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Month: March 2019

Photo: Shari's Berries @ Flickr

For the love of food

Written by Kate Fawcett on . Posted in Food & Drink.

Strawberries dipped in chocolate, a bowl of oysters accompanied by a glass of champagne, a three-tiered wedding cake. Whether they provide aphrodisiac properties or hold cultural significance, food and romance have long gone hand in hand. But the relationship between love and food runs far deeper than these tired clichés. Food can offer a unique experience of intimacy. It often provides us with a means of expression when words are simply not enough.

When I asked my friends what foods they associated with love, none of them mentioned fancy dinners or a heart-shaped box of chocolates. Instead, they spoke about their Grandma’s special recipe for bread and butter pudding (hint: the secret is nutmeg). Or the first meal that their Dad taught them to make. Their memories of love and food were deeply personal, more about sharing an experience with a loved one than extravagance.

Food is a way to nurture and nourish, to share tips and tricks, to bond with someone. When your Grandma shares her secret to perfect Yorkshire puddings, she shares a part of her history with you. When someone gives you the bigger slice of cake, they are putting your happiness before their own. I may sound a bit dramatic – a slightly smaller slice of cake does not seem like a huge sacrifice — but food can be a way for someone to show their love, however insignificant the moment may seem.

It’s those moments: passing a cup of tea back and forth with someone because you only have enough milk for one cup. Eating toast in bed with your partner and getting jam all over the sheets. Or compromising at the cinema and getting salted popcorn even though you prefer sweet just so you can share with someone. Even eating a portion of chips with your housemate on the way back from a night out because you’re too hungry to wait. It is moments like these – small moments of quiet intimacy – that food can bring us.

Image provided by Berries.com.

Photo: paseidon @Pixabay

UoM inside top 30 in latest QS University rankings, amid Brexit warning

Written by Sam Honey on . Posted in News.

The University of Manchester has ranked 29th in the world, and the 10th in the UK in the QS world university rankings for 2019, as QS issued a warning over the effect of Brexit on the UK’s performance in international tables.

One of just three ranking systems to receive International Ranking Expert Group (IREG) approval, QS uses a range of indicators, including an institution’s Academic and Employer reputation.

The University of Manchester moves up five spots from its 2018 place, and also rises from 7th to 6th in the UK standings.

In the UK rankings, it finished 13th for Arts and Humanities, 7th for Social Sciences and Management, and 7th for Life Sciences and Medicine.

The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) retains its first place ranking, with Stanford, Harvard, Caltech, and Cambridge completing the top five.

Oxford, UCL, and Imperial College London also featured in the ten best in the world.

Although the latest rankings were a success story for UK Higher Education, there was a warning over how the UK’s withdrawal from the EU could affect the country’s future performance in the QS rankings.

The UK’s excellent performance, which is bettered only by the USA, has been heavily linked to their participation in the Erasmus scheme

“Much of the highly cited research that has contributed to UK success this year will have come about as a result of collaboration with EU universities and as a consequence of participation in EU schemes,” said Ben Sowter, director of research for the rankings system.

Although the future of the Horizon scheme has been guaranteed  by government funding until 2020, the effect of an unmitigated fallout from the EU could be devastating.

Last week, Professor Colin Riodarn, Vice-Chancellor of Cardiff University, called for Brexit to be delayed for up to two years, describing a no deal exit ‘intolerable’.

Photo: Richard Johnson @Wikimedia Commons

City retain Carabao Cup as Kepa adds to Sarri’s Blues

Written by Chris Perrin on . Posted in Sport.

Manchester City came out on top against Chelsea to win the Carabao Cup final 4-3 on penalties. With nothing to separate the two sides after 120 minutes, it was Raheem Sterling who stepped up with ice-cold composure to score the winning penalty. However, the game was overshadowed by a few minutes of madness in extra-time when Chelsea goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga refused to be substituted.

Being played just two weeks after City hit Chelsea for six at the Etihad, the final proved to be a far cagier affair. Under the management of Maurizio Sarri, it has been difficult to predict which Chelsea will turn up and there have been occasions on which it has looked like ‘Sarriball’ is finally starting to resonate with his squad.

Yet, recent bruising defeats at the hands of Bournemouth and the two Manchester clubs have been major setbacks. At Wembley on Sunday however, Chelsea’s setup was well-organised. They opted to soak up pressure from their opponents and then counter-attack. Eden Hazard’s blistering pace and dribbling ability made him an important outlet. For City, who so often break teams down with ease, chances were few and far between.

Sergio Aguero did have the ball in the net on 54 minutes, but the Argentinian was ruled offside, with the decision confirmed to be correct by VAR. As the clock kept ticking and the score remained 0-0, a sense of belief appeared to grow among the Chelsea players. N’Golo Kante went close to scoring after 66 minutes, firing over the bar from ten yards out. Ultimately, neither side could break the deadlock in regulation time.

In extra-time, it was City who were doing most of the attacking. Raheem Sterling threatened on multiple occasions down the right-hand side. With three minutes remaining, Antonio Rüdiger’s slip allowed Aguero to let fly just outside Chelsea’s area.

His effort was saved by Kepa down to his left, but the Chelsea goalkeeper injured himself in the process, suffering from cramp. Seeing this, Sarri told Kepa’s understudy Willy Caballero to get ready to come on. Although the motivation for the substitution was Kepa’s injury, Caballero’s impressive record in penalty shoot-outs, as well as his stint at City not so long ago, made the substitution also appear tactically astute.

However, as the fourth official’s board went up to announce the substitution, Kepa waved to his boss in protest, insisting he was fit to continue. An incredible scene unfolded, with Sarri clearly enraged on the touchline. It was a war of wills, which Kepa won. The world’s most expensive goalkeeper refused to come off when told to, and in doing so completely undermined his manager’s authority. Few football fans will have ever witnessed anything like it before.

In the shootout, Kepa went on to save Leroy Sané’s penalty but was unable to keep out City’s other four. Jorginho and David Luiz didn’t help their keeper by misfiring for Chelsea. Raheem Sterling dispatched the winning penalty with a daring confidence, finding what he called “top bins”.

At his press conference after the game, Sarri played down the substitution incident: “It was a big misunderstanding because I understood that he had a cramp and I did not want my keeper to penalties in that physical condition”.

Kepa also took to social media to state that there was a misunderstanding between technical area and pitch, reaffirming that he has “full respect for the coach and his authority”. Sarri’s decision in the following days to fine Kepa a week’s wages and drop him in Chelsea’s midweek win against Tottenham may suggest that what occurred was a lot more than just a misunderstanding.

Indeed, such an unprecedented disregard for a manager’s authority has provoked shock in the football world. But what may be equally as striking is the actions of Kepa’s team-mates during the incident. At the time only David Luiz approached Kepa to discuss what was going on.

Club captain Cesar Azpilcueta chose not to involve himself in the situation and shied away from passing any judgement post-match, explaining that he was on the other side of the pitch.

It is no secret that Chelsea have a history of sending managers on their way when they do not produce the goods. No manager has served for three full seasons since José Mourinho’s first spell at the club came to an end in 2007. This creates an unstable culture in which players see themselves outlasting their managers at the club.

When pressure mounts on the manager, it may make more sense for players to swim with the tide. Currently sitting in sixth position in the Premier League with the Europa League as their only chance of silverware this season, there can be no doubts that Sarri finds himself under pressure to prove he is the man to take Chelsea forward.

With a two-window transfer ban recently being imposed on Chelsea, Sarri will have to win over his current set of players otherwise his days will be numbered. What we saw at Wembley on Sunday may well be an indication of the latter.

As for Manchester City, securing their first trophy of the 2018/19 campaign under their belt will be a massive boost of confidence as they stride through to the home straight of the footballing season. Pep Guardiola will not yet entertain the idea of winning the quadruple, but at this stage, there may well be a feeling of ‘one down, three to go’ for City fans.

With a trip to Bournemouth and the return leg against Schalke in the Champions League to play before the upcoming international break, the sky blues will be looking to keep up the momentum as they fire on all cylinders.

Photo: Zoonabar @ Wikimedia Commons

England’s Grand Slam hopes crushed at the Principality Stadium

Written by James Gill on . Posted in Sport.

England’s hopes to win the Grand Slam in the 2019 6 Nations were crushed by fellow Grand Slam hopefuls Wales in a scrappy Test at the Principality Stadium. Wales sealed a record-breaking 12th consecutive victory as they came from behind to win 21-13.

Having beaten Ireland 32-20 at the Aviva Stadium and demolished France 44-8, England were favourites heading into the fixture. With Wales also sporting a 2-0 lead so far in the tournament, it felt as though the whole Championship rested on this game.

Eddie Jones’ side went into half time 10-3 up thanks to flanker Tom Curry’s first try for England. Up until that point, Wales had been defending resiliently however elements of miscommunication cost them dearly. The Welsh re-grouped during the break and came out in the second half on a mission to retake control of the game, and that they did.

Second row Cory Hill managed to put the home side into the lead 13 minutes from time after a gruelling series of drives. England looked lost while in possession, often kicking after one or two phases and seemingly the only way to stay in contention was a penalty or drop goal to level the score at 16-16.

Any hopes of getting a draw were dashed as Josh Adams caught a Dan Biggar cross-field kick to secure the win with another try. Biggar missed the conversion but the damage was already done.

If England are to lift the 6 Nations trophy they will need a bit of luck. With only Scotland and Italy left to play, arguably the two weakest teams, they should end with a 4-1 record. Wales, on the other hand, have Ireland to play last, a defeat there would give Jones’ side the Championship due to their bonus points.

After the game England captain, Owen Farrell said: “We didn’t really get a foothold in the last 30 minutes of the game. We did well in the first half and we had a good go at the start of the second, but then we couldn’t get back that momentum.”

“We made a few errors and they did what they did well. We couldn’t get out of our half and they managed to build a lot of pressure. It will feel a lot worse than it should now but we will look back on it and learn from what we need to.”

Photo: mirsasha @flickr

Serena Williams cartoon cleared of racism, deemed “offensive”

Written by Harry Deacon on . Posted in Sport.

The Australian Press Council have cleared a controversial Serena Williams cartoon of racism accusations.

The cartoon, created by Mark Knight of The Herald Sun, depicted an angry Williams while the umpire asks her opponent to “just let her win”.

The cartoon emerged in the aftermath of the US Open final, where the most successful female tennis player in history accused the umpire of being a “liar” and a “thief”.

The cartoon sparked conversations of how Black women are portrayed in the media. The portrayal of Williams as unfeminine, rageful, and disrespectful is consistent of today’s trope of the “angry Black woman” in the media, according to professor Trina Jones.

Jones adds that when a Black woman opposes anything “they’re deemed to be domineering. Aggressive. Threatening. Loud.”

The world number ten lost her patience with the umpire as she received point and game punishments for her in-game actions, followed later by a fine.

Although the umpire did dish out the penalties to the letter of the law, the incident brought to light the question of why Williams was pulled up, while plenty of other players get away with similar, or even worse, actions.

The Women’s Tennis Association has declared the turn of events as “sexist”. Thus, the incident brings claims of institutionalised sexism and racism in both tennis and the media.

The watchdog report stated that the cartoon did “not depict Ms Williams as an ape”, alluding that the crude caricature, although “offensive”, was not racist.

The event continues to divide opinions, with one side insisting that the cartoon was neither racist nor sexist.

Others argue that the image highlights underlying racism left over from minstrelsy, an offensive form of entertainment from the darker recesses of American history, as well as the umpire portraying sexism in his actions during the US Open final.

Photo: Sean MacEntee @flickr

United get a point against Liverpool despite four first half injuries

Written by James Owen on . Posted in Sport.

A stalemate at Old Trafford saw Liverpool go top of the Premier League as Manchester United dropped down to fifth. In a highly anticipated fixture between England’s two most successful sides, lacklustre performances in the final third made sure the fixture was anything but a classic.

Jurgen Klopp’s men started off on the front foot with James Milner powering an indirect free kick into the Manchester United wall. Liverpool continued to apply the pressure as Joel Matip was brought down on the edge of the area, but again Liverpool failed to capitalise as Mo Salah’s effort sailed over the bar.

In the 40th minute, Manchester United created the chance of the half as Romelu Lukaku played Jesse Lingard in behind with a pass that left the Liverpool defence flatfooted. Alisson was quick to respond though with an exceptional save.

What started as a high tempo game of football quickly became disrupted in bizarre fashion, as Manchester United interim manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was forced into making all three substitutions within 40 minutes, whilst Firminho also made way for Daniel Sturridge. Marcus Rashford, who suffered a knock early on, was forced to hobble on with no substitutions available.

After the break the visitors couldn’t take advantage of United’s injury woes, failing to register a shot on target with United happy to let them control possession of the ball. Instead, it was Solskjaer’ men who enjoyed the better chances with Matip putting the ball in his own net on the 71st minute (something he attempted in similar fashion midweek). However, his blushes were spared as Michael Oliver correctly ruled it offside.

“It was a strange game, we started really well. All the injuries in the game obviously cost us rhythm. It happened to us with Bobby [Firmino] and that was a catastrophe,” Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp said after the game.

Solskjaer praised his team’s performance, “I can’t remember David having to make a save, so we kept them out of it, and we probably created one or two massive moments that we could have scored.”

Midweek wins for both United and Liverpool against Crystal Palace and Watford respectively helped sustain their top-four and title challenges.

UoM’s women’s hockey and men’s lacrosse sides both ease past opposition

Written by James Gill on . Posted in Sport.

Another week, another set of fixtures played by the men and women of the University of Manchester. Here at The Mancunion, we’ve got the scoop of all the biggest games, starting with lacrosse.

The University of Manchester men’s 1st team side comfortably beat their Bristol counterparts 14-5 in the Quarter Finals of the Lacrosse Championship. They progress to the Semi-Finals of the competition where they will face Nottingham Trent who overcame Leeds Beckett with easy 13-4.

Trent are perhaps the easiest of the Semi-Final opposition, with Manchester lucky to avoid favourites Durham. No matter the outcome, the side has done fantastically to overcome their poor form during the season and progress this far.

Elsewhere, the women’s hockey 1st side overcame a two-game losing streak as they beat a Liverpool John Moores side that has failed to win a game all season. The 4-1 scoreline should give the side confidence as they look to finish the season strong with their final game against Newcastle coming up soon.

The biggest match of the week came in the form of the men’s fencing team. There entered their Northern Conference Cup Semi Final against the University of Leeds on a seven-game win streak with victory taking them into the Final to play the University of York.

Fortunately they didn’t foil that streak, with a 133-111 scoreline in the glamorous surroundings of the Sugden Sports Centre putting the men’s side on a course for an epic finale to the season. Both sides finished their seasons unbeaten and so the climax, at Goodwin Sports Centre in Sheffield, is not an event to miss.

Photo: Flickr @Jim Linwood

James DeGale announces retirement after UD loss to Chris Eubank Jr

Written by James Gill on . Posted in Sport.

Chris Eubank Jr achieved arguably the biggest win of his career so far in a unanimous points victory against James DeGale. The fight, at London’s O2 Arena, was the last for DeGale as he announced his retirement from boxing.

Despite neither boxer finding momentum during the bout, Eubank Jr forced two counts, once in round two and again in round ten, both from left hooks. DeGale wasn’t far behind, although he didn’t knock his opponent down at all, and held his hand in the air as the scores we read out.

The scores all read in Eubank Jr’s favour, 114-112, 115-112, 117-109. After the fight, he said: “I’m back where I need to be, at the top of the food chain and now I’m coming for all the other belts in the super-middleweight division.”

“I dominated pretty much every round. He is a hell of a skilled fighter but my heart and tenacity got me there. A lot of people said I was going to get my head jabbed off and not stand with a proven boxer. It was the most important fight of my career and I’ve made the statement. It is belt season, it is collection season.”

Eubank Jr won the vacant IBO super-middleweight title which, while not one of the four major titles (WBO, WBC, IBF, or WBA), is a step back in the right direction after losing the belt a year ago to George Groves. He will be hoping that this will put him back on the map and open up fights with the four belt-holders.

DeGale, on the other hand, said before the fight that he would “knock it on the head” if he lost, something he later confirmed. He said about the loss: “I’m going to go back, talk to my team, and talk to my family.”

“I’ve been to the heights of boxing, I’ve won an Olympic gold medal, won the world title twice, made history and I’ve boxed the best around the world. I’ve left my mark in boxing.”

Photo: Steve @ Flickr.

England’s Women on course for Grand Slam in the Six Nations

Written by James Gill on . Posted in Sport.

England beat Wales 51-12 as they look to secure the Six Nations Grand Slam with two games remaining in the tournament. Nine tries were scored by the Red Rose as they comfortably won in Cardiff.

The result leaves England top of the table with 15 points. Italy are the only other undefeated team, although having drawn with Wales, they are three points behind the English. With the next game between the two sides, there is still all to play for.

After the game, England Head Coach Simon Middleton said “We’re definitely not taking a Grand Slam for granted, you can never do that. It’s too valuable. We’re really pleased with the result. To score 50 points in any game is impressive but to score 50 today is testament to some skilful play and down to staying in the game and overcoming some frustration to finish strong.”

England are the only professional team in this year’s Six Nations having been given professional contracts in January. The only other nations to offer contracts are France and New Zealand, however these are part-time. Fans and players alike will be hoping that other nations will follow England’s lead.

These full-time contracts for the rugby union side aren’t the first example of professionalism in the women’s rugby game. Back in 2011, the Netherlands became the first side to offer women’s rugby contracts to their sevens team.

A slew of other countries joined in with England following suit in 2014. Funding for the sevens game has been easier to come by with it being reintroduced into the Olympics in 2016 and there are several sources of money which, despite not being massive, are enough to provide the team with contracts.

The fifteen-a-side form of the game, on the other hand, hasn’t been so lucky. Efforts were made by Italy in 1960, the Soviet Union and 1980, and South Korea in 1988, to get the sport put into the Olympic program but all were met with rejection. It is hoped that the excitement of sevens, as seen in Rio Olympics, will convince the committee that it too should join.

Should that happen, the fifteens sides will have excess to many of the same sources as money as their sevens counterparts, and we would see many more sides turning professional. That said, the decision by England to offer their side contracts regardless will send a message to the other rugby governing bodies.

With just two games left, against Italy and Scotland, England will be hoping to emulate what the French achieved last year, the Grand Slam. England sides over the years have won 13 Grand Slams with the only real test being Italy for a fourteenth.

Their final game is against Scotland and is expected to be a walkover. Two of the top ten highest team scores in the Six Nations have been England vs Scotland. The first was back in 2011 when England were going for their sixth consecutive title. A run that would finish at seven, with six of those being Grand Slams.

In that 2011 Championship, England demolished Scotland 89-0. That score is nine points more than the equivalent men’s highest score, an 80 point drumming of Italy by England in 2001. The second was when England’s women last won a Grand Slam in 2017, with a smaller 64-0 victory.

Simon Middleton and his side will be hoping to cap their Six Nations off with a something similar but there is still a game against a strong Italy side to go. That game will take place on March 9th at Sandy Park, Exeter while Wales face Scotland on March 8th.

Brian Minkoff-London Pixels@wikimediacommons

England’s five day failures and short form successes

Written by Harry Deacon on . Posted in Sport.

After a fairly tragic three match test series out in the Caribbean, England have set about trying to rectify their performances in time for a huge summer of cricket.

The Ashes may prove difficult for an England side that struggled for runs where it counted in the first two tests. 89 runs from Burns in the second innings of the first test proved to be the best opening score, with Jennings worryingly failing to reach 25 in all six of his innings.

However, with the ICC World Cup also approaching, focus must also be turned to the shorter forms of the game: England finally  show what they are all about at first One-Day International (ODI) of four. A 6 wicket win with a single name being hard to pick as the best of the bunch – three wickets from Stokes and Rashid followed by centuries from Roy and Root eased the English to victory.

A five-wicket haul from Cottrell dispatched both of the openers in the second ODI. Morgan and Stokes put up a fight but eventually reached the same fate of Roy and Bairstow allowing the Windies to level the series at 1-1.

However, the third ODI was a marvel to watch. Jos Butler scored a spectacular 150, setting a record number or sixes along the way, while Morgan also grabbed a century as England set a colossal target of 418.

Things looked nervy for the tourists as Gayle set about his usual innings scoring boundaries for fun on route to his 162. A captivating over from Rashid, however, managed to clean up the tail end of the Windies batsmen, with the home side crumbling to fall just short at 389.

With the remainders of the ODIs still to be played, and a T-20 Series also to follow, there is still much cricket to be played before the crucial ICC World Cup and The Ashes.

For the fans this summer promises to be one of the most exciting in recent years. The Oval hosts the World Cup opener between England and South Africa, with the final of the tournament taking place at the historic and prestigious Lord’s.

Furthermore, as this year’s Ashes are on home soil, fans will be hoping to see display that is quite the contrary to that shown in the West India series in order to regain the notorious trophy.

Photo: Wikimedia Commons

Erasmus in jeopardy as Spanish students are widely affected

Written by Sam Honey on . Posted in News.

The future of the Erasmus student exchange programme is reportedly in jeopardy, as Brexit uncertainty continues. 

University students currently enrolled in the programme are not affected, although those enrolled for the 2019-2020 academic year could lose their scholarship in the event of no-deal. 

The EU provides around €16.38bn of funding for this programme, and Spanish students who want to study in the UK could be negatively affected. In the event of a no deal Brexit, financial backing for these students could be affected. 

Spanish students are now being advised to consider universities in countries such as Poland, Norway, or The Netherlands, with some told to withdraw from their scholarship offers in the UK. 

A student from Santiago de Compostela, who was given a scholarship offer to study in Leicester, said: “Foreign Services called me on Monday and recommended I choose another destination because they couldn’t guarantee that I would receive a scholarship if I go to the United Kingdom.”

Although students are advised to reconsider their options, the Spanish government is urging those affected to remain calm. “It seems hasty to take measures,” said José Manuel Pingarrón, the secretary general of universities.

The response among Spanish universities has varied greatly. Universities such as the University of Málaga have decided to refrain from acting until the final Brexit situation is confirmed.

Other universities that are not planning to stop students from undertaking their Erasmus placement in the UK are The Autonomous University of Barcelona and the University of the Basque Country.

“No one benefits from the disappearance of Erasmus,” said Marius Martínez, Vice-Chancellor of the Barcelona institution. “Why would the United Kingdom want to remain outside one of the largest frameworks for research?”

Photo: Iris Chase @ Flickr

Br-Oak House: Students forced to overpay massively for sold out ball tickets

Written by Sam Honey on . Posted in News.

Tickets for next month’s Oak House Ball are being resold at jacked-up prices – in some cases four-times the face value.

The first block of tickets for the March 25th annual showpiece went on general sale on February 26th, priced at £20.

With 1,000 Oak House residents and just 300 tickets initially available, they sold out in an hour and some began to appear on buy and sell sites for significantly higher prices.

The event includes a drinks reception and three-course meal at the Principal Hotel, half a bottle of wine, and an after-party featuring Hyde Park Bass.

One post on Fallowfield Students’ Group (FSG) offered a single ticket for £50, and described the price as ‘the bargain of the year’. It claimed that some were re-selling for as much as £80, with another post offering this price of four times the original.

The Mancunion has seen screenshots of messages from people attempting to sell tickets for £80, a markup of 300% on some of the first set of tickets released at just £20.

The event is incredibly popular, and with the cost of the ball around £60 per person, organisers had used the budget to subsidise prices.

The official event page briefly advertised tickets available for cost price (£60), before it was confirmed that an extra 200 tickets would be released on February 28th, after a compromise was reached with the Principal, although this will still mean just half of the 1,000 residents can attend.

It is unclear as to whether this second release was organised in response to the expensive re-sales.

This extra wave of tickets were priced at £35, a half-way house between the original price, and the £60 cost per person. The extra 200 tickets will reduce the sky-high prices being offered through resale, and will allow a greater proportion of Oak House residents to attend.

As a result of limited tickets being available, the event’s official policy is to prevent those that do not live at Oak House from entering.

It is unknown whether this fact is being widely advertised on resale posts, with students at risk of overpaying hugely for a ticket, and then being barred from entry.

Organisers will hold a list of the names of Oak House residents, checking those entering against this.

Some may level criticism at the organisers over the release of all tickets in a single selling period, with the staggered release of tickets likely to allow a wider number of residents a chance to purchase one.

One first-year music student said: “Who’s going to pay £80 for a night when you pay £99 a week on rent? They probably didn’t sell the tickets for [£80] and just gave that price to pressure people into buying.”

Other students were unhappy about the allocation of tickets and the fact they sold out so quickly.

Prasham Sheth, a first-year economics student said: “Precautions should have been taken so that only one ticket could be bought per person or per card. Since Oak House has funds more than any other body, subsiding 300 tickets to 20 from 60 wasn’t a smart thing to do. They could have subsidised 400 or 500 tickets at 30 to 35 pound keeping in mind the student population of Oak House.

“I opened the link at exact 6pm and when the app opened, the phase one tickets were not available, I thought there was a mistake and I refreshed the page. By the time the page refreshed, phase 2 tickets had also been sold out. I went to ask my roommate if I should still buy the third phase tickets and by the time I reached in his room, third phase tickets were also gone.”

Whilst some people were displeased about the ‘Night in Vegas’ ball being for Oak House residents only, some noted that this is a difficult policy to enforce. One student, who chose to stay anonymous, told The Mancunion that they had been in contact with a member of the Oak House Residents’ Association, telling them that if sales were to have been made through the Students’ Union site – as opposed to Skiddle – the event could have been restricted to Oak House residents only.

They added: “The Oak House [Residents’ Association] budget is not meant to go on any non-residents and therefore the subsidised ticket that they are selling is unfair if it goes to a non Oak House resident as the subsidy comes out of the rent that they pay that year for their halls.

“I think [the ball] is a great idea and if the RA pull it off then it’s amazing and total congratulations to them but it’s just unfair that other halls have been strict on their ball ticket policy and subsidy and [Oak House’s] has just turned into how [they] can sell out and also resell tickets. It’s a bit ridiculous.”

When asked by The Mancunion for a comment regarding the re-selling of tickets at higher prices, a spokesperson for the Oak House Residents’ Association said: “After hearing the concerns about ticket allocation we have decided to reallocate funds from other future events to the ball and so we are releasing 200 tickets at £30.

“500 is the maximum capacity the venue can hold for an event like this. We were not expecting anywhere near this level of interest in the ball.

“It’s also important to mention that we are students volunteering our time to organise this event and not professional event planners. Organising an event for this many people is a huge undertaking. We are trying to put on the best night possible for the most people.”

Photo: John Allan @ Geograph

Jewish Society launches after antisemitism row

Written by Emily Broncz on . Posted in News.

More than 500 people turned out in a show of support this week for a newly formed Jewish Society at the University of Essex.

The group was set up in mid-February, despite 200 students opposing its formation in a vote earlier in the month.

That led to claims of antisemitism at the University, and a computer science lecturer, Dr Maaruf Ali, was suspended after he allegedly posted antisemitic material on Facebook. The University has also launched an investigation.

The posts, since deleted, were believed to allude to Holocaust denial, as well as opposing the creation of the Jewish society.

About 36% of voters objected to the society due to its proposals of wanting to “explore Zionism” and celebrate the Israeli Independence Day. Students who cast a vote against claimed that these aims were rooted in politics, rather than in religious interests.

Society president Amy-Julie Fogiel was among the speakers at this week’s solidarity event. “I’m very proud to be Jewish,” she said. “I can’t wait to establish the society and continue this journey. Light wins over darkness.”

The National Union of Jewish Students (UJS) previously called the situation “shocking” and “deeply disappointing”. It said there are more than 60 Jewish societies at universities across the UK.

A spokesman from the University of Essex Students’ Union said “any form of hate speech” was rejected by the university and that “all reports of antisemitic behaviour” were being taken “extremely seriously”.

Photo: 'Window' by Matthew Johnston

Art in Mancunia: Matthew Johnston

Written by saoirseakhtarfarren on . Posted in Arts.

We are thrilled to introduce Matthew Johnston to our readers, a film-making student from Manchester Metropolitan University who is one of Art in Mancunia’s first painters.

Johnston has chosen to exhibit four of his pieces, all of which take on very different characters. His paintings range from expressing dissatisfaction with aspects of society, to inspiration from significant and personal experiences.

‘Homogeny’, a 24 x 24 inch acrylic painting on wood, is a canvas that represents the class divide which can be seen in individual quality of life. This painting is particularly poignant; especially placed within a Manchester setting, as it can certainly speak to the social disparity that prevails on our streets, and even speaks to the financial inequality at university.

Photo: ‘Homogeny’ by Matthew Johnston

Johnston argues that an aspect of human behaviour is to look aside from stark poverty and injustice. Maybe society turns a blind eye as a tool of coping with the harsh lived reality that many individuals face on a daily basis. ‘Homogeny’ however, is a colourful reminder of blind ignorance toward class division, and through an artistic medium Johnston enables the viewer to reflect on one’s purposeful obliviousness to important social matters.

The second 24 x 24 inch painting on wood was created after an inspirational trip to the Manchester Art Gallery in the centre of town. I easily identified the majestic Egyptian scene on the 1st floor of the main gallery with Johnston’s piece after a recent visit. ‘The Water of the Nile’ by Frederick Goodall is recreated by Johnston using bold facial expressions, colour and shapes, to communicate the velocity of the Egyptian pyramids against local Egyptian people strolling across the desert.

Photo: ‘The Room’ painting collections by Matthew Johnston

The 24×24 inch painting inspired during a trip to the Manchester Art Gallery, alongside, Johnston’s other paintings on wood, are part of Johnston’s collections named “the room” paintings. Within this collection some of his works are unnamed.

A sense of ineffability is a theme that I certainly take from Johnston’s work. Indeed, the painting ‘Window’ is also another example of Johnston’s art which has left him ineffable, as he described a sense of ambiguity when finishing ‘Window’.

Photo: ‘Window’ by Matthew Johnson

This made me reflect on how much discussion in art seeks to unpack a deeper meaning and ultimately an answer beneath and around art works. On the other hand, why does everything have to have an explanation? Things can merely just be.

I find it refreshing that Johnston appears to be in an awe of his own works, to a point where he can no longer even explain what the paint brush has written. Johnston’s work certainly highlights the limitations of language, and juxtaposes this through his expressive and intricate paintings.

‘Disposition’ by Matthew Johnston