebuoy to rescue him from that sinking ship. The Toffees only have 11 points, and if it wasn’t for his incredible 34 saves they would have far, far less.

This looks like a formidable side but there are flaws to the 3-4-2-1 system. The formation is countered by a side matching it, with each player marking their opposite number. A team that presses hard and consistently will force England into making errors and if the ball is lost in the wide spaces it could leave our defence exposed.

It is important to note that we will probably have less than 50 per cent percent possession in most games, relying on counter attacks by over-committed opposition attackers for our chance, but a lower possession stat does not mean we are not playing well. A solid defence, as ours should be, can withstand wave after wave of attacks. Weaker teams should be dispatched with ease but we may come unstuck against the better sides.

The two games against Germany and Brazil will give us some indication of how we can expect to perform in these fixtures next summer. A 3-0 loss now doesn’t mean we are done for; if anything it is preferable, as we can examine the mistakes we made and learn from them. If we win one or two nil we will learn very little. It’s better to get a drumming from Germany now, than to get one from Iceland next summer.

Live Review: Perfume Genius

Gorilla, 3rd November

There is something inherently sensual about Mike Hadreas, a.k.a. Perfume Genius. It isn’t just the way he sashays across the stage with the confrontational sass of a prime boxer, nor is it the fragile and tainted figure he cuts in songs like ‘Dark Parts’, in the self-confessed “quieter songs” section of the night.

Throughout the night, he seems almost not to be the sole source of his music, but rather a lightning rod, summoning the ethereal sounds from another place entirely and then unleashing them upon his audience with a fervour that dares you not to be overwhelmed, not to embrace what he is offering you.

And what he offers, it is hard to deny, lives up to the attitude it is presented with. Songs like ‘Wreath’ and ‘Otherside’ — a slow-burning tune which opens the night, building from a solitary piano solo to a ferocious instrumental crescendo — from his latest album No Shape, are launched upon the audience with an uncompromising boldness.

Whilst his lyrics are obviously relatable to many, every song seems highly personal. It is as if the audience is watching him experience his music, and lines like “You need me / Rest easy / I’m here / How weird” in the ballad ‘Alan’ — a song written in tribute to his band-member and long-term boyfriend — whilst not particularly insightful lyrically, are undeniably beautiful to witness. The feeling behind the song is so genuine that, when sung, it gives the impression of total spontaneity.

This is the paradox of Hadreas: between songs, he comes across as unfortunately timid, often seeming embarrassed by the applause he deservedly receives, and barely engaging in any dialogue with the audience, perhaps preferring to let his lyrics do the talking.

What is also startling with his live performance is that he can go from the funky and irrepressibly catchy ‘Just Like Love’ to the acoustic ‘Normal Song’ involving a serene moment almost spoilt by a singular loud talker in the audience, until they were gently shushed by the more appreciative majority, to what is essentially a rock song in ‘Grid’; and then back again to a heart-warming piano duet with Alan, of which the main attraction — likely intentionally — is his “lover’s” magnificent piano-playing.

In the midst of this, we are treated to a brooding cover of Mary Margaret O’Hara’s ‘Body’s in Trouble’ which is excitedly received.

There are songs that don’t quite lend themselves to live performance: ‘Die 4 You’ struggles to remain enthralling, whilst a cover of Big Star’s ‘Holocaust’ seems to end just as it is about to get going.

These hiccups, however, are forgotten as soon as he gets to the night’s closing track: the fearsome ‘Queen’, which gives one final burst of energy to the evening. The infamous line “No family is safe / When I sashay” is as glorious as ever when deployed live, and Hadreas, with performances like this, will be certain to keep everyone’s attention.

7/10