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Month: November 2017

Christopher Bailey leaves Burberry

It was announced in October that Christopher Bailey, creative director at Burberry, is going step down after 17 years in his position.  Bailey has been a pioneer of the brands progress, from losing face in the early 2000’s to its’ status today as the pinnacle of British design.

The brand is known best for not only the classic trench-coat, but also for its adoption by the working class as a label in the 2001-2003 period.  When Bailey took over the brand alongside Angela Ahrendts (appointed in 2006), they pulled the brand up and turned it back into a credible, world-wide, luxury brand.

Between 2010 and 2011, the duo had a 27% increase in revenue from the previous year; twice the growth rate of LVMH that same year.  As the only globally recognized British luxury brand at the same level of recognition as brands like Chanel and Dior, there are some big boots to fill before Christopher Bailey officially steps down on March 31st next year.

There is much speculation over who is going to fill these boots, especially over who could fill those boots, especially as Bailey accomplished such a significant amount in the seventeen years he spent working at Burberry.  The Business of Fashion names Phoebe Philo as the most likely candidate due to her work at Céline and her close working relationship with Marco Gobbetti, the brands CEO.  This has been predicted by expert analysts, and many other media sources have pointed fingers at Philo as the possible replacement at the helm of the iconic brand.

Despite the faith so many have in Philo, Rogerio Fujimori, analyst at RBC markets, told the Guardian that he hopes that the brand will not suffer a net loss from this shift in leadership, as he believes it to be a negative change that could reduce the brands “mojo”.

On the other hand, Charlotte Pearce, retail analyst at Global Data, has hopes for the brand if they can find someone who can work “with respect for the brand’s British heritage but who is able to further evolve the label creatively and bring it into a new era,” she said to the Guardian.  It is yet to be decided what will happen to Burberry now both of the power duo have stepped away from it (Ahrendts moved to Apple in 2014).  Hopefully they can manage to keep up Burberry’s inherent British-ness as it moves into a new era.

COP23 cuts coal

This week, COP23, the 23rd Session of the Conference of Parties, was held in Bonn. COP23 is part of the UN Convention on Climate Change, and this year was seen as part of the steps to develop a ‘rulebook’ for the Paris Agreement. Delegates from almost 200 countries attended the annual climate change conference.

A key part of COP23 was the launch of the ‘Powering Past Coal Alliance’, which is being spearheaded by the United Kingdom and Canada. This alliance aims to rapidly phase out the use of coal power in favour of cleaner energy sources. It already has 20 countries involved and hopes to reach 50 by COP24, which will be held in Poland in 2018. In February, the UK announced that it plans to have phased coal out entirely by 2025.

Despite popular support for the coal phase-out, the United States delegates only official appearance was to advocate the continual use of fossil fuels, claiming they were vital to reduce poverty and that a move away from fossil fuels would cost American jobs. Since Syria decided to sign the Paris Agreement earlier this month, the United States is now the only UN country no longer part of the agreement, with President Trump pulling the United States out of the agreement earlier this year.

However, despite claims that a move to renewable energy will have an economic backlash, a report published by the Environmental Defence Fund’s Climate Corps program shows that renewable energy jobs are growing 12 times faster than the rest of jobs in the energy sector.

In addition, University of Manchester Professor Mike Barnes has said that when it comes to wind energy, the “the offshore wind industry could be a huge bonanza for the UK”, who already gets 5 per cent of its energy from the wind sector. By 2020, that will increase to an estimated 10 per cent. An offshore wind farm is estimated to be worth up to £2 billion per year by 2025, a potentially massive asset to the UK energy economy.

The University of Manchester is working to promote the development of more offshore wind farms by working with other universities and firms to develop a new type of circuit breaker. This new circuit breaker is hoped to use direct current (DC) over the usual alternating current (AC), as it is a more effective way to connect the wind farms and the main power grid.

The US pulling out of the agreement did not go without backlash. The talks that took place within the conference were disrupted by anti-Trump protests. Protestors stopped a presentation on how fossil fuels can help solve climate change by singing an anti-coal song to the tune of ‘God Bless the U.S.A.’. In addition, an alternate delegation from the We Are Still In group were present in Bonn, representing many Americans who still wish to adhere to the Paris Agreement. The group contains many high-profile members, including the former mayor of New York City, Michael Bloomberg, whose anti-coal campaign is expanding to Europe, with an additional $50 million dollars donated by Mr Bloomberg.

Alongside the discussion of coal, conference delegates highlighted concerns over pre-2020 climate change commitment. Several countries including China and India expressed annoyance at how developed countries had still not delivered on the $100 billion climate finance agreed in Copenhagen in 2009. The discussion on pre-2020 actions was not on the official agenda of the COP23, however it was ultimately added to the final COP23 decision document.

The COP23 talks ended this year with many speeches, but 12-year-old Timoci Naulusala summarised a key message of the conference: “It’s not about how, or who, but it’s about what you can do as an individual.”

Review: Holes

Holes was a fantastic, energetic, and engaging performance to open up the Drama Society’s Autumn Season plays.

The razor-sharp, hilarious, darkly comedic script at times had the audience in stitches. The story line followed three conference organisers and a sixteen year old who are the sole survivors of a plane crash and soon decide that the world has ended and they are the last living humans on earth. We then follow each of them as they decide how to deal with their new current situation.

Ian becomes obsessed with creating a new world order, Marie becomes obsessed with Ian and trying to have his babies (as well as catching a tan), Gus decides alcohol is the answer, while the youngest Erin tends to be the most rational member of the group.

As we move into the second act, the play begins to transgress comedy and move into a darker and harrowing more landscape, both emotionally and physically. We begin to see a darker side of humanity, in particular through Ian’s obsessiveness and desire to return to baser human instincts.

The cast and creative team were particularly successful in executing the tension between comedy and the stark reality of this new civilisation.

The traverse staging was particularly effective, although at times the whole space needed to be used rather than just a small section of it. On the whole, however, this was used effectively. The scene changes were swift and efficient with a fantastic music to accompany these by Duncan Bradley.

In particular, the different use of suitcases was very effective, especially in the ending scene when Gus was trapped in a hole made of suitcases and sand thrown over him. A few key moments of comedic potential were missed — in particular, some of the euphemisms between Ian and Marie.

On the whole, however, each scene was very funny and well-paced. A particularly incredible performance by Jack Allwright who played Ian, who was hilariously witty, nuanced in his responses, and really brought his character to life. Scarlett Gorman played the scared sixteen-year-old very well and was a fantastic contrast to the other three characters through her very convincing performance.

On the whole, the acting was of a very high standard as was the play. Really worth the watch.

Holes was the first performance in the University of Manchester Drama Society’s Autumn Season 2017. Tickets for the remainder of the season can be purchased from here.

Mancunians celebrate end of Mugabe’s reign

On the 21st of November, Robert Mugabe, Zimbabwe’s only president since independence in 1980, stepped down after an eight-day military takeover of his office.

Mugabe is said to be one of the most ruthless leaders of modern times who, having led Zimbabwe to economic ruin, had become hugely unpopular.

Scenes of celebrations have emerged from the capital Harare in anticipation of a new chapter of democracy and economic prosperity.

On Saturday 18th November the demonstrations came to Manchester as many took to Piccadilly Gardens to celebrate the impeachment proceedings.

One demonstrator said, “We are happy they did it, that is why we are here”

Another expressed her hope for the LGBT community in light of the presidential change, stating “there is no recognition for our community… we want to be protected like any other heterosexual in Zimbabwe.

“We are not free, we cannot live openly there. We need a new government to protect each and every human being”

Mugabe’s successor, Emmerson Mnangagwa, has vowed to generate employment in Zimbabwe which has been estimated to be at around 90 per cent.

“We want to grow our economy, we want peace, we want jobs, jobs, jobs,” he announced to a cheering crowd in Harare.

However, some remain sceptical as to whether Mnangagwa will bring the radical change for which many are optimistic. Mnangagwa, nicknamed “the crocodile” for his political shrewdness, was a key member of Mugabe’s establishment. He acted as an aide throughout the dictatorship and architect of many of its brutal crackdowns on dissent.

After almost 40 years of fear, this may be the first time for many to speak openly and demonstrate in the streets. Banners carried through the capital declared the Zimbabwean people will no longer “sit in silence” and are “free at last”. These protests and the calls for international recognition to aid the shattered economy may make a return to dictatorship less likely.

While questions remain regarding Zimbabwe’s future under the new presidency, for now, the feeling is one of celebration.

Photo: Hannah Murray

 

 

 

 

Luck on England’s side as they beat Australia 30-6

England extended their winning run to five at Twickenham this weekend with only one loss now in the past two years. Although the score may suggest it was a one way street, there were several decisions called in favour of England that perhaps wouldn’t have been with a different referee.

England’s Head Coach, Eddie Jones, certainly did not appreciate being questioned about his side’s luck in his post-match press conference. “Why do we have a referee? Why do we have TMOs? I don’t understand the question,” Jones said angrily. “How were we lucky? Ten replays of the video and they make a decision. This is the best referee in the world for today, they have the best guys doing the TMO and you’re saying we’re lucky because the decisions went our way? Sorry, sorry, sorry, I’m sorry we’re lucky.”

His Australian counterpart Michael Cheika also let his anger get the better of him but during the game rather than after. The Wallabies had several decisions go against them, including losing captain Michael Hooper and full-back Curtly Beale to the sin bin within seven minutes of each other at the end of the first half. Hooper’s yellow card was his eighth in international rugby making him the most yellow carder player in test history. They also had two tries ruled out that would have seen them take the lead.

It appeared that Cheika mouthed some derogatory words aimed at the referee, Ben O’Keeffe, when their first try was disallowed in the 27th minute. Jon Davis, who is the disciplinary officer for the Autumn series of international has said that he is investigating the reports. “Following various media reports and a referral from Wolrd Rugby, the comments and conduct attribution to Michael Cheika are being investigated. An update will be issued tomorrow [Tuesday 21st].”

The first half, while thoroughly even and entertaining both off and on the pitch, contained few points. The score stood 6-0 to England after two successful conversions by Owen Farrell. Despite starting the second forty with only 13 men on the pitch, they didn’t concede any further points, instead bringing the score back to 6-3.

It took 54 minutes for the first try to come and my what a try it was. The ball is cleared by an English player and it bounces just inches from the touchline. The Australian player leaves it thinking it’s heading out of play but it doesn’t, gifting the ball to Elliot Daley. His work is far from over though and he kicks the ball twice more before touching down for five points, Farrell converts to make it 13-3.

Foley scores a penalty to bring the Aussies with one converted try which they almost get in the 70th minute. Koroibete breaks through England’s defensive line and seemed to touch the ball down but O’Keeffe referred it up to the TMO. Upon seeing the replays it looked fairly innocuous yet the TMO deemed that Moore obstructed play enough to give a penalty the other way. At this Cheika became incensed.

Australia just conceded from here on in and England scored three more tries through Jonathan Joseph, Jonny May and Danny Care, one of which was converted. The final score, 30-6, is the largest margin of victory England have ever had in this fixture, surpassing their previous best of 17 points from 2010. Owen Farrell also became England’s all time leading points scorer against Australia beating the record of 114 points set by Jonny Wilkinson.

The game was far closer than it seems with the match a dead heat for 70 minutes. England will take a lot of confidence from this going into their final game of the year against Samoa who narrowly lost their two games thus far against Scotland and Romania 44-38 and 17-13 respectively.

Album Review: Jaden Smith – SYRE

SYRE marks an important step in Jaden Smith’s career. His debut album serves multiple purposes: it’s a testament to his coming-of-age and an artistic dissociation from his father, Will “can my son be in this film” Smith. He’s his own man with a unique yet relevant artistic identity that solidifies him as one of the best breakthrough artists of 2017. The title of the project comes from his middle name, Jaden Christopher Syre Smith, further pushing the construction of his individual identity, as is the logical and natural progression for every teenager to make.

From the get-go we are presented with a vastly more mature young man who has come far since his early adolescent twitter reflections on life, death, and everything in between, and his collaborations with Justin Bieber in 2010, at 12 years of age, a phase that is forgivable — we were all 12 once, right? His feature on Childish Gambino’s Kauai in 2014 was foreshadowing for the future leaps he is currently taking. In 2017, Jaden’s rebirth was initiated with features on Tyler, The Creator’s Flower Boy and A$AP Mob’s Cozy Tapes Vol 2. The singles from SYRE released since August got the hip-hop community interested in the project’s impending release.

The album’s opener, ‘B’ has vocals from Pia Mia and Jaden’s sister, Willow (who, I must note, is also exploring her creativity in very interesting ways) that make way for a strong, deep beat reminiscent of Kanye’s ‘All Day’. Jaden’s voice is pleasantly fresh, unique, and extremely different from his former teenage self. The first five tracks, ‘B’,’L’,’U’, and ‘E’, may as well be one long intro track because of how seamlessly they flow into each other. “U” is incredibly intense and fantastically rich. Of course, being the son of Will Smith, a man whose artistic repertoire covers film, television, and the 90s hip-hop scene, it’s no wonder that his son has access to some of the best writers, producers and, in the case of his music videos, visual creative minds in the music industry today.

‘Breakfast’ has a quintessential early 2000s hip-hop piano melody paired with a gritty drum beat and features A$AP Rocky who, bizarrely, doesn’t actually appear on the track, as far as his voice is concerned. Lyrically, the song is hilarious, with talks of the Illuminati, Call of Duty, Teslas, modern hip-hop artists, and street culture of our time, all things that compose and influence him. After a strange interlude, the beat and flow switch completely.

Jaden brings a crazy flow on ‘Hope’ that carries over to ‘Falcon’, a ‘flex track’, a staple of hip-hop as a musical genre. In contrast to the hard tracks, ‘Ninety’ and ‘Lost Boy’ are long, complex, and deep tracks that allow the listener to breathe and, in the latter song, hear him talk about his rebirth in the third person. The singles ‘Batman’, ‘Icon’, and ‘Watch Me’ are fast and solid inclusions on the record. My favourite song from the album, ‘Fallen’, comes next and shows off Jaden’s talent as a vocalist, lyricist, and MC. ‘The Passion’ brings an intense lyrical assault with a handful of ad-libs sprinkled throughout, as we’ve come to expect from rap in 2017. The song’s soft decrescendo paves the way for ‘George Jeff’, hitting  and hard and catching the listener off guard with political, religious, mythical, and trippy traits. Unfortunately, as is the problem with the next track as well, it feels way too short. ‘Rapper’ is the final grimy inclusion during which I noticed Jaden’s bizarre fixation with Tesla, the automotive brand that gets name-dropped a total of 7 times in the one hour duration of the LP.

Finally, the closer, ‘SYRE’ is a monologue set to a lo-fi chilled beat where Smith speaks about himself almost as if he’s a mythical hero. It’s a good closer to a very solid project that is exceptional for a debut and, in my opinion, one of the most notable hip-hop releases of the year, providing the listener with an experience that doesn’t grind to a halt despite perplexing the listener with minuscule snippets of dialogue at the end of most tracks that neither add nor detract from the ride.

Jaden Smith has the potential of creating amazing art, and this coming-of-age project proves it. With an already strong career, it’s fair to say that I am very excited about what the artist has yet in store for us in the years to come.

Preview: Cecily Brown sketches the past onto the present

During the private view of Cecily Brown’s Shipwreck Drawings, The Whitworth Interim Director, Nick Merriman, described how Brown “compulsively rehearses composition and detail” of existing works such as Eugene Delacroix’s ‘Christ Asleep During the Tempest’ (1853) and ‘The Shipwreck of Don Juan’ (1840), and Théodore Gericault’s ‘The Raft of Medusa’ (1819) in order to create her works.

In an interview, Brown claimed that most would describe her style as the point “where figuration and abstraction meet”, yet continued to dismiss this characterisation, claiming that she has “always tried not to have a style.” Despite the disagreement over the labelling of her work, what is clear is that Brown is “drawn to the energy of Delacroix”, a vigour which is translated into her ‘Shipwreck Drawings’ (2016).

The dynamic movement of line and use of gaudy watercolour evokes the vivid sensation of “being on a boat yourself”, which is further reinforced by the way the microscopic perspective focuses in upon individuals within the scenes. This somewhat discomforting feeling appears to draw parallels with the images we see every day of refugees risking their lives to cross the Mediterranean.

The tantalising tangibility of the landmass in the backgrounds of the series, ‘Untitled (After Asleep During the Tempest)’, as the raft sinks into the depths, emphasises the sense of devastating loss, which has become all too common given the ongoing Refugee Crisis.  Nick Merriman noted that the exhibition has powerful resonance given the Mancunian context of the show, as the works “connect with the academic and social context, as Manchester is home to many refugees who have made the same crossing.”

Indeed, according to the British Red Cross, nearly a quarter of the 23,500 asylum seekers arriving in the UK each year are resettled in Greater Manchester. Cecily Brown claimed that her drawings “use other art as a way of approaching a deeply difficult subject” that is extremely emotionally charged, and thus upon viewing these works, the cataclysmic narrative is all too clear.

Whilst having not produced these drawings with an exhibition in mind, Brown collaborates with the Senior Curator at the Whitworth, Sam Lackey, to produce a composition which coherently progresses in an almost cinematic manner. By following the drawings from the top of the stairs, along the lengthy, oblong wall of the Mezzanine gallery space, the images create the sensation of “watching a miniature movie” (Cecily Brown), until one reaches the final drawing of the exhibition, which remains incomplete, disappearing halfway through the paper.

In this way, the show echoes the uncomfortable unknown of the future of the refugee crisis. Brown seems to raise the question; how many more are to disappear into the sea before this humanitarian crisis ends?

Cecily Brown: Shipwreck Drawings runs from 17 November – 15 April 2018 at the Whitworth Gallery.

Live review: Jake Bugg

Sunday 19th November, Victoria Hall, Stoke

National treasures are hard to find, especially when the treasure does his best to stay out of the limelight and shrugs off any notion of praise or the riches of fame. If what it takes to be a national treasure is humility, a sense of humour, and organic talent, then Jake Bugg lit up Victoria Hall like a forgotten gem, hardly polished, and as naturally spectacular as he always has been.

Clad in classic black simplicity, alone with his guitar, Jake weaved us through the country highs and folky lows of his young yet tumultuous career, from the chart-hype of fast-paced ‘Lightning Bolt’ to the dark undertones of his newest project, Hearts That Strain, and the experimentation in between.

The set list was no crowd pleaser — it was handpicked by Bugg, with the eclectic selection ranging poignantly and showcasing that intrinsic talent which remains original to the Nottingham artist.

Of the opening tracks, unearthed and rarely heard country croon ‘Saffron’ was a stand out. Why he chose to sing this old and innocent track usually confined to Bugg’s most intimate gigs was a sign that he is unphased by the decline in popularity his third album thrust upon him, and sticking to his roots is where he will remain for the foreseeable future.

His captivating skills on the strings was understated and fascinating. Through songs like ‘Broken’ and ‘Strange Creatures’ he magicked his way through the tangle of notes and riffs effortlessly. When he “picked things up a bit” the crowd picked up with him, rocking and rolling through his patchwork of highly-charged, home-grown tunes, which saw him climb out of ‘Trouble Town’ Nottingham and into the American South.

Troubling new tracks ‘Hearts That Strain’ and ‘In The Event Of My Demise’ starkly reminded that it’s not all chiming chords and easy lyricism for Jake; disturbingly dark elements of his set paralleled the twists of his career and his closet’s skeletons.

Glen Campbell cover ‘Wichita Lineman’ proved unpopular but captivating, as he fluidly ‘Bugged’ his own version of the 60s country tune, playing not for the people, but for himself, a favourite song which translated into awe and admiration for his courage and originality.

Bugg may have been alone on stage, but he was never lonely, clearly in his comfort zone solitary and dream-like, unashamed of his career lows, and exposing the multifaceted talent that we fell in love with when ‘Two Fingers’ came on our radio for the first time.

9/10

Back to business for United as they net four against Newcastle

This game will be the first time Mourinho and Benitez have met in ten years and both will be hoping to frustrate the other. When they were the managers of Chelsea and Liverpool respectively they met 16 times in three seasons, with Benitez winning five.

Mourinho names a very different team from usual. Injuries have meant that some players have come back and others have left. De Gea as always starts in goal with a back four of Valencia, Lindelof, Smalling, and Young. Pogba and Matic play in the defensive midfield roles with Rashford, Mata, and Martial in front. Lukaku is the lone striker. On the bench we see Rojo and Ibrahimovic returning from knee injuries.

Newcastle get the game underway, a team that historically has the most defeats at the hands of United. With Pogba back in the starting lineup we may very well see a four goal margin of victory.

United have the majority of the ball in the opening five minutes but Newcastle are quick to close down, forcing one or two touch passing.

Lukaku gets an early chance to score but misses. Rashford finds the run of Valencia down the right hand side who fires a low cross into the box. Lukaku’s shot gets deflected over but gets given as a goal kick.

With Paul Pogba back in the side, the question of form is inevitable. All United possession thus far seems to be running through the Frenchman, dictating the play almost managerially. A pass from Pogba presents Mata with acres of space but he is hacked down from behind by Hayden who gets his fifth yellow card of the season. As a result he will miss the next game against Watford.

Newcastle win the ball on their right hand side of the pitch. Yedlin sprints the full length of the United half to get on the end of a through ball and he just makes it.

The first time ball in reaches the feet of Gayle and a slip by Lindelof means that he couldn’t close him down before the shot. It is driven hard and low towards the bottom left hand corner, going in via the post.

The goal is completely against the run of play but brilliantly worked nonetheless. Dwight Gayle is the first player to score a goal at Old Trafford in open play in 2017 and if they go on to win it’ll be the first loss at home for United since the Manchester derby at the start of last season.

United pick up the pace hoping to get back into the game immediately. They get two corners both taken by Mata and both not reaching a red shirt. The red devils haven’t haven’t been great at recovering deficits under Mourinho but he’ll feel confident that a victory is possible. Newcastle won’t make it easy though and they are sitting incredibly deep.

It is almost two after a fantastic ball from Shelvey cuts straight through the defence and Murphy’s shot goes just wide. He looks for a corner but to no avail. They aren’t short of pace in the attack and will look to pick United off on the counter attack.

Lindelof makes a storming run through the Newcastle half and chips a ball towards Lukaku. He is unable to take the pace off the ball and the shot goes over. A fantastic ball by Lindelof, showing that he can be useful in the United attack as well as defence.

Newcastle’s defensive strategy seems to be to sit deep and narrow, trying to frustrate United into mistakes. Benitez seems to have drilled a dynamic system of filling in the gaps when a player gets pulled out of position and it is working to great effect thus far. This narrowness opens up space on the wings though for Valencia and Young to overlap and cross the ball in. It’s only a matter of time before one of those crosses gets headed on target.

And as if by magic, United score from just that — a cross into the box. Pogba gets the ball on the edge of the box and easily passes his man before chipping the ball into the far post for Martial to head in. The score 1-1, you’d be silly not to see United comfortably winning this game. Newcastle are defending well but with such sustained besieging, crash will inevitable start to show.

Just before the half ends a cross goes in towards Lukaku but before he can touch the ball he is dragged to the ground. The replay shows the defender clearing having his arm around him as well as a chunk of the shirt. How that wasn’t a penalty I don’t know. It would also have been a red card as he was the last man.

There are three minutes extra time and Newcastle will be lucky to get to the break level. United get a corner in the 46th minute and the ball again gets crossed to the far post and again gets headed into the back of the net, this time by Chris Smalling. It was a fantastic ball in by Young who has been brilliant all season.

Smalling, who wasn’t called up for the recent England internationals, will be looking to stake his claim. He has been assured in defence and that goal will help no end. The other contender for the last defensive slot is Gary Cahill and it will go right down to the wire.

Mourinho will be happy with the score and will be confident his team can close out the game. If they can do that we may be seeing the incredible return of Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

As the second half gets underway you can’t help but feel that the United from the start of the season is back. They are utterly dominant and every time they move into Newcastle’s half you feel that they might score another.

Ten minutes into the second half and Pogba makes it 3-1. Lukaku gets the ball on the right hand side but there is no one in the box. He holds the ball up well whilst Pogba and Rashford sprint from the centre circle to the box. He crosses the ball in and Rashford heads it down for Pogba to score. The game is almost certainly over now, it’s just a matter of how many will Newcastle concede.

With half an hour still to go Newcastle look unlikely to get back into the game. United have had 67 percent possession so far this half and have come close to scoring several times. Lukaku will be looking to end his goal drought and there is perhaps no better chance than this.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic starts to warm up along with fellow former injured player Marcus Rojo. The whole of Old Trafford cheers at the sight of Zlatan, who has come back after just seven months from a supposedly career ending injury. Smalling gets a yellow card for a foul at the same time.

In the 69th minute United make their first substitution, Pogba for Fellaini. It has been a phenomenal return for Pogba, scoring one and assisting another. Immediately after, Lukaku ends a seven game goalless drought running through several defenders before drilling the ball into the roof of the net. It may now be time for Zlatan.

As United continue to lay siege to Newcastle he’s getting instructions from Mourinho and is taking off his tracksuit. He has moved to the number ten shirt after the departure of Wayne Rooney, a number that Ibrahimovic said he wanted when he arrived. A deafening roar rings around Old Trafford as he comes on for Martial. A goal here and the roof may very well come off.

The third and final substitute is Ander Herrera who comes on for Mata. The tempo is slowing down considerably now with United looking content with the three goal cushion.

Matic crosses the ball to the back post and Ibrahimovic attempts an acrobatic shot that is just saved. United then come close several times in the dying minutes but can’t find the back of the net. It seems to be the same curse as earlier in the season whereby they are unable to net five in a game.

The whistle blows for full time and the result means that the gap between first and second stays at eight points. United’s next big test will come in the Manchester derby three weeks from now, a game that could swing the fate of the season.

Has Tesla just changed an entire industry with one press conference?

On Thursday the 16th of November, Tesla CEO Elon Musk took to the stage to announce the latest creation for his company — a semi truck. The latest in a string of electric vehicles, this one in particular has the potential to turn an entire industry onto a more environmentally friendly road.

The event took place at the design studio used by Tesla and Musk’s other equally exciting venture SpaceX. During the presentation, he introduced the Semi with a mass of statistics and facts proving the vehicle to be a director competitor to the conventional diesel trucks.

There were two main concerns that big businesses had with electric vehicles that made them sceptical about the Semi: range and cost. In order to truly revolutionise the trucking industry, it needed to be able to cover the length of most routes, of which 80 percent are 250 miles or less, as well as being comparable in price to diesel trucks.

Musk announced to rapturous applause that the Semi has a range of 500 miles. Note that this is at maximum weight and highway speed so the average driver would be able to achieve more than this. Charging can be completed at the start or end points of the route via solar panels, causing minimal time delay and a 400 mile range would take just 30 minutes.

He then continued by saying that from day one, including the cost of the truck, insurance, and maintenance, a Tesla would be at least 20 percent cheaper than a diesel truck to run.

Corporate giant Walmart has already taken notice, “We have a long history of testing new technology — including alternate-fuel trucks — and we are excited to be among the first to pilot this new heavy-duty vehicle. We believe we can learn how this technology performs within our supply chain, as well as how it could help us meet some of our long-term sustainability goals, such as lowering emission.”

The company, which has 6000 trucks on the road, have also pre-ordered 15 vehicles. This is a strong vote of confidence for Musk and Tesla, who could see large numbers of pre-orders before the initial production date of 2019 from firms wanting to meet environmental goals. In total, road freight accounts for approximately 20 percent of the world’s oil demand.

Electric will not only be cheaper but will also be predictable in price and will help the trucking industry become more efficient.

However, Tesla vehicles are only as environmentally friendly as the manner in which the electricity is made. In the UK, nearly a third of all electricity is made from renewable sources, but for electric cars to be the unanimous option that number needs to increase. In the USA, that number is just 15 percent. With the world aiming towards being more environmentally friendly, Musk could gain a significant foothold in the automotive business as a result.

The only issue left holding people back is the long and unpredictable wait times consumers have before getting their cars. Their last release, the Model 3, comparable to a Ford Mondeo, has been fraught with production problems. It has taken some time to get the production lines up and running, with some aspects still not fully automated, causing bottlenecks.

These delays have prompted at least one shareholder to sue Tesla, claiming that they improperly hid its problems from its investors. In October, Tesla revealed that it only built 260 of its Model 3 cars during the third quarter of 2017, far from the 1,500 it had forecast to investors earlier in the year. The company stated that a handful of their assembly lines had taken longer to get up and running than anticipated.

For Musk to then unveil the new Semi, as well as a new sports car, the Roadster, lead some industry experts to think that it is too much too soon — that ironing out the creases first would strengthen the belief in Tesla. If they can meet the supply, and meet it in time, we may see a complete change in the trucking industry for the better.

Microsoft to develop more in-house

Early this month Microsoft released the Xbox One X, touted as the most powerful console ever made. Regardless of this new iteration’s sales though it is extremely unlikely that the gap between itself and Sony’s PlayStation 4 will close. As of 30th September Sony had sold 64.9 million PS4 units, 33.7 million more than the Xbox One. So what is Microsoft’s plan to compete?

Xbox Chief Phil Spencer said in an interview recently that they plan to create many more games in-house and, to get the ball rolling, investment has been increased massively. This money will go towards opening up brand new studios or acquiring established ones.

The statement comes after several years of poor performance in regards to the quality and quantity of first-party titles, including multiple cancelled games. In that time, and rather ironically contrasted with Spencer’s comments, several studios have been shut down including Press Play and Lionhead, the latter famous for making the Fable series of games which I feel could have been an enticing Xbox One exclusive.

For the original Xbox and Xbox 360, some of the most acclaimed games have been those which they have developed themselves such as the Halo and Gears of War franchises. If you look at the list of all-time best-selling games for the Xbox One, Microsoft have made just two of the top ten, and one was Minecraft whose publisher they acquired so the merit for that belongs elsewhere.

With fewer owners of their console, it is essential that they milk every last pound, euro, and dollar out of the owner and having a diverse array of first-party titles is a great way to do that. The software tie-ratio, that is, the number of games owned per console purchased, for the Xbox One is 6.55. So if Microsoft can achieve just one of those 6.55 games it will equate to an astonishing 31.25 million unit sales.

They might be looking to follow the success of Nintendo with their latest console the Switch, released in March and praised for being both a handheld and a home console. Not only has every Switch game that has sold over a million units been developed by Nintendo, but they have been some of the most critically successful of the year.

According to review aggregator site Metacritic, the two highest rated games of the year are both Switch games, and both made in-house, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and Super Mario Odyssey. Odyssey is an especially interesting case study, selling over two million units after just three days.

Spencer acknowledged the companies inconsistent feelings to game development, ‘Our ability to go create content has to be one of our strengths. We haven’t always invested at the same level. We’ve gone through ups and downs.’

This hints at a possible shift in the way Microsoft establishes the parameters of success, potentially going as far as conceding the sales war to Sony. The emphasis is no longer on console units and more on the first party software tie-ratio, microtransactions and subscription services.

There is a fine line for microtransactions between wining and dining the customer for their money and dragging them into a dark alleyway and beating it out of them as EA knows only too well. The backlash against their latest release, Star Wars Battlefront II, a desecration of my personal favourite game of all time, has been so swift and with had such righteous fury that Disney CEO Bob Iger called EA up personally to address the issues.

In order to unlock certain items in the game, you have to earn enough points through gameplay or, for those with a little extra cash in their back pocket, you can pay to unlock them immediately. Seems like a reasonable way to conduct business right? Wrong.

To fully unlock every item in the game, which you already pay £50 for anyway, you’d have to fork out £1600 pounds. Should you instead want the satisfaction of completely unlocking everything through gameplay it would take you 188 days. 188 days of constant playtime. Microsoft will surely take notice of this and make sure that they don’t make the same mistake.

You may be disappointed to know that Spencer hinted towards a focus on multiplayer titles, ones that they can implement these microtransactions in. An example is Rare’s Sea of Thieves, an Xbox One and Windows exclusive set for release in 2018 which sees players take on the roles of pirates aboard their own ships, fighting others, and plundering treasure.

These types of games offer a higher potential revenue per customer for Microsoft and they can also add small features behind paywalls that won’t cause the same backlash as EA but will add a secondary low-cost revenue stream. Fans of immersive single player experiences such as The Witcher, Fallout and the PS4 exclusive Uncharted franchise will find themselves waiting a very long time for a similar Xbox exclusive game.

The extended and costly development means that it just isn’t a financially sensible idea. Add to that the lack of secondary income streams unless you develop another side campaign which itself would be expensive and you can understand why Microsoft’s stance on single player titles is firmly against.

This is sadly the direction that the gaming industry has been heading for a long time and it’s because of the change in how the majority of us play games. Phone apps have been dominated by microtransactions for years and now the console companies are doing the same, with the exception of the mostly microtransaction free Nintendo Switch.

There doesn’t seem to be any change on the horizon either. Microsoft have recognised the potential to squeeze revenue out of the consumer and the opportunity has them frothing at the mouth. Don’t be fooled, although Spencer promises an increased selection of first-party titles, the depth of content will undoubtedly be shallow with a wide selection of features locked away behind a paywall. They will just have learned from EA to make it more discrete.

Britain needs a New Deal-esque pledge in next weeks Autumn Budget

Phillip Hammond and his little red book/box – courtesy of Independent.co.uk

On Wednesday Chancellor Phillip Hammond will announce his Autumn Budget, the first after the General Election – with attention growing by the day on what it will contain. Fleshy oranges or cobwebs? Spreadshit Phil is not known to revel in budget surprises, more an obsession with fiscal particulars and drab financial policies that are classic Tory neo-liberalism to the bone. However, we are now entering a new paradigm.. where Britain isn’t guaranteed a clear cut deal on exit from the European Union and where jobs and prosperity are certainly going to be put on the line. Britain needs to prove to itself that it is prepared and ready to craft a future for itself in a world without the European Union. Britain needs to borrow and invest at a time of economic downturn. It is simple economics. Therefore it is imperative that he considers a mass building programme of homes and infrastructure not seen in this country since the 1950’s.

This means putting billions into upgrading railway lines between cities across the North and restoring previously closed branch lines. Enough time has been wasted over the last six months debating whether the Trans-Pennine line is worthy of being electrified thanks to our darling Transport Secretary Chris Grayling. It is no longer a matter worthy of debate. This also means giving cities across the country the transport infrastructure they need to keep attracting investment and make communities integrated and connected (give Leeds her trams, Liverpool a proper Metro, connect Manchester and Sheffield proper – even our large towns need rapid mass transportation systems). This can be achieved with the devolution agreements set by Whitehall, by giving them what they need to prosper in the decades to come.

A mass house building programme is needed to provide for the present not just the future, decades of speculation on property and control of supply has led us into this mess. However, asking the contemporary Tory set to commit to anything close to MacMillan’s 300,000 a year in the mid-50’s would be like asking them to colonise Mars. Any pledge they make isn’t worth the paper it is written on unless they put the money aside. Hammond is no fool, he made his £8 million fortune off the back of privately developing healthcare centres for a housing development company so knows how the market works.

They need to understand that a solid industrial strategy, backed up by investment is needed to ensure high quality jobs and apprenticeships are created for future generations in the absence of EU social funding. I believe we are not far off becoming a nation of SIA badge holders and Amazon warehouse order pickers. How far off are we now from Napoleon’s nation of shopkeepers cry? The race to the bottom with work and productivity in this country (we are the lowest out of the G7 countries now after the Global financial crash) can be stopped and even reversed. It will however take some – wait for it – intervention.

I concur with Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell’s call for an emergency budget. For us to restore the years of anomie that public service cuts have caused – which have hit the poorest in this country the hardest and invest in our future prosperity, we can start to buffer any damage walking away from the European Union may or will cause. Public services provide an invaluable and fundamental service that cannot be measured against any amount of capital or profit. These bold steps would only be just the start of addressing the root of the problem of our hollowed out economy and a political system that refuses to govern for the many at present. Lets see if Hammond has the vision to do so. Something tells me otherwise. The Tories cannot comprehend why every age group under the age of 50 voted Labour. They do not understand the mess they are in and that they themselves are the cause of it. The political subconscious is working overtime but it will be too late before it becomes latent. God forbid though if they actually did though, just look at Venezuela right?

 

Review: Abode’s Sunday Roast

Sunday roast to me means the ultimate comfort. Done right, it takes me back to Sundays at my gran’s, with my entire family around the table, competing with my uncle to see who can eat the most Yorkshire puddings — it was me, every time.

The metropolitan roast dinner is a little different. Its classy, high-quality, and instagrammable. Rather than the all you can eat pregnancy pants you take to your nan’s, you probably dress up a bit for the city roast.

I tried, but I had a raging hangover, so, bedecked in my “nice jumper”, I headed to Abode, not sure if my queasy tummy was ready for what was about to be put in front of me.

Originally, my boyfriend and I were booked on for the all you can drink prosecco meal deal, for £25 you can get as sloshed as you like. Needless to say, I wasn’t in the mood for that; nor the blaring music, so we asked to sit in the downstairs dining room. This was empty at 3 in the afternoon — perhaps a little late for the lunch rush.

It’s not quite the most romantic of atmospheres when it’s just you, your date, and the guy awkwardly cleaning glasses. Nevertheless, the staff were very accommodating and attentive, particularly aforementioned awkward guy who chatted to us when grabbing our plates at the end of the meal.

I’d never previously bought into the hair of the dog myth, but since there was a nice looking cocktail bar behind me, I ordered a Bloody Mary, spicy, and was very impressed with the results. The cocktail seemed perfectly balanced, and within about ten minutes of drinking it, my queasiness subsided and I realised just how famished I actually was.

And thank goodness, because they brought out our roasts, accompanied with a giant Yorkshire, and various little pots; braised red cabbage, truffle cauliflower cheese, green beans, carrot, swede purée, roasted potatoes.

The best part, though, was the meat; a choice of lamb or beef, or mushroom pie for the veggies. I had the lamb, it was cut so thin, almost carpaccio style, but still deliciously tender. My only qualms were with the Yorkshire pudding and the cauli-cheese.

While big bubbly Yorkshires have a great aesthetic, the top sections are dry, lacking in flavour and have a texture I can only imagine would be like ash. In my opinion, a proper Yorkshire is quite dense, the kind of thing you can mop up gravy with.

As for the cauli-cheese, the truffle was a nice touch, but it was essentially cauliflower sat in milk with some melted cheese on top, not cauliflower in a cheese sauce. That bit was the only real disappointment though. We finished with a yummy crème brûlée, with a surface that gave an impressive crack with the teaspoon.

I would evaluate it as such; a quality meal, particularly great meat, for a very reasonable price of £9.99. But it’ll never beat your nan’s, and I’m pretty certain there are better roasts in the city somewhere — that I’m determined to find. Stay tuned for more roast reviews.

6/10

Man Met rank number one green university in UK

Now in its tenth year, the league table ranks scored 154 universities, awarding them a First class degree, 2:1, 2:2, Third, or Fail. These scores were based on criteria like environmental policy, performances in carbon reduction, recycling and more.

Results were released on Tuesday the 14th of November, and it’s part of a bigger campaign by People & Planet, a student-led network which aims to “end world poverty, defend human rights, and protect the environment”.

Hannah Smith, co-director of research and campaigns at People & Planet, says “The league table was a eureka moment; universities love rankings, and finally we would produce one led by students! By 2010 it was clear that this was going to be a game-changer.”

Manchester Metropolitan University came out on top with a score of 77.6 per cent — a university which sees green practices like electric car hire scheme, desktop recycling bins, and water re-use on campus. Education for sustainable development is also being introduced into all of the university’s courses.

“We had clear aims: to make transparent the sustainable development of publicly funded universities,” Smith adds, “to create competition in the sector that would drive environmental and ethical performance, and to empower students and prospective students with the understanding of whether and how an institution was taking responsibility.”

Newer universities dominate the ‘First class’ category, Russell groups, in comparison, trail behind. The University of Oxford rank 54th, whilst the University of Cambridge holds 58th position. The University of Manchester come in at 71 overall, with a total score of 39.1%, despite being the first university in the world to be named a ‘Carbon Literate Organisation’.

Last year, the university launched the ‘10,000 Actions’ campaign following the success of first-year students’ participation in ‘Ethical Grand Challenge’, encouraging staff to act more sustainably.

There is a substantial improvement across all universities since the first league table ten years ago. 85 universities now recycle more than half their waste, compared to only five in 2007. “The number of universities employing environment staff doubled and in 2013 we celebrated a milestone — 100 per cent of all universities had finally set policy on their environmental impacts.” Smith says, “Our table has consistently and unashamedly held universities to account over the last decade”.

Review: Abi

Lilith Games, the same individuals behind other mobile games Shooty Skies and Art of Conquest, have recently had the honour of holding the front page title on the App store as Game of the Day for their latest release: Abi.

Following the story of Abi and DD, two robots built for different purposes, their adventure towards Metropolis in a post-apocalyptic setting takes them across familiar and yet divergent landscapes, solving puzzles to reach from A to B and learning about the backstories of other robots along the way.

Now, in terms of mobile gaming, people have different needs as to what kind of games they are interested in: whether they would like a freemium-type adventure where you dedicate hours and money to level up and connect with an online community or a simple, repetitive game that they can play in-between lectures.

Either way, little attention has been paid to indie games which are narrative driven or stem outside of the freemium structure. It is true that indie games are given a larger platform with game awards such as The Game Awards and BAFTA Game Awards, but in terms of having a larger community of players, there is a contrast. Taking this into consideration, Abi may just be the game you’re looking for.

You start the game as a WALL-E type robot, Abi, falling into an abandoned warehouse and told to explore this new area. Soon joined by DD, you are then taught how to switch characters in terms of function, how to move around your location by tapping on either the left or right-hand side of the screen, and how to interact with objects by tapping on the gear logo that hangs above each object.

The way the controls work was already proven to be problematic, especially when playing on phones rather than tablets with a larger screen. Before you learn to use the functions further, immediately you come across your first robot, and it is there that you learn of your quest: to find DD’s friend, a little white bird. From there, you leave through the barred doors and venture outside into the wasteland.

From just my first impression of this world, it is apparent that the sound design functions perfectly for this type of game, and accompanies the landscape so beautifully that you already feel for these characters and their situation. You come across robots that feel the need to stay where they are rather than venture forward because they feel abandoned or they have nowhere else to go.

Despite the repetitiveness of talking to these robots, or solving these puzzles, the locations are sure enough to keep up your interests. There are diners and warehouses, empty homes filled with letters and stories, laboratories with hidden secrets, caves under the Earth piled high with junk-metal and revengeful creatures.

Which is why I have just one question: why wasn’t this game longer?

The world is so immersive, that by the time you want to explore more, you have reached the end. This game can easily be completed within an hour, and for £2.99 (IOS), this is what truly sets the game back. There is so much material to work with and, if the game is successful enough, maybe a longer sequel will be developed. Either way, if such a game were to be in development, it would get my full support.

6/10

Live Review: Blondie

Blondie have had a hugely successful career which has spanned over 40 years and shows no signs of slowly down, a fact fully evident when they performed at the packed Apollo with an audience ranging from young to old.

There was a clear sense of the excitement before the band took to the stage which erupted when they came on. They were fronted of course by the iconic Debbie Harry, who arrived on stage sporting a jacket reading “Stop fucking the planet” and a honey bee mask intended as an environmental statement and which keeps with the theme of the 11th studio album released earlier this year “Pollinator”.

The band surprisingly opened with one of their biggest hits “One Way or Another” which provoked a huge response from the crowd — something they didn’t always garner as they performed newer material. It was clear to see how comfortable the band was with material both old and new, but also with each other, effortlessly breezing through the set list on top form.

At times, perhaps too comfortable with the classics, Harry only performed the bare minimum of effort expected. She did however show an impressive vocal ability throughout, highlighting her incredible talent.

The rest of the band complemented one another as each member had their own moment to shine, demonstrating the band’s cohesion as a unit. Despite the band having multiple change-ups throughout their history they were extremely strong and it seemed as if they had been all together since their inception.

One of the main highlights was the band covering The Beastie Boys’ ‘(You Gotta) Fight for Your Right’ which caught the audience off guard and raised the atmosphere after they had perhaps lost it somewhat with newer material.

At times, the 70’s rock attitude did start to wear thin and obviously the performance didn’t have the same impact it would have garnered back in their hey-day. Although, this exact type of punk rock is what made them so successful. With Harry’s attire they had taken a more modern approach with issues that are clearly very important to them.

By the time they finished the main set with ‘Heart of Glass’, the crowd was without a doubt wanting more and left on an extreme high. The band returned for the encore in which Debbie gave thanks to the crowd for their continued support and as they finished with ‘Dreaming’ it was evident that Blondie are as popular as ever and showed no signs of going away anytime soon.

Manchester University criticised for links with AstraZeneca

Students’ Union Education Officer, Emma Atkins, has criticised the revelation of apparent links between AstraZeneca and the University.

The influence of the pharmaceutical giant over the directive of the University’s Board of Governors has been revealed following recommendations from the Leadership Foundation for Higher Education to reduce the number of members on the Board.

Lay members of the board, Isabelle Perrett and John Stageman are both ex-employees of AstraZeneca, with colleague Dapo Ajayi also assuming a day job as Chief Procurement Officer at the same corporation.

President and Vice-Chancellor Dame Nancy Rothwell herself was a non-executive director for nine years at AstraZeneca. Will Spinks, Rothwell’s advisor & registrar, also worked for the corporation before assuming his role at the university, and their team receives legal advice from general counsel Chris Petty, who also spent 32 years at the pharmaceutical giant before transitioning to work under Spinks.

Commenting on their influence, Emma Atkins, Students’ Union Education Officer, stated: “This poses a lot of questions for management: how can we be sure that they are making objective decisions, and that the board of governors are making decisions best for the university and its students, not decisions that will make their friends, Nancy and Will, happy?”

“I would like written assurances from the management about how they are declaring their interests, and how they are making sure they make objective decisions. I would also question who made the appointments of Isabelle and John to the Board of Governors.

“Whilst it is not a crime to work in the same business as some people, and then proceed to work in a university with them, given the way the university has acted and responded around various issues, it’s imperative they are transparent about commercial links.”

A spokesperson for the University commented: “AstraZeneca is a significant local employer, specialising in life sciences and biomedicine. It is entirely to be expected that a number of scientists, senior managers and board members have links to both organisations.”

In 2015, AstraZeneca invested £11.5 million to support clinical bioinformatics research conducted within the Centre for Cancer Biomarker Sciences at the Manchester Cancer Research Centre. Stated explicitly on the University of Manchester News page, it was deemed that “this collaboration builds on existing extensive and close scientific collaborations between AstraZeneca and The University of Manchester.”

 

Live Review: J Hus

Friday 10th November, Manchester Academy

From the instant a flashy Merc was ostentatiously revealed from behind a plush cloth, and as two hype men were enthusiastically introducing the crowd to the gritty underbelly of black British culture, it was clear J Hus wasn’t going to do things by halves.

Credit where credit is due, he made an entrance, encouraging a young crowd that if you believe in yourself then you will eventually earn respect. Shirtless and brimming with confidence, the young grime star flowed through lyrics and tracks effortlessly. Unfortunately at times he became lost in a conflict of style over substance.

Common Sense tracks dominated the show, but due to a series of time-filling reloads by the DJ, tunes merged into a pool of similar beats and rhythms, making the set mundane at times. The opening was explosive, with tracks Bouff Daddy and title track Common Sense tangibly elevating the energy level.

J Hus is clearly a natural at what he does. A fusion of grime and Afrobeat influences automatically gave him a head start with a unique live sound and a party-esque atmosphere heightened by the multiple bodies on stage and the intrinsic passion born out of music from the streets.

But there was something missing, and that was variation. He’s a master of capturing his life through lyricism and presenting it in a form unique to the current landscape of British music, but there was an element lacking from his live presence, and it is debatable whether the force behind those lyrics was translated on stage. Maybe it came from a distinct lack of movement, but there was potential there with the strength of his music to blow minds in that environment with the right crowd, and unfortunately it felt like this opportunity was missed.

Highlights came at the end of the set with singles Did You See and Spirit, which pulled the set out of its repetitive slump and injected some variation into the performance. Call and response moments worked effectively with the crowd, as fans idolised the hooks of the J Hus success story.

For a young artist on a headline tour, it was a mighty effort to impress with style. But if J Hus had concentrated more on how to present his powerful music with a physical platform, the show would have achieved more successfully what his music strives to do.

6/10

City battle for 2-1 win at Huddersfield

Manchester City maintained their unbeaten start to the league season as they won away at newly promoted Huddersfield Town. The home side opened the scoring with a Nicolás Otamendi own goal in injury time of the first half, before Sergio Agüero and Raheem Sterling both scored in the second.

The opening stages of the game consisted of City having plenty of the ball but seemingly being unable to get close to the Huddersfield goal. City found themselves unable to find the likes of Kevin de Bruyne or David Silva in the hole and the latter was dropping deep or wide to receive the ball.

The closest City came during this period was when Sergio Agüero prodded the ball into the net from a De Bruyne free-kick but the Argentine was flagged for offside.

Of the two wide players, out was Raheem Sterling, who was seeing most of the ball. With the centre of the pitch being very congested, City looked to use the wings to get in behind Huddersfield’s back line. Once or twice, Sterling did find himself with possession in behind but made little of the final ball.

The English winger missed City’s best chance of the first half after an Agüero shot was palmed into Sterling’s path. He didn’t move his feet quickly enough, and blazed wide from a short distance.

The home side were weathering the City storm well but lacked any quality when it was their turn to attack. Too often they would look to breakaway quickly, only for a poor pass to gift possession back to Pep Guardiola’s men.

With De Bruyne and Silva drifting wide, space was opened up in the middle, and Nicolás Otamendi looked to take advantage. The defender charged forward but ultimately fired his shot high and wide.

The half-time whistle was drawing ever nearer, but this period was not to end goalless. Huddersfield found themselves with a rare set piece as they lined up for a corner deep into injury time. Tom Ince’s in-swinging delivery was flicked on by Christopher Schindler, and Otamendi could do nothing but deflect the ball into his own net.

The John Smith’s Stadium erupted as the chance of an upset very quickly came on the cards.

This excitement only lasted the length of half-time though, as soon after the restart City scored an equaliser. After one denied penalty appeal, Sterling was successful in his second spot-kick appeal. Looking to get on the end of a through ball, Sterling was tugged back by Scott Malone and fell to the floor. Referee Craig Pawson showed no hesitation in pointing towards the spot.

Sergio Agüero stepped up and slotted the penalty to the right of the keeper to bring City level.

The away side began their search for a winner but continued to find themselves frustrated. Agüero was becoming increasingly anonymous and Guardiola was begging his team to provide more width in an attempt to create chances. To combat this, the manager introduced Gabriel Jesus in the place of Vincent Kompany and switched to a 3-3-4 formation.

This width eventually paid dividends, as Sterling cut inside from wide and played a quick one-two with De Bruyne. The attempted pass was cut out but fell to Gabriel Jesus who prodded goalwards. The keeper made a good save but played it straight onto Sterling. The ball looped up and then down into the back of the net to put City ahead for the first time in the game.

With a one-goal advantage, Guardiola introduced İlkay Gündoğan and Eliaquim Mangala to try and restore City’s possession domination. The team held on with their back five with Aaron Mooy’s free-kick being the only moment of danger. The Australian could only find the side netting from his spot kick. City survived the added five minutes and Rajiv van La Parra saw red during the final minutes, with a push to Leroy Sané’s face.

It was a hard-fought win, but one that restored City’s eight-point lead at the top of the Premier League table.

The Faculty of Science and Engineering invite students to a special faculty forum meeting

On the 30th of November, students will get the chance to present and discuss their views on the Faculty of Science and Engineering review and likely merger of the various schools within it.

Notice of the original review, which began in December 2016, did not reach students until a previous General Secretary Naa Acquah shared a Facebook post announcing it.

The post was met with a wave of criticism from students, who believed they had been cut out from the process.

After receiving student feedback, Martin Schroder, Dean of the Faculty of Science and Engineering, hosted four open sessions and visited all nine Schools “in order to gain a better understanding of how best to implement changes, whilst maintaining the clear identity of all our subject disciplines.”

The review group published their report in June 2017, which was followed by a consultation. However, there was a low student turn out as these consultations took place out of term time.

The meeting on the 30th of November will be facilitated by the Assistant Vice Dean for Teaching, Learning and Students, Professor Steve Pettifer and members of the Students’ Union executive team.