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Month: February 2017

Red carpet ready

Bold and seductive, the colour red oozes confidence and has long been a firm favourite at award ceremonies. Our favourite celebrities are experts at incorporating the colour into their red carpet looks, whether it is with a slick of red lipstick, a full-blown gown or a flash of their trusty Christian Louboutins.

The colour red symbolises passion and is an emotionally intense colour proving to have the capabilities of increasing your respiration rate and raising your blood pressure making it a sure winner if you want to set hearts racing with your look.

Although a red dress on the red carpet may seem like over kill, celebs have proved that there is nothing more alluring than a floor length red dress. Who can forget Bella Hadid turning up to the premiere of Unkown Girl at Cannes film festival in the sensational thigh high split Alexander Vauthier gown? This show-stopping look certainly made Bella stand out from the crowd. The look was incredibly daring with the dress being backless and complete with a plunging neckline and thigh high split, yet Bella carried herself with confidence and exuded glamour.

Whilst Bella kept her make up natural and let her dress do the talking, stars such as Rihanna and Kim Kardashian have fully embraced the colour by matching their lipstick to their dresses. Kim rocked her red waist- cinching Celia Kritharioti at Elton John’s Oscar party back in 2014, whilst in 2013 Rihanna chose a red sheer chiffon Azzedine Alaia gown for the Grammys. Both embraced the red-hot look by adding a matte red lipstick, proving that the colour is a sure way to get you noticed.

For some, however, a bit of red lippie is all that is necessary to spruce up their red carpet look. Take Sienna Miller, this girl knows how to work the perfect red lipstick and looks incredible in the process.

From Marilyn Monroe to Gigi Hadid, red lipstick has long been synonymous with old Hollywood glamour and is the most classic of looks. This style has been popular since the early 1900s when Maurice Levy invented the first metal lipstick tube; from then major beauty companies including Chanel started selling this product and it became an essential for women.

The screen sirens from the 40s and 50s embraced the red lip including Ava Gardner, Rita Hayworth and of course Elizabeth Taylor who is famously quoted as saying ‘pour yourself a drink, put on your lipstick and pull yourself together’. If a bit of lipstick and pouring a drink is the answer to all of our problems, then it seems that the advice still applies in 2017.

From full-length gowns to the classic red lip, celebrities and Hollywood legends have embraced the colour. Since its launch in 1991, many lucky ladies have had the pleasure of wearing the famous shoes designed by Christian Louboutin which are renowned for their bright red sole. Victoria Beckham and Blake Lively, who has even had a Louboutin named after her, are fans of the luxury brand. A Louboutin shoe is the perfect pop of red for any fabulous occasion and the perfect way to incorporate the colour into an outfit.

With so many legendary icons and modern muses proving to be fans, the colour red has proved to be a timeless addition to any look and is pivotal in creating the perfect and alluring red carpet ensemble.

Hardy’s Well: a surface level re-reading

Have you ever seen those upbeat words on the outside of that closed down pub just before curry mile? Now and then it catches my eye, and the rundown building turns into a kind of poetry.

Only once have I entered Hardy’s Well. It was not a haunt of mine. But, having had a meal with my parents who were visiting, and walking back to Fallowfield, I thought that we ‘waterless wonderers’ might as well.

On entry, the first thing the three of us noticed was that the amount of people inside the pub had just increased by four hundred percent. This place did not seem like the ‘wonderous world’ of which its eponymous poem spoke.

I looked through to the back of the vast room where there was a table on which stood speakers and children’s toy disco lights. It was unattended, but cheery pop music played. I looked to my right as we approached the bar and saw that in lieu of decoration a dying plant lay draped over the edge of its flower pot.

Oh well, I thought, despite the air of discordance created by the clash of happy music and symbols of mortality, at least we would be able to get a drink ‘whereafter waves of wonderment will wash all weakness.’ I had interpreted this line from the poem on the outer wall of the pub to mean that you can get pints inside, so we got some pints.

Or at least we tried to get some pints, only for the girl behind the bar, lonesome as a seafarer in the middle of this empty ocean, to tell us that the pumps were not connected to any beer. The message on the surface of the outer wall of the pub was beginning to appear more and more distant to the internal reality.

Briefly we drank from bottles, for they had bottles, before deciding we should escape the scene. My dad said that this was the sort of place where you might return to the site the next day only to have an older local tell you the pub had burnt down seventy years ago. That seemed about right. It seemed not to be anyone’s haunt at present, but haunted by those from an age gone by.

As we left Hardy’s Well, Lemn Sissay’s poem, from presumably simple uplifting and sincere intentions, had reached an almost deafening pitch of situational irony. The words ‘why wait’ were once intended to encourage you to come on in, whereas in our experience they might more readily have been a suggestion to leave swiftly.

And now this dichotomy is even more extreme. With Hardy’s Well boarded up, the once cheerful poem of goodwill seems to take on the tone of the loveable friend who always tries to put a positive spin on things, even when it seems overly romantic to do so.

But perhaps this chirpy message on the surface of Hardy’s Well was only ever doing an impression of joyfulness. Maybe it was merely putting on a brave face. For life is not all ‘wonderment’. Even that word itself appears too gregarious, too ostentatious, too consolatory to be a consolation. It wants us to read it as a feeling of awe, but instead becomes a hybrid utterance. When we are faced with unequivocal happiness, such as this word wears on its outer layer, we begin to doubt whether things are really that perfect on the inside, we begin to wonder… is everything alright?

Lemn Sissay reacted despairingly on learning of the proposed demolition of Hardy’s Well. Though Sissay – and this is where he and I differ – sees the poem and the building as separate entities, as he has suggested the words might be transferred to a different building in Manchester. ‘The building may be condemned but the poem is not!’ he says.

Yet, in my view, the poem becomes something more interesting precisely because of its placement. Form here does not just influence content but constitutes it. The joyful words are literally superficial, surface level, as thin as a layer of paint. The three dimensional thematic network then arises out of the tired, abandoned, and potentially soon to be demolished building that draw the words into dynamic conflict.

I want neither the building nor the words to be condemned. But it is only in this suspended position of soon-to-be-condemned that the poetic scene has finally reached its most provocative dramatic state. The brave smile is fading but still stands; it has not fallen from the face of Hardy’s Well, yet is doomed to fall.

The poem announces that the pub is ‘a world which will waken the wilting wallpaper of work and worry.’ But those evenings at any pub, where one can forget the stress of work, are forever soon-to-be-condemned by their own ephemerality. The smiles and laughs as the third round is bought are always poised on a knife-edge. The end of the evening will eventually come. The building and the words will be destroyed. We will all have to return to work and worry. But not quite yet.

Mayoral candidate invites Trump to Manchester

Stephen Morris, the English Democrat Mayoral candidate and North East Chairman has said that he will offer a “’Great Big Beautiful’ reception for him in our magnificent Town Hall”.

Mr Morris has said that if elected, he would send an invitation to Donald Trump to make an official visit to Greater Manchester during his controversial State visit in June. He describes himself as “a big fan of Donald Trump”, and has said that many other residents of Greater Manchester are as well, adding that he would use every facility his position might provide him to make the occasion as grand as possible.

The Mancunion spoke to Stephen Morris and asked him why he wished to issue such a direct invitation. He believed that whilst we “may not agree with his policies”, it was “in the interest of Greater Manchester and the devolved authorities to do deals” and talk trade with “the democratically elected leader of the United States.”

The controversy surrounding his state visit sparked protests up and down the country, with Greater Manchester police estimating an attendance of 8000 at Albert Square on Monday night.

In response to these protests, and the possibility of more if President Trump were to accept the invitation, Mr Morris replied: “If he does come, are the protests going to help him change his mind?”

He also expressed disdain for the current popularity of no-platforming public figures, saying that we “shouldn’t not invite them because of their views,” and that conversations about trade and business between Manchester and the US are imperative.

When pushed however, he did say that “I would say to him directly that I have an issue with the [policies] he’s implementing”, adding that he doesn’t “agree with a blanket ban on countries we are trying to help and assist”.

Mr Morris also expressed great respect for President Trump, for “actually doing what he said he would do during the election campaign.”

The Mancunion has contacted the other candidates for comment on this story.

‘Zero’ Black academics employed in top roles at British universities

The most recent employment records from The Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA), cited by both The Huffington Post UK and The Guardian, strongly suggest that there are currently no black senior officials, directors, or managers at British universities and that this has been this case for the last three years.

Analysis by The Huffington Post UK has shown that of the 565 academics working in top management roles during 2015/16, 90 per cent were white. Only 15 were Asian, while 10 identified as “other including mixed” and 30 chose not to reveal their ethnicity.

The Guardian has analysed further to show that British universities currently employ more black staff as cleaners, receptionists or porters than as lecturers or professors.

This evidence of a stark lack of black senior officials in British higher education follows a statement from SOAS’ Students’ Union claiming that the success of BME students is limited, and the ‘BME attainment gap’ is perpetuated by a concerning lack of diversity in university lecturers.

The figures are also coupled with evidence of black students struggling to win places at British universities. In January of this year, UCAS stated that only 70 per cent of black students received university offers, despite record numbers of applicants and comparatively better predicted grades than in previous years.

David Lammy, the Labour MP for Tottenham and a former higher education minister, told The Guardian in response: “This is absolutely shocking. I am appalled that higher education is so deeply unrepresentative of the country.”

An anonymous BME student who grew up in a largely BME-populated school said that he thought the lack of diversity in lecturers was “indicative of a wider problem” regarding the presentation of BME people in society.

He told The Mancunion: “You rarely see BME people as MPs, judges, lawyers, or teachers… [and this] lack of role models makes it harder for BME children and students to see themselves in those positions of authority and perpetuates harmful stereotypes.”

However, not everyone holds this view. The Vice-Chancellor of Buckingham University, Sir Anthony Seldon, told The Sunday Times: “White people can’t teach BME students? Really? I think this claim is unfair and untrue and disrespectful to universities and members of staff.”

The University of Manchester’s Head of Equality, Diversity and Inclusion, Patrick Johnson, said: “The University of Manchester — in common with the whole higher education sector — has a lack of Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) staff in senior positions.

“We acknowledge that we have work to do, which is why our Manchester 2020 strategy contains a key performance indicator to increase the number of senior BAME staff, and this is reviewed annually by the leadership team.

“We are also one of only nine universities to be awarded the Race Equality Charter Mark, which demonstrates our commitment to supporting and advancing the careers of BAME staff.”

SOAS Jewish students ‘do not have the right’ to define anti-Semitism

The Students’ Union at London’s School of Oriental and African Studies has denied Jewish students the right to decide what constitutes anti-Semitism.

The motion for a ‘Jewish Equality Act,’ which petitioned for kosher options, access to multi-faith rooms and rescheduling for Shabbat and Jewish holidays, was passed at a Students’ Union meeting last week. The University of London constituent college has just 39 students who identified themselves as Jewish during the application process.

Whilst the motion’s requests were granted, the Union did not agree to a clause which demanded that “Jewish students should be given the right to self-determination and be able to define what constitutes hatred against their group, like all other minority groups.”

Avrahum Sanger, an economics third year undergraduate who is the President of the SOAS Jewish Society, proposed the Act. He was “outraged” by the decision to remove the clause, believing that “removing this line tells me and my Jewish peers that we are not able to define our own oppression, that we are not able to self-determine our identity…that it is one rule for them and another for every other minority group.”

A spokeswoman for the Union of Jewish Students echoed Sanger’s sentiments: “this was, once again, a room full of students who do not identify as Jewish, explaining to Jewish students how to define their own oppression. This is in contrast to the way that other forms of oppression are defined, as per the Macpherson principle, allowing the victim to define their own oppression.”

Adopted by the Metropolitan Police after a 1999 investigation into the mishandling of Stephen Lawrence’s murder, the Macpherson principle gives anyone — not necessarily the victim — the right to describe an assault as racist, pending an investigation.

The Community Security Trust charity recorded 1,309 anti-Semitic incidents in 2016, compared to 960 in the previous year —  an increase of 36 per cent. The charity’s chief executive, David Delew, described the problem of anti-Jewish feeling in the UK as “getting worse.”

The School of Oriental and African Studies was one of several universities, including the University of Manchester, that Baroness Ruth Deech identified as giving Jewish students “a feeling that there are certain universities that [they] should avoid — definitely SOAS.”

In 2015, the SOAS SU voted to boycott Israel in a referendum, a decision upheld by the university itself. Last year, an ‘Israel Apartheid Week’ was held at SOAS in order to “raise awareness of Israel’s apartheid policies over the Palestinian people.”

Additionally, the university is currently under investigation by the Government’s Charity Commission for an allegedly anti-Semitic speech made there last year. At a Palestine Society talk, Thomas Suarez described Zionism as a “racist, fascist movement.” After this talk, BDS (Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions) graffiti appeared across campus; the University of Manchester Students’ Union voted to officially endorse this campaign in December last year.

After an article entitled ‘SOAS students “scared to wear the star of David and speak Hebrew”’ appeared in the Evening Standard in late January, the university issued a statement on the issue of anti-Semitism.

It expressed a desire “to be inclusive of all students of faith and we welcome suggestions about how to best achieve this…if we can do more, we would of course look at additional steps we could take.”

Acknowledging the fierce Israel/Palestine debate on campus, the statement finishes: “a wide range of opinions and views are expressed at events held at SOAS and it does not mean that the school endorses or supports the views. However, this does not permit the expression of anti-Semitic views or any other views that are illegal or incite racial hatred.”

The Students’ Union later issued a clarifying statement on Facebook, stating that an amendment to the motion included “a definition of anti-Semitism based on the definition put forward by Professor David Feldman from the Pears Institute for the Study of Anti-Semitism.” It also mentioned the university’s “proud tradition of anti-racist struggles,” and reiterated that “the student body at SOAS remains united in fighting against all forms of racism and bigotry including anti-Semitism.”

New report suggests sex and relationship education is ignored by Ofsted

A recently published report by the British Humanist Association (BHA) has found that sex and relationships education (SRE) is mentioned in just 1 per cent of Ofsted reports, and PSHE (Personal, Social and Health Education) does not perform much better at 14 per cent.

This is despite evidence from the Sex Education Forum that compulsory SRE is beneficial in preventing sexual abuse, reducing the rate of unplanned pregnancies, improving well-being and reducing the gap in health inequality.

The report, Happy, Healthy, Safe?, is a scrutiny of the government’s current position, which relies on Ofsted to ensure the quality of SRE and PSHE. SRE and PSHE are, currently, not compulsory subjects and this often means that the education young people receive is of a mixed quality.

Andrew Copson, the Chief Executive of the BHA, said that “to lay the blame at the feet of Ofsted and its inspectors would be wrong,” proposing that the lack of importance ascribed to SRE and PSHE by Ofsted is in line with the government’s current attitude towards the subject.

However, this may soon change as pressure grows on MPs to make the subjects statutory, meaning they are compulsory for all students to learn. Justine Greening, the Secretary of State for Education, is said to be looking into the possibility of including compulsory SRE and PSHE in the new amendment to the Children and Social Work Bill.

Speaking to The Telegraph, the Conservative MP Ms. Miller said: “I get a very strong feeling that she [Ms. Greening] is personally listening carefully — her presence in the debate last was very encouraging [sic].”

There is currently support across many political parties for the amendment, with five select committees including the Health Select Committee, Education Select Committee and the Women’s and Equality Select Committee calling for statutory SRE and PSHE in all primary and secondary schools. This is alongside the statistics that 8 in 10 Britons believe the subjects should be compulsory, as well as various charities, professional and academic bodies, and the United Nations.

There is, however, opposition to the amendment. In a report entitled Too Much, Too Young, Christian.org makes claims that SRE would sexualise children when they are too young, take power away from schools and give it to the government, and waste millions in taxpayer money.

Furthermore, a debate proposed by Green Party MP, Caroline Lucas was filibustered by Tory MPs, including Philip Davies, who spent four and half hours debating in a preceding session. This meant that there was no time left to debate the bill introduced by Ms. Lucas, which dealt with LGBT-inclusive Sex Education.

There are a growing number of MPs like Lucas, who believe an inclusive sex and relationships education would decrease the levels of cyberbullying, online abuse and sexual harassment that many individuals face.

The BHA report released last week also finds that homophobic, biphobic and transphobic bullying was addressed by just 14 per cent of Ofsted reports, and there is no mention of sexual harassment or sexual violence in more than 2000 Ofsted Reports.

Anti-homeless spikes removed after public backlash

The anti-homeless spikes on Marsden Street, Manchester, intended to deter rough sleepers, have now been removed after a massive public backlash.

Jennie Platt, an estate agent and Manchester resident, was outraged by the installation of the spikes, located outside Pall Mall Court. She decided to take action and, with the help of her two sons, George, 11, and Sam, 10, and their friends, covered the spikes with cushions. The family also left sandwiches and chocolates with a sign that read: ‘take a seat and a bite to eat.’

After reading about the spikes in The Manchester Evening News, Platt was said to have had “a bee in her bonnet” and felt she “had to do something.”  Speaking to the same newspaper, she described the installation of the spikes as a “really mean and scroogey thing to do” and said that “the building owners are treating human beings like pigeons. It’s a spot where people can keep warm and sheltered, people don’t need to be that mean.”

A photo of Platt’s two sons in front of the cushion covered spikes was later posted to the ‘Helping Manchester and Bury Homeless’ Facebook page, where Platt and her family received plenty of praise for their efforts. One person described their actions as “lovely and thoughtful,” whilst another wrote: “love this inspiration to the rest of our generation.”

In reaction to the spikes, the Homeless Healthcare Society were “highly disappointed that businesses still felt the need to deter homeless individuals from sleeping around their buildings.” A spokesperson for the society, which is based at the University of Manchester and works to improve homeless health through student education and volunteering, said: “businesses should be engaging with the local community of Manchester who are working so hard to put an end to homelessness.”

This need for collaboration has also been stressed by Pat Karney of Manchester City Council, who spoke to the Manchester Evening News: “there are a lot of difficulties in the city centre the only way we can resolve them is for businesses and the council to work with homeless people and homeless charities.” The Department for Communities and Local Government found that 78 people were sleeping rough on Manchester’s streets in autumn 2016 — an increase of 11 per cent on the previous year.

Karney had “a common sense conversation” with GVA, the company that manages Pall Mall Court, about the spikes and by the 30th of January — the next day — they had been removed. Pall Mall Medical only rents part of the building and insisted in a tweet that they “had no involvement in the installation of the spikes.”

These spikes outside Pall Mall Court in Manchester were not the first of their kind; Tesco also removed a set of anti-homeless spikes from outside one of its Regent Street stores in central London after days of protest back in 2014.

Manchester Students’ Union undergoing major refurbishment

The University of Manchester’s Students’ Union building is undergoing a multi-million pound transformation, meaning access to the commercial areas of the Students’ Union will be cut off from May until next September.

Although it will be open and functional in time for Welcome Week 2017, the work will not be complete until next April at the earliest.

The University have provided the Students’ Union with a grant for the refurbishment, complementing the Students’ Union’s own funds. The foundations have already been laid for the extensions at the back of the building, and once built these will add an extra 1,000 square feet to the Union.

We spoke to the Union Director Ben Ward, and the General Secretary Naa Acquah about the end goal of the renovation and the future vision of a new and improved SU building.

“The project is a long time coming,” began Ben. “We did a big survey of students in terms of what they wanted inside the building and so that’s shaped the plans since then.” He also made clear that whilst the ground floor will be closed over the summer, there will never be a time that the whole building will be completely shut down — even when the work continues next year.

“We’re going to have loads of exciting new areas,” added Naa. “Downstairs, the cafe and shop area are being completely expanded to create a really cool food hall.” The ultimate aim is to provide more diverse food options for students and more space for them to enjoy these.

The shop will expand and ‘enterprise pods’ will be opened. Naa told The Mancunion that these will “mini-shop fronts for Students to be able to use who have things to sell or ‘entrepreneurial’ things [to do]. They can take up that space — whether it’s for a week or a month — and use that.”

According to Ben, another feature of the Union will be a Job Shop, which will “promote part time work for the students both inside the Union but also to advertise local businesses.”

The basement will also be renovated, and although Club Academy will remain largely the same, there will be many more meeting rooms created, as well as new toilets. There will be “two big studio spaces,” and as part of the overall plan, the work will “more than double the amount of meeting space in the building.”

On the first floor Fuse TV, Fuse FM and The Mancunion will also have a bigger, better space created, as well as a new photographic darkroom, which is being brought up from the basement to the first floor. There will be a meeting space created for international students, as well as a space called the ‘Liberation Lounge’ and areas for mature students or students living at home.

“A theatre space came top of the list when we did a student consultation of what [people] wanted,” noted Ben, and this will be housed on the third floor.

Naa has also told us that there will be some sort of opportunity to name the new rooms. “It should be quite nice to get people involved somewhat,” she added, noting that the SU already has rooms named after influential people who have been associated with the city or the University of Manchester.

We asked what will happen for the summer’s Pangaea festival, as there have been rumours around campus that it may not go ahead. Thankfully, both Naa and Ben confirmed that the event will go ahead — however, it will be “off-site.”

“It will give us an opportunity to do something really, really cool with it. I’m quite excited for the opportunity. We’ll be back in September in the main building.”

More information can be found about the renovation works and the vision for a better Union on their website.

Trump’s executive order: Impact on students

Several foreign students have been unable to return to their studies in the United States following President Trump’s highly controversial executive order, which has banned immigration from seven Muslim-majority countries.

Iranian student Nazanin Zinouri, who has lived in Greenville, South Carolina for seven years, remains stranded in Tehran after being forced off the plane in Dubai, where she had been due to take a connecting flight to Greenville. She wrote on Facebook: “No one warned me when I was leaving [to Tehran], no one cared what will happen to my dog or my job or my life there.”

In another similar incident, CBS News reported that an unnamed Sudanese Stanford University student returning from a research trip in Sudan was handcuffed and detained on Friday night and later released, as a Stanford spokesperson said he was a legal U.S. resident.

Dania Albaba, a 22-year old first-year medical student at the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston, has seen her family torn apart by the travel ban. The first generation of her Syrian family to be born in the US and an American citizen, she has had several family members prevented from flying back to their homes in Houston, Texas.

Her Syrian green-card holding grandparents are unable to return to Texas, their home for four years, after visiting Dania’s aunt and uncle in Jordan. Dania says she lives in an area that voted heavily for Trump and said she experiences intimidation from Houston residents because of her Muslim faith. She concluded an interview with Al Jazeera’s Barret Limoges saying: “With Trump’s statements on Muslims, Mexicans and his actions against women, I took him for his word. I think a lot of Muslims, many who even supported him, did not.” Many believed Trump’s call for a ban on Muslim immigration was merely campaign rhetoric, not actual presidential policy once he was in office.

The executive order covers the states of Iraq, Syria, Iran, Sudan, Libya, Somalia and Yemen. It has been condemned as “illegal under international human rights law” by the UN, declared unconstitutional by 16 US Attorney Generals and described as putting “American values at stake” by Barack Obama. Criticism also came from MSF, known as ‘Doctors Without Borders’, who called the refugee ban “an inhumane act against people fleeing war zones”.

CNN wrote that six of the seven countries except Iran have been the target of US military operations over the last two decades, and that a “few strokes of Trump’s pen” banned some 218 million people from the US. Syrian refugees are banned indefinitely, with the ban on the other six states lasting 90 days.

A UK petition to halt President Trump’s state visit to the UK, where he would be hosted by the Queen, has reached 1.6 million signatures. The visit has been widely condemned by a cross-party range of MPs.

Top 5: Films about food

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

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

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

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

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

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…

Fuel cells could provide new green energy solutions

Scientists from University of Manchester, in collaboration with National Graphene Institute, have obtained ground breaking results by utilising 2D crystals in fuel cells, solving a huge fuel permeation problem that remained a major obstacle for commercialisation. This key step is considered as a main route to opening doors for viable green energy systems, whilst also decreasing currently used ones.

Fuel cells are often perceived as the energy technology of the future, as they provide sustainable, clean energy by using alcohols as fuels by a simple reaction. Hence, they are used widely in chargers, military applications, or other scenarios where the access to electricity is difficult. However, their efficiency is greatly hindered by the fuel permeation phenomena occurring in their engine room, creating undesired reactions inhibiting their performance.

Several materials have been reported in literature to date that have seen a reduction in fuel permeation but also restrict the flow of protons, which is also desirable for activity of fuel cells.

Nobel Laureates Andre Geim and his co-workers discovered the process of proton transfer in 2014, through graphene and other 2D materials. One additional feature with these materials is that they also restrict the passage of chemical components, which is an attractive for fuel cell usage. Unfortunately, their actual application in fuel cell systems has not yet been realised.

Manchester chemical engineering researchers have used this selective permeation phenomenon of graphene and 2D materials in their system and obtained tremendous improvement in performance of system by up to 50 per cent. In their recently published paper in Advanced Energy Materials journal, they have shown that these 2D crystals have prevented the fuel permeation, decreasing undesirable reaction to a great extent with no restriction to the movement of protons observed. This is expected to create a new trend in the usage of barrier layer materials in fuel cells.

So far we have tested in methanol fuel cells systems. We predict that this if this material could be properly utilised, this would lead to fuel cells undergoing massive size reduction, since the thickness of these materials is in 10-10 meters. We also plan to extend this phenomenon to fuel cells operating on different fuels such as hydrogen, ethanol, propanol formic acid etc.

If you’d like to find out more, you can read the full paper here.