Skip to main content

Month: October 2020

US election 2020: Who’s going to win?

Written by Jay Darcy on . Posted in Features.

2020 has been a wild year, and Democrats are still reeling from their unexpected, crushing defeat in 2016.

The shock Republican win had many Democrats cautious about trusting polls. Others are now confident Biden will win but have their worries on something else: if Trump loses… will he go?

Why are Democrats cautious of polls?

2015 and 2016 were bad years for those on the left. The British Conservatives turned their coalition with the Lib Dems into a majority, there was Brexit, and, of course, Trump. These events shocked the world and in every scenario, the polls were seemingly off.

Flashforward to 2018, pollsters predicted the Tories would turn their majority into a supermajority, but they lost their majority. In 2019, however, pollsters were correct: the Tories gained a supermajority.

Back across the pond, pollsters and pundits saw a Hillary Clinton victory as inevitable – and a landslide probable.

So, how did pollsters get it so wrong?

Simple – they didn’t!

Towards the end, most polls were within the margin of error, with some showing Trump victories, and outliers showing Clinton with a double-digit lead. Clinton’s big lead, largely coming about after Trump’s Access Hollywood tapes were leaked, shrunk after the FBI revealed they were reopening their investigation into her emails.

Polling average put Clinton a few points (3%) ahead – and so did the result (2%). Indeed, Clinton won the popular vote by almost three million votes.

Wait… Clinton got more votes but lost?

The USA has a strange electoral system, where a candidate does not become President by winning the popular vote but by the electoral college. Each state has a designated number of electorates, whichever candidate gets the most votes in that state gets all of its electoral votes.

Democrats criticise the electoral college for favouring Republicans. The number of electoral votes belonging to each state is disproportionate: Republican-controlled Wyoming has one electoral vote for every 193,000 people, whilst Democrat-controlled California has one per 718,000.

Republicans last won the popular vote with George W. Bush in 2004. In 2000, however, he lost it but still became President. In the past seven elections, Republicans have won the presidency three times but only won the popular vote once.

This ‘winner-takes-all’ system means Republican votes in blue California or New York, or Democrat votes in red Alabama or Arkansas, never matter in elections.

Elections come down to “swing states”, or “purple states” that flip between parties each election.

Trump won several states by less than 1%, so whilst half the populations voted for Clinton, Trump took all of their electoral votes.

With Trump and Clinton being the most unpopular candidates since polling began, there was a substantial number of undecided voters. Most, ultimately, went to Trump, which polls could not predict.

Lastly, 2016 polls did not consider education as a variable. Most non-college-educated people voted for Trump. Indeed, just like more university-educated Brits tend to vote Labour, educated Americans tend to vote Democrat.

So, are the polls fixed for 2020?

In the 2018 midterms, polls were better: Democrats won the House of Representatives with their biggest gain since the Watergate Scandal, so are hoping for another “Blue Wave” in 2020.

Biden’s nationwide lead is substantially better than Clinton’s, and he is over 50% in lots of polls, so Trump needs not just undecided voters but also people currently supporting Biden.

Trump is not leading in any respected polls – not even any conducted by conservative polling companies.

Polls now consider education, and pollsters are putting greater focus on state polls. Biden is leading in most of these polls, including the three ‘Blue wall’ states that Trump surprisingly won (albeit by less than 1%) in 2016, which secured him the Presidency.

Biden is also competitive in some red states, like Arizona, Iowa, Ohio, and Texas. But all Trump needs is to win these states narrowly.

Further, Biden has a net positive approval rating of 1%, whilst Trump’s is in the minuses. Clinton’s was too, so this is good news for Democrats.

While the undecided vote is much slimmer in 2020, it can still have an impact. If one is undecided after four crazy years, they are seemingly okay with Trump’s presidency thus far, so will likely vote for him.

Another bonus for Trump is the fact that the swing states lean Republican: on average, they are more conservative than the nation as a whole.

Further, voter suppression, which mostly target Democrats, could help Trump.

This suppression takes place largely in poor, ethnic neighbourhoods, targeting traditional Democrat supporters who are more likely to be apathetic, thus less likely to vote if they have to travel long distances and queue for hours. Many people cannot get the time off work or afford the journey.

What if neither wins the electoral college?

If neither candidate reaches a majority in the electoral college, the vote goes to the House of Representatives, which is Democrat-controlled. However, do not get your hopes up, liberals – each state gets one vote, not each Representative. Republicans currently control more state delegations than Democrats (26), which is what a president needs to win. So, if the Republicans win more state delegations in 2020, they will decide the next President, should there be no winner.

Meanwhile, the Senate picks the Vice President. Each senator has a single vote. Republicans currently control the Senate, but if Democrats win the Senate, they will decide the Vice President. This could result in Trump having Kamala Harris as his VP, or Biden having Mike Pence!

The result can also be taken to the Supreme Court, which has a conservative majority. Before Ruth Bader Ginsburg passed, there were five conservatives to four liberals; with Amy Coney Barret replacing the Notorious RBG, that majority is now 6:3, decimating the liberals’ power.

In 2000, neither candidate won the electoral college, though Al Gore won the popular vote. The electoral college depended on Florida’s vote, which was too close to call. The conservative-majority Supreme Court, however, awarded Florida to George W. Bush (on a count, he won Florida by 537 votes), allowing him to win the electoral college and become President.

So?

My personal prediction is that there will be record voter turnout, and Biden will win the popular vote – possibly by even more votes than Clinton beat Trump – but Trump will narrowly win the swing states, and thus the electoral college, and thus the presidency.

Some pundits are highlighting the “shy” Trump vote, with many people afraid to reveal their support for Trump or not wanting to engage with ‘status quo’ pollsters. I also suspect undecided voters will go to Trump, because how can you still be undecided after four years of Trump’s divisive policies?

If Trump wins, he will likely appoint another judge to the Supreme Court: the court’s oldest judge is an 82-year-old Democrat. If Trump loses, there are talks about Democrats expanding the Supreme Court and filling it with liberal justices, but that needs an article of its own.

If Biden wins, is that the end of Trump?

Hell no. Republicans love Trump, and there are talks about him running again, should he lose in 2020. There are also talks about his children running for president, creating a political dynasty, like the Kennedys and the Bushes (and, to a lesser extent, the Clintons).

Most people believe if Biden wins in a close election, Trump will contest it. Since before he won in 2016, he has declared elections rigged by Democrats. He talks especially about mail-in ballots being fraudulent, even though experts say there is next-to-no electoral fraud in the USA, and most voter suppression is done by Republicans. Still, this will build rage amongst Republicans, so Americans should brace themselves for scary times ahead.

In a year as unpredictable as 2020, who knows what might happen? Neil deGrasse Tyson has said an asteroid could hit earth just in time for election day, so perhaps this whole article was for nothing…

Photo: UKParliament @Flickr

Opinion: Forget politeness, we must speak out against Tory cruelty

Written by tallulahbrennan2 on . Posted in Opinion.

On the 21st of October, Angela Rayner came under attack for calling Tory MP Christopher Clarkson “scum” during a debate on the Tier 3 restrictions placed upon Greater Manchester. 

The Deputy Speaker of the House told Rayner that such a statement – no matter how “heartfelt” – is unacceptable.

I can’t help but wonder if the population of Manchester feels that the fact their lives were deemed to be worth £8 each is particularly heartfelt. 

I wonder how they felt after 2008, when a £500 billion package was given to the banks in order to prevent economic collapse, while they, and the rest of the country, were forced into ten years of austerity. 

Austerity has been found by one disputed study to be responsible for at least 130,000 deaths. It also led to the decimation of public housing – the deadliness of which can be epitomised by the death of seventy-one people in Grenfell Tower.

Perhaps their heartstrings were tugged by the cuts to local councils that have left one in two women turned away from domestic violence refuges, and two women a week murdered by a partner or ex-partner. 

Or perhaps by the fact that Labour councils saw their spending power reduced by 34%, while the average Conservative council only suffered an equivalent decline of less than a quarter.

Similar to austerity, the decision to withhold funding from Manchester under Tier 3 restrictions is a political and ideological choice. The actions of the ruling class deem some lives to be worthless every day.

This incident between Clarkson and Rayner also comes just weeks after Twitter descended into chaos over whether it was acceptable to wish ill-health or death upon President Donald Trump. 

This is, of course, the same Donald Trump whose immigration policies have meant that the parents of 545 children deported in 2018 have still not been found. The man who tweeted when protests for racial equality erupted in June: “Once the looting starts, the shooting starts.”

As for Rayner and Clarkson, we can interpret that some of these chamber rules are supposed to keep order, to remind MPs of boundaries, and to uphold typical British politeness.

What is so different about these incidents to the cruelty done to us, that we have to accept? That some lives must be sacrificed for our world to function in an orderly way? That the most despicable thing one can do is to wish ill-health or simply insult the people with the power to give or take life, who consistently choose to take? 

Observing both of these incidents reminded me of French writer Edouard Louis, who once said: “[If] we look at politics as the government of some living people by other living people… then politics is what separates some populations, whose lives are supported, nurtured, protected, from other populations, who are exposed to death, to persecution, to murder.”

Will our manners save the lives we will lose to homelessness in the coming years? Will our reluctance to show anger change the fact that British billionaires are about to profit from our collective suffering?

Could the petty rules of Westminster ever be enough to stop the Conservatives handing over £10 billion to an outsourcing giant, whilst refusing to pay for the poorest children’s school meals?

What possible reaction could be “heartfelt” enough to end the cruelty we have become so accustomed to?

different types of coffee in six cups, with two hands holding two of the cups

Your Pret BaFREEsta: Pret provides students with free hot drinks for a month

Written by Pippa Dennis on . Posted in Opinion.

Students across the UK are having a tough time of it at the moment. With no support from universities, the blame of the pandemic being placed on us, and mental health struggles becoming more frequent with ongoing restrictions, it’s no surprise we’re a little unhappy.

As the Government desperately tries to get a grip on rising cases of COVID, us students are sat in our webinars and breakout rooms perplexed at what we’re paying nine grand for.

As Manchester students embark on their fourth week of term, it’s fair to say the transition to online teaching has been a little strained. For many, the six-month break from any and all structure, spent baking banana bread, selling our souls to TikTok, and downloading Duolingo in vain, has left us ill-prepared to jump back into term time with the momentum required to excel at university work.

As everyone struggles to grapple with online classes and virtual societies, Pret a Manger has swooped in in our time of need. It has launched the ‘YourPretBarista’ subscription service, which includes free hot drinks for a month and a reason for students to leave the house. The subscription may as well be a knight in caffeinated armour, ready to provide us with something positive in these apocalyptic times.

Now that university is back and buffering (because let’s be honest, the Wi-Fi in student houses is not really ideal), Pret has delivered the one thing that could actually help us through this crisis: coffee.

And it’s free, like some kind of karmic reward for the lack of help we’ve received. It couldn’t have arrived at a better time.

So, how does it work? ‘YourPretBarista’ promises subscribers up to five hot drinks a day for £20 a month, provided they are claimed at half an hour intervals. More importantly, the first month is free!

For many students, this free trial will provide a welcome and needed opportunity to leave the house and get out. Finally something to look forward to when all our days are droning on like a scene out of Groundhog Day. With numerous Prets located along Oxford Road and Piccadilly, it could be the closest a lot of us get to going into university this semester.

This also provides an opportunity to let the student finance breathe. The initiative hopes to encourage you to buy at least a snack while you’re there. But, if you so wish you can go and sit in Pret and do your work essentially for free. With limited library space availability and an extortionate amount of time staring at the same four walls at the moment, Pret is providing us with an alternative source of escape to the Fallowfield Sainsbury’s, and we’re here for it.

So, what’s the catch?

Whilst initially up to five free coffees a day sounds great, that is still five coffees. Despite the British mentality claiming otherwise, is free always good?

The ‘YourPretBarista’ scheme states in its Terms and Conditions that during the trial period, to claim up to five hot drinks, you will be required to claim them at half an hour intervals. This is to avoid potential members sharing out free drinks with friends and family.  The maximum amount of coffee that could be consumed within the trial period is up to 150 coffees.

I spoke to a student, who wished to remain anonymous, who recently signed up for the subscription about their thoughts. They said: “I definitely drink a lot more coffee now, but I’ve never reached the maximum.”

They explained the advantage of the scheme: “It allows me to have as many coffees as I would normally want without the worry of wasting money. I get to try out new drinks, such as Matcha Lattes that I would never spend money on.”

They praised Pret for the wonders the scheme has done for their mental health. They stated: “It’s just a good way to get out of the house when the coronavirus has made university quite isolating.”

While Manchester’s lockdown rules have banned the mixing of different households indoors, this initiative provides the option to go for study dates with members of your household, which will be welcomed by many.

This initiative is probably the best thing to happen to students right now. Finding some normality is more important than ever. So, what are you waiting for? Go and treat yourself to a trip out of the house, a fancy Matcha, and, most importantly, a break from your bedroom.

Halloween Horoscopes

Horoscopes: Week commencing October 26th

Written by Tara Bharadia on . Posted in Horoscopes.

Spooky season is upon us and if you are looking for a lockdown look to celebrate Halloween, check out your star sign’s costume…

 

Scorpio Oct 23 – Nov 22Scorpio Icon

You have a very black and white view on the world. So Halloween equals scary, and scary equals Grim Reaper! The ultimate ‘bad guy’.

 

Sagittarius Nov 23 – Dec 21 Sagittarius Icon

You have endless amounts of energy and are always looking for the next adventure. A wild cowboy is the obvious choice for you – yee haw!

 

Capricorn Dec 22 – Jan 20 Capricorn Icon

You are often lost in your thoughts and suddenly realise the perfect costume for you. A skeleton! Why? Because it is deep and complex, just like you.

 

Aquarius Jan 21 – Feb 19 Aquarius Icon

You might think it is an original idea, but a cat couldn’t be more basic. Don’t kid yourself that you will be the only feline in the crowd and remember your tail!

 

Pisces Feb 20 – Mar 20 Pisces Icon

You and zombies have a lot in common. You’re both great dancers and bad at letting things go (like a need to consume brains). This is a match made in heaven!

 

Aries Mar 21 – Apr 20 Aries Icon

Bright, orange and the centre of attention. A lovable pumpkin is a great costume and sure to be a real talking piece, everyone will see you coming from a mile away!

 

Taurus Apr 21 – May 20Taurus Icon

Not only have you been planning your look for months, but you have made it yourself. Hours spent getting all the hairs in the right place, this werewolf look will kill it!

 

Gemini May 21 – June 21 Gemini Icon

This Halloween it is all about looks instead of the scare-factor. A witch allows you to pair your fashion sense with the season. Who cares if you’re scary? You look good!

 

Cancer June 22 – July 22Cancer Icon

You are calm and compassionate but also very methodical. Just like a doctor, you work hard, play hard and look great in scrubs!

 

Leo July 23 – Aug 22Leo Icon

When someone said arrogant, all you heard was ‘arr’. A swash-buckling pirate is a perfect outfit for you! You can wow the crowds with your tales of the seven seas.

 

Virgo Aug 23 – Sept 21Virgo Icon

Some people call you cold and that has stuck with you. So a vampire is the perfect match for your personality. Well that and you look great in black!

 

Libra Sept 22 – Oct 22Libra Icon

You have completely forgotten it’s Halloween and are desperate to find a last minute look. The first thing you see is your bed sheet, you throw it over your head and crisis averted! Ghosts are a classic right?

Photo of books

Spotlight: #Merky Books New Writers’ Prize

Written by Aileen Loftus on . Posted in Books.

#Merky Books is a new imprint within Penguin Random House UK, curated by Stormzy. It launched with his first book Rise Up in November 2018 and set up the #Merky Books New Writers’ Prize last year.  

#Merky Books is aimed at giving publishing opportunities to writers ‘from under-represented communities’, which includes writers of colour, black writers, queer writers and more.

The #Merky Books New Writers’ Prize is open to young, underrepresented, and unpublished writers from across the UK and ROI. The imprint is designed as a home for a new generation of voices, with focus on supporting younger writers.  It is specified, entrants must be aged 16 to 30 and apply before the deadline on Friday 30th October 2020

The competition is asking for a 200 word synopsis and 1,500 word extract from a work of fiction and non-fiction. For poetry, a 200 word synopsis and 500 word extract. They accept only one submission per author.

Writers who are shortlisted or longlisted will received personalised one-on-one feedback on their work from one of the #Merky Books editors.

All longlisted writers will be announced on Monday 14th December 2020. Between 30-50 writers will be longlisted in total. All shortlisted writers will be announced on Friday 5th February 2021, with just 5-10 shortlisted.

Shortlisted authors will be asked to submit their full manuscript for review by the judges by Wednesday 10th February 2021.

Stormzy: “I know too many talented writers that don’t always have an outlet or a means to get their work seen. Hopefully #Merky Books can now be a reference point for them to say “I can be an author”

 

The 2020 judges are an inspiring group, including an athlete, a blogger and a comedian. Judging the work alongside Stormzy will be Candice Braithwaite, Katarina Johnson-Thompson, Emma Dabiri and Guz Khan.

There were two winners in 2019, and so the aim is to announce 1-2 winners again this year. The winner/s will receive a publishing contract with #Merky Books, an imprint of Penguin Random House UK.

#Merky Books have recently signed Malorie Blackman to publish her autobiography, so the winner will be alongside the former children’s laureate. Blackman told The Guardian that ‘I have been thinking about writing my memoirs for a while now, but the right moment never presented itself until a meeting with #Merky Books… an imprint that embraces new methods and ideas’.

To apply, fill out the form before midnight on Friday 30th October 2020.

Sent straight from Heaven: Saint Croissants

Written by Sorcha Cullen on . Posted in Food & Drink.

Saint Croissants is a lockdown dream come to life.

There was a point during lockdown when everyone seemed to be experimenting with baking (banana bread we’re looking at you). However, Aimée Soudry has taken her lockdown experiments much further and created her own business. I spoke to Aimée about her business and sampled some of her croissants myself (I couldn’t resist). 

How did the idea for Saint Croissants come about?

“I work in freelance digital marketing as my ‘regular’ job but when lockdown happened I pretty much lost 85% of my contracts overnight. Much of my  experience is in the food sector and I saw that during lockdown delivery services were booming. I started to think about something new, unique and delicious that I could make and deliver to people to make them smile during this crappy time. About 6-7 weeks into lockdown the idea of Saint was born. I baked some of my now famous loaded croissants and delivered them to friends and family as a surprise and to get some feedback. They all absolutely loved the croissants, so I created the branding and an Instagram account, and it just exploded from there.”

The concept of a topped croissant is totally new to me. Had you tried one before you started making your own?

“No, never, but it’s definitely started a trend now here in the UK! My dad lives in the middle east and there is a really cool company in his town who does something similar with baked pretzels, but I had never seen anything like this here. The croissant is a staple in our household, since my husband is French, and who doesn’t love a croissant, right! My idea was to elevate this pastry favourite and turn it into a treat. When I started baking and playing with flavours it just worked so perfectly.”

 Do you have a favourite flavour combination?

“Oh, that’s like trying to pick your favourite child! I do love The Steg – which is a cheesecake base with Biscoff and Cadburys buttons. If you forced me to just pick one I think my favourite is our signature Heaven Saint. It combines popping candy, love hearts and pink wafers. I find it so unique, with sweet and sour flavours and it just looks so inviting. I’m really proud of it.”

Would you ever consider making savoury topped croissants? Or do you see yourself staying on the sweet side?

“People do ask me about producing savoury options but for me Saint is all about the indulgence! I am thinking about ways to marry sweet and savoury flavours on the loading in the future, e.g adding candied bacon.”

 The fact you do home deliveries is definitely ideal for the current climate. However, would you ever consider opening your own store?

“I would love to have a Saint store in the future! Everything would be super fun, Instagrammable and give our customers a memorable experience. I think the Northern Quarter is calling out for something like this…Watch this space!”

Can you give us a sneak peek into any new flavours you’ll be releasing soon?

“I’m already thinking about Christmas flavours and creations – I can confirm that Gingerbread men will absolutely be making an appearance.”

Aimée has very kindly given Mancunion readers a discount code for 10% off her croissants and cronuts. It’s valid till December so why not treat your loved ones (or yourself) to an edible Christmas present! Is it too early to be thinking about Christmas?

MANCSTU10 (Valid until 31.12.20)                                                               

Eager to get in on some croissant action, I ordered a box of three. The flavours I went for were Kinderella, Heaven Saint and Double Crunchie. My order from Saint Croissants arrived promptly, beautifully packaged, and wrapped in a bow.  The croissants themselves were beyond extravagant, laden with confectionery of all kinds including chocolate chunks, chocolate drizzles and even popping candy and love heart sweets! These croissants are definitely made for sharing, due to their incredibly rich nature. Fortunately for me, I had a few hungry housemates who were more than happy to help me taste test. The croissants themselves were buttery and light, perfectly complimenting the colourful array of toppings. Although the croissants are generously bedecked with sweet treats, they are not overly sickly. These croissants aren’t cheap (£15 for a box of three, not including postage) and are definitely a luxury item. They’d make the perfect gift for any loved one with a sweet tooth.

 

Saint Croissants amazing Instagram feed! Photo: Sorcha Cullen
empty airport

Lockdown Poem – Lucy Johnson

Written by Jasmine Bennett on . Posted in Creative Submissions.

One.

First, the Americans left. Three extra rooms just for the two of us. Decision pending on leaving.

Two.

Climbing was cancelled after that night at the beach when I saw dolphins and the milky way. I decided to leave.

Three.

Flight cancelled. Lockdown announced. The picture on the wall was painful to look at. We made two kilograms of brownies with the last of the flour.

Four.

Travel ban. Decision seems out of my hands. Trying to focus on lectures whilst watching two different sets of news.

Five.

Travel un-banned. Frantic phone calls – insurance, mum, travel agent, insurance, mum. Second flight booked.

Six.

Don’t tell mum that Emma nearly crashed the car on the way to the airport. The bumper went back on anyway.

Seven.

Masks. Hand gel. The busiest airport in the world was empty. Driving home, trying not to breathe on dad.

Eight.

Home, but not quite. Kettle in the bedroom, bathroom all to myself. Another two weeks to hugs. Picture by the bed is still painful to look at.

Lucy Johnson is a third-year English Literature and Creative Writing student at the University of Manchester. She wrote the poem about her experience getting back from New Zealand to the UK during New Zealand’s lockdown.
She was in New Zealand for her semester abroad, and the decision on whether or not to stay there was a difficult one at the time.
New Zealand was doing much better than the UK in terms of case-levels and numbers of deaths, but she really wanted to be with her family. Even once that decision had been made, things didn’t exactly go to plan, as her poem explores.
If you want to see more of her writing you can find her on her blog or on Instagram @a_teacup_full_of_stories.
bright clock

Two Poems by Amatullah Hayat

Written by Jasmine Bennett on . Posted in Creative Submissions.

Poem 1:

I’m stuck at home with time to spare

The world is ending but I don’t care

What do I eat or wear? 

Should I even brush my hair?

I’m losing my mind! I might go break a chair,

I could do so much, but creativity is rare 

‘Will I make it through?’ I ask in despair 

I’m stuck at home —, it isn’t fair 

Poem 2: 

What do I do with all this time?

I ask myself to no reply.

Devoid of choice I try to write,

ideas are formed, the ink is dry

I look down but feel only strife

Anger ensues, I begin to cry

I’m perplexed, why doesn’t it feel right?

Confined to a room, I look up at the sky

I wait for a sign, it takes all night

A horizon looms, it was all a lie 

I draw the blinds, desperate to hide

Confronted with thoughts, I shut my eyes

I made it through the day; what a ride.

Amatullah is a first-year student studying Law with Criminology at the University of Manchester. She is from Birmingham but grew up abroad, and enjoys films, reading, writing, and anything that allows her to question her own knowledge.
She wrote the first poem a few weeks after the lockdown began, after the initial excitement of having so much free time wore off. The poem is about the mundanity of those days, and how they blended. The merging days made it harder to have a routine, do simple or creative tasks, and make each day feel different from the last. These feelings of internal struggle caused the frustration visible in her work.
‘Poem 2’ discusses how lockdown forced people to confront emotions and internal issues, while no longer being able to be distracted. However, those emotions ultimately lead the poet to a feeling of gratitude that the time was beneficiary.
Photo: Pymouss @ Wikimedia Commons

Review: Saint Maud

Written by Florrie Evans on . Posted in Film.

With countless film releases being delayed, we are left with a limited choice when choosing the perfect film to go and watch in the cinema. Rose Glass’ debut feature has given us a reason to venture out. Saint Maud offers up not only a cinematic journey, but an intense set of performances, and delivers a strong narrative.

A devout nurse, Maud (Morfydd Clark in her debut lead role) believes that God has made it her duty to save her patient (Jennifer Ehle), and put a definitive stop to her sinful ways. Clark offers up a compelling performance, delivering an undeniable power and fearlessness, allowing herself to be lost entirely to Maud’s inevitable hysteria.

Her character becomes convinced that through the means of many possessions, she is in constant communication with God. During these possessions Maud is in an almost sexual state of elation, being left unable to control movements of her body, making them all the more uncomfortable.

The two actors create a discordant dynamic between patient and carer, Clark bringing a forceful protection of Ehle’s character, even sending away her lovers. Having renamed and remade herself through the image of Germanic Saint Maud, she has been forgiven of her sinful past and been sent on a quest to save the soul of a sinner.

Ehle creates a sardonic portrayal of a woman in the last days of her life, mocking Maud’s innate faith in God. She offers a mirage of beautifully timed and perfected reactions, allowing the audience to see Maud in both a subjective and an objective light.

We are lost within Maud’s honest narrative, to be then snapped back into reality through Glass’s use of perspective. A harmony is originated when these performances are paired with Ben Fordesman’s (The End of the F***ing world, Work) cinematography.

Rose Glass and Fordesman have created a cinematic dreamscape, painting the seaside town in a grey dull hue, reflecting Maud’s scathing perspective of the people and places around her. The film utilises abstract and subsequently beautiful shots. The perfect blend of extreme wide upside down shots mixed with crisp closeups and stunted camera movement is perfectly matched with an even more grating score. Adam Janota Bzowski (Sleeping Fields) introduces sounds of TV static, jarring violins and consistent whispers creating an inharmonious tone, only adding to the discomfort of the audience. This is everything you look for in a psychological horror.

Saint Maud takes you on a journey through the mind of another, the mind of someone sickened by the world and convinced that they should be the one to fix it. “A saviour” on earth waiting to be saved by God himself. Rose Glass offers up the perfect psychological landscape of a character gone mad. Or is it a character overtaken by another being? This question will be left in your mind for hours after you leave the cinema.

4.5/5.

 

Saint Maud was released in cinemas on the 9th of October.

Photo: Austin Beeman @ Flickr

International Cinema: France and Italy

Written by Michal Wasilewski on . Posted in Film.

With more and more international films getting recognised by wider audiences in recent years, world cinema is finally starting to get the attention it deserves. Different from what Hollywood has accustomed us to in many ways, films from all around the world have a lot to offer. 

This is why we’ve decided to start a series of features, highlighting and recommending our favourite films from various regions of the world, starting with these from France and Italy.

 

Amour (2012) – Michal Wasilewski

Although Amour won Best Foreign Language Film at the Oscars for Austria, it is technically a French film – set in Paris, starring French actors and being entirely in French.

The story is uncomplicated and straightforward, as we follow an elderly couple’s daily ordeal after the wife (Emmanuelle Riva) suffers from a stroke and her husband (Jean-Louis Trintignant) decides to take full care of her.

Raw, uncompromising, heart-wrenching, and devastating, Michael Haneke’s masterpiece touches on both mundane and philosophical matters like not many other films. It shows the transience of life and the power of true love in a way which modern cinema seems to avoid – without compromise and without forced optimism. It is not an easy watch, but one that will stay with you for a long time – or maybe forever.

View the trailer here.

 

Beau Travail (1999) – Ennis Barnett

Beau Travail closely follows the lifestyle of a group of French legion air soldiers based in Djibouti. The audience witnesses intense training exercises that take on an almost operatic quality. At the same time, the director Claire Denis brings our attention to the small and mundane obligations of the soldiers, such as making of a completely uncreased bed or the ironing of uniforms. 

Nonetheless, the central conflict of the film takes place between the second in command, the narrator, and an exemplary legion air soldier named Giles Sentain. I find this film extremely fascinating due to the audience being positioned with the narrator who is a classic yet intensely complex villain. This allows the audience to observe themes of jealousy and the conflict between older and younger generations. 

Beau Travail is shot beautifully by the cinematographer Agnes Goddard, as she is helped by the distinctive and varied landscape of Djibouti. The film’s slow but extremely effective study of power and masculinity will be sufficient to leave you utterly speechless.

View the trailer here.

 

Cleo from 5 to 7 (1962) – Immy Smith

The French New Wave was a pivotal movement in film history. There were, however, only a handful of women highlighted despite a large number of them working in production and on set. One of the few female directors that emerged from this period was Agnès Varda. 

Cléo de 5 à 7 is one of her best-known works. The 90-minute film follows Cléo, a beautiful and arrogant French singer, as she awaits a cancer diagnosis. Wandering around the bustling streets of Paris, Cléo contemplates her existence and purpose, bumping into friends and strangers.

Characteristic to the movement, the cinematography emphasises tracking shots, overall highlighting Cléo’s burgeoning feeling of being watched. Feminist themes emerge from the film, eliciting conversations about female agency and the male gaze.

View the trailer here.

 

Le Grand Partage (2015) – Sofia Adamopoulou

As the cold in the winter becomes unbearable, the French government makes an unprecedented decision. Until the end of the cold winter, well-housed people will be officially obliged to accommodate fellow citizens who cannot afford a house. 

Therefore, the Bretzels (socialists) and the Dubreuils (conservatives), residents of a three-story building in the heart of Paris, are panicking. Despite their beliefs and previous verbal support to the poorest, the idea of accommodating the homeless seems terrifying. They feel there’s no reason why it should be them to provide actual help.

This is exactly the message of the film. Every theory seems simple, but when it has to be put into action, many supporters become eager to abandon it. People often present themselves as heroes, revolutionary spirits who wish to offer and show support to those in need. At the end of the day, however, they are simply looking for a way to boost their ego by superficially claiming to be kind-hearted.

View the trailer here.

 

I Lost My Body (2019) – W.G. Jones

Jérémy Clapin’s animated film I Lost My Body (or as I like to think of it, The Adventures of the Handyman and his Handy Hand) follows the story of Naoufel, a young man living in Paris who can’t find his place in the world. Simultaneously, the film documents the struggles of a disembodied, yet animate human hand, surviving the Parisian underworld. For me, the film works best when thought of as a dark version of Ratatouille, but instead of a rat it’s a severed hand and instead of cooking it’s letting go of an intense emotional baggage.

The film was a commercial and critical success worldwide, garnering it a nomination for Best Animated Feature at the 2019 Oscars. Now available on Netflix, I Lost My Body is not to be missed for fans of ‘adult-oriented’ animation or French cinema.

View the trailer here.

 

Portrait of a Lady on Fire (2019) – Florrie Evans

French Director Celine Sciamma brought us a beautifully intense romance in February 2020. Portrait of a Lady on Fire explores the relationship between two women. One of them is a painter, pretending to be a companion while secretly painting the beautiful Heloise, who’s being forced into a marriage.

The story is set in the 18th century, when a woman’s voice was rarely, if ever, heard. Sciamma has created a beautiful account of the female gaze – something which we can’t find in Hollywood. Winning Best Screenplay at Cannes, she shows clearly how a woman desires, and creates a quiet and focused account of a relationship.

This is perfectly matched with Claire Mathon’s cinematography. Using a platform to light the house from outside the windows, she creates a luminous portrayal of the love story, perfectly illustrating dynamics and tension within shots. The score perfectly reflects Heloise’s imprisonment and lack of choice, using silences to emphasise her desire to see an orchestra perform Vivaldi. It is a true and immersive tale of forbidden love.

View the trailer here.

 

Salò, or the 120 Days of Sodom (1975) – Michal Wasilewski

Pier Paolo Pasolini’s Salò went down in history as one of the most controversial films ever made, being banned in many countries around the world. It is set in fascist Italy and depicts 120 days of mental, physical and sexual abuse of a group of teenagers by four wealthy officials. 

Although basing the film on an already highly controversial 1785 book, Pasolini went even further with adapting the source material. He confined the role of the plot to concentrate on perverse sexual exploitation and brutality in an attempt to emphasise his views and the conveyed message. 

For many viewers who’ll be defeated by the film’s shock value, Salò will simply be a disgusting and unpleasant cinematic experience. For those, however, who’ll manage to see behind the brutality, it will be one of the most intelligent and insightful explorations of human morality, sexuality, social norms, totalitarianism, capitalism, political corruption, and dismissal of civilisation in the history of cinema.

View the trailer here.

cookie crumbled

Online security: The way the cookie crumbles

Written by Tara Bharadia on . Posted in Science & Tech.

Ever wondered just how those eerily targeted ads end up on your browser? Not only is there a method, but there are millions behind the madness.

Computer cookies are slightly different to the chocolate chip filled treats in your kitchen. These are essentially packets of information that a webpage stores in your web browser (for example on Chrome or Safari).

These cookies can be useful. They keep you logged into your sites, keep track of what might be in your basket and autofill your passwords. There are many different types of cookies. For example, ‘session cookies’ are only working once you are on a site, however ‘persistent cookies’ can keep eyes on you, even when you close the webpage.

You will no doubt remember all the emails you got when the new GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) guidelines came out in 2018. And you will have noticed how every webpage suddenly came up with a disclaimer about cookies. This was because the EU saw how citizens had no real control over the use of their data.

The worst part about this is that we don’t even know who has our data. Google are one of the only groups that have their own cookie trackers, so don’t be surprised when you see a lot of unfamiliar companies on your cookie list. Smaller webpages have to outsource this work and that’s where the big digital advertisers come in to make millions off your data.

‘Account-based marketing’, ‘digital advertisers’, ‘content analysers’ all mean the same thing. These companies operate on something called ‘third-party cookies’ (not very tasty).

Essentially, these track your interests and market you products from their clients. They see what you click on, how long you spend on certain screens and much more…

If you go on any of these companies websites, you will notice that they talk about your data in a very clinical and impersonal way. And what’s worse, these companies normally work with more than one site, meaning your data is potentially being shared between all their clients.

These companies are only getting smarter and are constantly trying to work around browsers that try to protect you. But there are ways to protect your data.

Check your settings

No matter which browser you use, you should be able to find your cookie information in the setting tab. Under ‘privacy and security’ you can actually turn off and delete third-party cookies for the browser. But Google have different settings for Gmail users. If you click ‘Manage your account’ and then ‘Data and Personalisation’ you can change your settings as well as delete your data.

It is not only browsers showing you personalised advertisements, social media apps such as Facebook and Instagram do too. If you’d like, you can turn off and limit these controls in their respective settings (normally at the end of a long list of options, you will find ‘ad preferences’).

Change your browser

If you don’t feel comfortable just deleting you cookies once from Chrome, browsers like Brave and Firefox have a level of privacy built-in. Either of these work well, but my personal recommendation would be Safari.

The newest version of Safari has some amazing features built-in that allow you to have more control over your data. Not only is it ridiculously easy to clear cookies, but you can also prevent cross-site tracking. You can also clearly see which companies are trying to track you on any given webpage and can keep all your passwords secure with their cross-platform password manager.

Take your time to opt-out

Shows cookie options
Cookie options

You will have noticed that these sites make it ridiculously easy to accept their cookies, with a bright green button glaring ‘Accept’. But, if you don’t want to accept, it can be a lot harder to say no. Normally you have to click something like ‘read more’ and then manually turn off all the cookies that you don’t want to see. And then choose between ‘save and exit’ (a grey button that will keep the setting you chose) and avoiding the ‘accept all and close’ option (a green button that will opt you in to all cookies). Opting out of cookies might take you 10 seconds longer than you would like, but it will help you control your data.

Visit youronlinechoices.com

This site was created to try to give the public control over their information. Under ‘your ad choices’ you can see a whole list of cookie companies that you have come into contact with. What’s even scarier for some, is that you can see which have been collecting your data and are responsible for those extremely targetted ads.

Now, what they have tried to do, is let you turn off companies that are collecting your data with a push of a button. This sounds great in theory, but these companies don’t want you to turn off their delicious cookies, so actually having a successful turn off can be quite hard. You can complain to the ASA for further help.

This article is not intended to scare you, but instead to help you become more aware of the control you have on your data. Take some time to set your own privacy controls, delete anyone you don’t want collecting your data and have a better time online.

Coronavirus: What do the new tiers mean for theatres?

Written by Jay Darcy on . Posted in Theatre, News.

Society of London Theatre (SOLT) and UK Theatre have attempted to provide us with some more guidance as areas – particularly cities – around the UK move into Tiers 2 and 3. The Tier system has been criticised by scientists, politicians and the public alike, and despite Manchester’s fight, we have moved into Tier 3. We thought it important to let our readers know what these tiers mean for theatres – especially those in Manchester.

The position is complicated and fluid. The government has said that venues need to take their own advice, especially because any action taken by venues will depend on the terms that they sold tickets to customers.

Theatier 2

People living in Tier 2 local alert areas must not meet socially with friends and family indoors unless you live with them or they are part of your support bubble. This applies to both private homes and public venues, such as restaurants – and, yes, theatres.

This means that people living in a Tier 2 area must not go to the theatre with people who are not part of their household or support bubble.

The Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) advise us to look at the Obligations of Undertaking Regulations. Regulation 1A(1A) references relevant premises in High / Tier 2 areas.

These relevant premises now include cinemas, theatres and concert venues. Restrictions are placed not only on the acceptance of bookings but also on admittance to premises.

This means that venue/events operators and occupiers must ensure that groups of two or more are only admitted to the premises if one of the two exceptions apply. It is also important to remember the rule of six, which came into place last month – but for theatres, this issue is revolved quite easily, because no theatres will take bookings for groups of more than six.

In terms of bookings made before these new rules came into place, where more than one household has booked tickets together, the position is not so clear. Remember that the law now states that admittance to public buildings be only in households or support bubbles, so if you have booked to see a show with somebody you do not live with, you will need to contact the theatre to find out what to do.

Theatres will almost certainly be contacted by customers asking to move or change seats, or even asking for refunds, so you are not in this boat alone – don’t be afraid to ask theatres for more information and help. I imagine, though, that theatres will be contacting customers who have booked to see shows at their venues.

Theatier 3

Now for Tier 3, which Manchester is now placed in.

Fortunately, Tier 3 does not require areas to close venues – unless this is agreed upon as part of the measures between local authorities and central government. I.e. If both Westminster and Manchester decide that theatres in Manchester should not be open, they will be closed.

For venues remaining open, all of the same actions as noted previously will apply.

This is a stressful time for most industries, but especially the arts. More needs to be done to support theatres, and we, the public, can support them ourselves.

Whilst many people will understandably not feel comfortable going to the theatre, especially in a high risk area like Manchester, do consider making donations. Even something as small as a few pounds, signing petitions or utilising social media to spread the word can help.

It is with our support that the shows will go on – they must.

Photo: Fernand De Canne @Unsplash

Opinion: It’s okay if you shop fast fashion

Written by Anna Jin on . Posted in Fashion & Beauty.

Fast fashion is undeniably bad for the planet and workers’ rights – but for many people, it can be their only option.

Sustainable brands and thrift stores often don’t stock an extensive selection for plus-sized consumers, for example. ASOS, however, caters to a whole range of sizes, and the See My Fit feature they trialled earlier this year made it easy for consumers to make informed purchases.

In addition, people with disabilities may find it easier to navigate online retailers such as ASOS and Pretty Little Thing, rather than thrift stores. It is these societal biases that make fast fashion more accessible and feasible for many people.

To be clear, I am not justifying the business of fast fashion. It is undoubtedly harmful to both our planet and society. But I do think we can all be more sympathetic to the people who shop at these retailers out of necessity, even though it is arguably better not to do so.

Many students find themselves depending on fast fashion retailers as they are unable to find sustainable alternatives that are both affordable and inclusive. I spoke to a selection of UoM students to shed light on the diverse ways that people approach fast fashion.

For many, fast fashion is a constant temptation that can be difficult to resist. Jimena, a second year Business and French student, says:

“Fast fashion has become a sort of addiction to me. I know it is bad for the environment and I know that I have many more clothes back at home that I could wear instead, but somehow I always manage to buy something.”

Jimena’s struggle is one that many of us face – we are aware of the negative effects of fast fashion, yet quitting it can be difficult. This is often increased by the prevalence of social media that creates constant pressure to look ‘trendy’.

Even those students who manage to avoid fast fashion are understanding of why some people feel reliant on it. An anonymous English and French student, who mostly swaps clothing with friends or browses charity shops, says:

“I can see why people who feel more pressured by social media/fashion than I do may wish to constantly renew their wardrobe, something which [fast fashion retailers] enable and market to.”

The pressure to not repeat outfits feels real for many students, and I have often experienced the guilt of shopping from fast fashion brands in an attempt to impress my more ‘fashionable’ seeming peers.

This is especially true in moments of convenience. I always look towards high street brands when it comes to outfits for social events or nights out. I feel pressured to look fashionable in these situations, but I can’t afford to spend a lot of money on something that I might only wear a few times.

Lifestyle Editor, Lauryn, believes that the main barrier for many people is also a financial one:

“The thing about fast fashion is that you no longer need thousands to look expensive, well put together or to simply express your personal style. These shops have made it accessible to everyone, but we have to think about the larger impact.

“I think sustainability needs to find a way to remain cheap, so that sustainability itself can be accessible to all and not those with more money.”

Lauryn is right. The reality is that cheap brands such as Primark are all that some students can afford. If we want people to stop shopping fast fashion, then sustainable brands need to be more affordable.

Another issue is that we are often unaware of the explicit consequences of shopping from fast fashion brands. Third-year History student Freya, says:

“I’m sure most people are guilty of seeing something nice in a shop and buying it without sparing a thought for the people who have actually made it.”

I am definitely guilty of this, and will often shop from fast fashion brands without thinking about the negative impacts.

However, being an environmentally conscious shopper and having fast fashion items in your wardrobe doesn’t have to be mutually exclusive. After all, sustainability is not only about where you shop, but also how you use the clothes already in your wardrobe. Reduce, reuse, recycle – remember?

Fashion Editor Daisy strikes the balance between being sustainable and shopping from fast fashion brands:

“I’ll admit that I’m guilty of shopping from cheaper, less sustainable stores, but what many people don’t realise is that it’s not the stereotypical ‘wear once and throw away’ that people presume. I have items in my wardrobe that I bought back in 2015 and still regularly wear, despite being from fast fashion brands.”

Cutting out fast fashion entirely can be difficult; but someone can still be a conscious consumer while shopping on the high street. If this is something that you are struggling with, you are not alone.

Housr team

Housr: A Household Name?

Written by Zain Alden on . Posted in Science & Tech.

The University of Manchester fosters many entrepreneurial minds, who create many fantastic businesses. Today, we take a look at just one of these hot start-ups, Housr.

This app aims to help students find accommodation in a new and intuitive way, presenting the user with tinder-like swiping cards to view housing suggestions.

Where did it all start?

The idea originated from a conversation in the cricket club. Harry Panter, Joe Gaudie and Ben Clayto were discussing how hard it was for them to find a suitable place to live, with the sheer number of websites and misleading advertisements they had to consult being way too confusing.

This led to their idea: an application that contains the information students need to find accommodation alongside a web portal for agencies and landlords to communicate with possible tenants.

Early stages

After their initial idea, Panter, Gaudie and Clayto pushed the concept through the interview stages of AccelerateME. This is a twelve-week programme offered by Manchester Entrepreneurs, which is designed to get startups to the next stage of growth.

Housr initially won £1.5K in equity-free investment from AccelerateMe. They then moved to the final stage of the programme, where a Dragons’ Den – esque pitch secured them a further £500 in investment. Following that, the startup started gaining traction and secured two more investments, with one coming from the University of Manchester.

How does it work?

The app is designed to work on both Android and IOS mobile systems. To enable this, it’s been built using React Native, a cross-platform JavaScript framework.

Leo Elmecker-Plakolm, a second-year Computer Science student and the CTO of Housr, explains, “To make such an application we have three main options. The first one is to build a native application which means two separate IOS and Android applications which is resource-intensive for us.

The second option is to make a web interface application basically a website with a mobile view that usually suffers from poor performance. And the third option was to go with React Native which offers native-like performance and only requires having one application”.

However, things weren’t always plain sailing. According to Plakolm, a significant challenge in the process was working out how to host the website on Amazon Web Services (AWS), due to the team’s lack of experience in this area.

Viewing a house on Housr

Housr’s log-in page

Moving forward

Although Housr currently focuses on students living in Manchester, it is hoping to expand in the future. They’re looking to move into two-to-three cities within the next two years, and are also hoping to include other demographics in their app.

Housr is now close to launching, looking to partner with landlords to include in their testing phase and find more investors to support the project. You heard it here first! Housr may one day become a household name.

‘Substantial’ meals: Can I have a pint with that?

Written by Annie Dabb on . Posted in Opinion.

As was to be expected from sending students back to university amid a global pandemic, places with a large population like Manchester or Liverpool have been placed in the ‘high-risk’ category and once-loosened restrictions have begun to infringe upon our daily lives once again.

New rules dictate that everyone must have the NHS track and trace app. Masks are to be worn at all times indoors unless you’re eating or drinking, and pubs and bars in cities like Liverpool, Sheffield and Manchester will have to close unless operating as a restaurant. This means that alcohol can only be served with a so-called ‘substantial’ meal.

The tier system serves as the government’s lame attempt at regulating Covid restrictions across the country’s various regions.

Clubs have become, depressingly, just a room playing too loud music with 3 or 4 tables placed several metres apart, and tables in pubs and bars are restricted to 6 people from the same household – apart from in Wetherspoons where they have, for some reason, decided no more than 4 is acceptable, maybe equating the number of people with the price of their most expensive pint.

One of the clubs here in Manchester even has videos playing on screens of the atmosphere pre-Covid, which I think is an effort on their part to create a sort of energising feel and a sense of a proper night out, but which is actually just a sore reminder of what we’re all missing out on.

Still, in the true student manner, the 10 pm curfew has been approached more as a sort of challenge, simply meaning that we just have to start everything a bit earlier. I’m not sure really if it’s having any sort of truly beneficial impact on the prevention of the spread of coronavirus, at least amongst the student population. 

View this post on Instagram

#substantialmeal

A post shared by The Golden Maverick (@nuggynugget) on

In terms of pubs and bars serving a ‘substantial meal’, this has been defined by housing secretary Robert Jenrick as “the sort of meal that you would expect to have as a midday meal or an evening meal”, throwing all notion that ‘breakfast is the most important meal of the day’ out the window.

He’s suggested for reference, a Cornish pasty, but only if accompanied by a salad or chips. This in itself seems an odd example, given that the Cornish pasty was purposefully designed as a meal that miners could take with them to sustain themselves whilst they were working all day in the mines. Indeed, they used to encase within it both lunch and dessert, with a savoury side and a sweet one.

The new rules have provoked a seemingly nationwide discussion of what counts as a ‘substantial meal’ as, shockingly enough, it’s not a one-size-fits-all sort of thing.

For instance, in food parcels given during the pandemic to families who would under normal circumstances receive free school meals, ingredients and a recipe is included for a carrot and lentil soup, although many people would define this as merely a starter. This is perhaps particularly prevalent when students join the debate, the portion of the population known for eating a pot noodle for breakfast or cereal at midnight (both of which I have admittedly been guilty of). Are we allowed a pint with that? 

In an interview with LBC, Jenrick went on to say that many pub license holders ought to be familiar with this new provision as it’s the same rule that is applied “if you take a minor into a pub”.

This is all fine and well, except for the vital facts that students, and indeed the country as a whole, are not minors, and Jenrick is not a nutritionist, so how the hell does he see himself as qualified to define a ‘substantial meal’?

The prime minister’s spokesperson has aimed to accredit us as a nation with at least a little bit of autonomy by saying that “this is something which pubs and restaurants are entirely familiar with and also, as they have been throughout, I’m sure the public will exercise their own good judgement and common sense”.

Not wanting to offend anyone here, but I think he’s being a bit over-generous with the immense amount of trust he’s placing on the general population with this statement. Is he talking about the same ‘public’ who flocked, not socially distanced, to the parks of London in summer, or left Bournemouth beach absolutely trashed on a particularly warm day during ‘lockdown’?

Also, this makes it seem like he’s not even counting students as members of the ‘public’ as we’re the ones getting all the grief for spreading the virus in the first place. Did someone say ‘herd immunity’ in halls? 

Furthermore, as Phil Gillespie, part of the management at McCooley’s pub in Liverpool, said, these new restrictions have lead to concern amongst pub management that they’ll “get penalised if someone wants to come and just wants to have a sandwich”.

And what about if someone orders a meal but doesn’t eat every last morsel? Will this new rule ultimately contribute to a new wave of food wastage, with the meals themselves serving more as a cover charge?

It is, of course, a ridiculous rule and impossible to define. I completely understand that the idea is to try and prevent drunken and disorderly behaviour during which people are perhaps more likely to forget or to misjudge social distancing rules, but how many of us fluctuate when it comes to feeling the effects of alcohol?

For one thing, we all like to think we have a higher tolerance than we do, and the effects of alcohol can depend on so much. Personally, I’ve definitely gone out before and erred on tipsy after one pint, depending on my mood, the company, what I’ve eaten that day, etc., but that doesn’t mean I go around getting too close to people and licking them! 

The nation is dealing with these new regulations as we deal with everything recently since the invention of the internet, by satirising them through the use of memes. How else are we going to get through this pandemic if we can’t go for a pint? 

Closure – Heidy Lo

Written by Jasmine Bennett on . Posted in Creative Submissions.

A rock sinks deeper and deeper into the ocean,

so does the heart;

a knife cutting through the flesh

that necessarily hurts –

 

all previous experience does not compare

to this.

Can one be heavy and light at the same time?

Floating away like a loaded book on a hot air balloon,

Hefty but weightless, silenced with screams.

 

On and on and on,

for a while, this is a wish for forever.

It’s time.

 

A miracle born,

A well-deserved ending

for me and

for you.

 

The rock sinks deeper as the heart flies higher,

it heals.

In her poem ‘Closure’, Heidy wanted to capture the moment she realised she was free from something she had been holding onto. The explicit images expressed lead to a straightforward piece. When asked about this straightforward nature, Heidy explained she wanted to make this closure – which so normally hard to express – as clear in words as possible.
Heidy is a second-year English Literature with Creative Writing student from Hong Kong. She has been writing for five years now, with work included in the Hong Kong Free Press and Hong Kong Review of Books. She is currently a contributor to the Lifestyle section of Mancunion. You can find more of her on Instagram @heidyslo.
Photo: Courtesy of Grimmfest

Grimmfest 2020: The Oak Room – a chilling tale of isolation and violence

Written by Benjamin Klauber-Griffiths on . Posted in Film.

The Oak Room is an aesthetic exploration of storytelling, violence and class.

Part of the little-known sub-genre of Canadian horror, The Oak Room takes place in a lonely bar during a severe snowstorm and details an exchange between a grizzled barman and his friend’s estranged son (played by Breaking Bad’s RJ Mitte).

In an attempt to pay-off a vague debt owed to the surly barman, Mitte’s character begins to tell a story of murder and revenge. The barman, whilst initially dismissive of such ‘payment’, begins to interpose with his own short stories as each tale is dramatized for the viewer. However, the audience soon gets the sense that these narratives hold a prophetic quality, to be mirrored in the bar.

 

Whilst starting slowly, the film has a constant and unnerving sense of tension as each narrative appears to build upon the former as sub-plots of mistaken identity, disillusionment, and violence, leading towards an inevitably shocking twist.

I loved the film’s sense of claustrophobia, both in terms of its prophetic qualities and regarding its location. The bar is as inescapable as the events to happen in it. It is as if we are given a small window to witness something that will remain unknown and forgotten due to its isolation. The film does a fantastic job of making its audience feel as cut-off, as helpless, and therefore as vulnerable to the unknown as its characters.

However, The Oak Room is not perfect. At times its characters feel like two-dimensional stereotypes of ‘small town life’ rather than real, living people. This leads to an occasional sense that the film’s inevitable conclusion is more forced than natural, detaching us slightly from the sustained tension the film works so hard to create. Nonetheless, the film offers enough dramatic variation, combined with some great cinematography, to feel distinctly unique and intriguing. It uses elements of the horror genre but would be more accurately described as a thriller, primarily delivering a truly disconcerting and tense viewing experience.

4.5/5.

How debating changed for the better during COVID

Written by Ihesinachi Oyouwa Oko-Jaja on . Posted in Societies.

COVID-19 has thrown students’ academic, social, and extracurricular lives into disarray. But debating societies are finding ways to thrive in the chaos. The Manchester Debate Union shares how debating became more accessible as it switches to virtual:

What was debating like before COVID-19?

Before the pandemic, most competitions were held over the weekend. Debaters travelled to universities all over: from Glasgow to London, Liverpool, or even Athens! Socials took place in pubs after each day of competition. If they got through to the next round, students would spend the night away from home.

The prestige of the competitions really attracted people from all around the country.

What were the unexpected benefits of virtual debating?

Coronavirus has forced debating societies to make changes to the way they host events. Most of them have now completely moved to online and use Discord or Zoom to hold training sessions and socials. Since March, various competitions have been held online, including the European Universities Debating Championship. Two Debate Union’s members, Jacklin and Lucie, managed to get to the final round!

Virtual debates and events make debating more accessible and inclusive. In the past, students used to make long train journeys in order to participate in competitions all over the country. This would make it harder for disabled debaters, to whom it is challenging to access public transportation. They would often encounter issues, such as lack of a step-free access in train stations, or signs lacking a translation to braille. Moreover, train journeys are expensive, due to which some students might have been excluded from the debates.

Online debates are inclusive in regards to students with disabilities, as well as to those who have a part-time job, or cannot afford expensive journeys and overnight stays. Additionally, it helps novice debaters to build confidence, as they do not feel the pressure of a large live audience.

What are the challenges of online debating?

Since people from Europe, the Americas, Asia and Africa all participate in global competitions together, people living in Eastern time zones may find it hard to keep up with events scheduled in the West. In response to this issue, competition organisers have made competitions longer in order to give everyone the opportunity to attend.

All in all, despite the curveballs the pandemic has been throwing at us, debating has found ways of adapting and even improving in the face of such uncertainty.

If you’re interested in learning more about debating or taking part in online competitions, you can join the Manchester Debating Union during their novice sessions via Zoom at 5 pm on Tuesdays, and advanced sessions at 6 pm on Mondays, or get in touch through their Facebook page.

Nootropic thunder: Hands on with cognitive enhancers

Written by Harry Peate on . Posted in Lifestyle.

Nootropic brain supplements have been in the news recently due to research revealing the dangerous levels of an unapproved drug found in many cognitive-enhancing pills.

I had learned of the confusingly tropical-sounding products during my first year, from YouTube videos with titles akin to ‘Real-life “Limitless” Pill?’ and articles discussing their effects.  These detailed how nootropics had become popularly taken by many of the über-successful residents of Silicon Valley.

I was struck by a vision of my morose yet tidy room in halls, with Good Will Hunting theorems splaying out around me, covering the cold breeze block walls.

If these supplements helped increase the coding output of millionaires and gave them an edge in big business, then surely they would do wonders for my listless attention span. Perhaps a few capsules would allow me to concentrate on my laptop long enough to finish readings.

This flawless logic led me to trawl Amazon and other online retailers looking for the right £40 bottle of capsules that would solve everything, hopefully pulling me from my rut of woeful productivity.

The priorities that ruled my everyday had to change: my nearing encyclopaedic knowledge of Aziz Ansari’s Master of None (gained from multitudinous binging) was getting me no closer to a Bachelor’s Degree.

I discovered a popular brand. Jackpot, I thought. All the right buzzwords, in a fun order, and written on a brown bottle that would set me back just £15. Next stop – making academia beg for mercy.

Reviews of various products written by shirt-and-tie young professionals on their ‘blog[s] to success’, which I had been studying closely, led me to expect two things. Firstly, following dosage instructions was important.

And secondly, the supplements would rely upon a cumulative effect – I wasn’t going to go from zero to hero overnight.

“I discovered a popular brand. Jackpot, I thought. All the right buzzwords, in a fun order, and written on a brown bottle that would set me back just £15. Next stop – making academia beg for mercy.

Despite this, I was monumentally bummed out when, after taking the recommended two capsules with breakfast for two days, I noticed I was never going to be Bradley Cooper at any rate. After all, where was the novel I had dreamed of completing, from concept to final draft, in one afternoon? I thought I would have at least polished off some sort of jazz concept album in my free time, with GarageBand only.

Two a day, must surely be a precautionary amount; an attempt by the company to avoid the scenario where we first-timers are hit with too much potential, and go mad with power. This lead me to swallow ten capsules with the help of a vitamin, hoping it would be a fast track to the results I was after.

Now, if we were dealing with the supplements lambasted in Hannah Smothers’ article for Vice of late last year, then I would be in perilously uncharted waters in terms of brain chemistry.

Piracetam is a drug used to treat dementia, and has been found in huge amounts in the nootropics that are slyly marketed to students. The drug has the nasty potential side effects of anxiety and its sad cousin, depression, at no extra cost.

But fear not dear reader, for at my price point the ingredients I was dealing with in high amounts were firstly, turmeric; secondly, caffeine – stimulant in chief. Now in my experience turmeric is a terrific addition to curry, possibly a poor substitute for caraway seeds in a sauerkraut recipe. Most of all, it brings very little to a real-life ‘limitless pill’.

The weird-smelling brown capsules were, therefore, primarily, a rapid vehicle for caffeine. Clocking in at 75mg a pair meant ten in one go was the rough equivalent of mainlining four filter coffees. Not enough to be dangerous, but had I stretched my budget for a fancier bottle, the young man typing this today would have been significantly more troubled.

Therein lies the rub. The worst part of the experience turned out to be a bad case of the shakes and missing out on an eight-hour sleep.

Another, even more stressed student, might have been willing to spend enough for the good stuff (more accurately: the bad stuff). There is a lot of marketing out there encouraging students to risk more than I did for a shortcut to being the star of their seminars.