Strange Times is a brewery run in Salford that brews several varieties of beer supplied around the northwest, each with a sufficiently spooky background.
The aptly named brewery was founded just over two years ago, born out of the Covid-19 lockdown of 2020. It remarkably comprises only three team members who had a “desire to experiment” with new ingredients, which led them to source ingredients globally. Different regions around the world don’t only provide the ingredients but also a set of mythologies and folklore that inspired the naming of their brews.
For example, the refreshing Lorelei Lager is brewed using hops from Germany, named after the tale of Lore, a woman who threw herself into the Rhine from a rock (a “lei” in old german) and was transformed into a siren, luring sailors to a watery doom.
If you fancy something darker, why not go for the Mad King Sweeney Irish Red? A malty ale brewed with oats and rye imported from Ireland, and inspired by Buile Suibhne – a ferocious king cursed into madness during battle. In his insanity, he killed a psalmist who cursed him to forever wander the land alone like a bird until he was killed by a spear. The poor guy couldn’t catch a break.
All the company’s artwork is done by the incredible Mina Mond, an artist based in France with a characteristic macabre style. Her designs draw inspiration from tarot cards, tying in with the drinks’ mythological themes.
As a promotion, the brewery held a competition to name their new beer debuting later this year. Members of the public submitted possible names; the top four were then selected and put forth again to the public for a vote.
Manchester-based puns appeared popular, with one contender being ‘Andy Beernham’. Ultimately, the winning name was ‘This Charming Can’, a homage to the Salford-based band, The Smiths, while also in reference to Strange Times’ current aspiration to purchase a canning machine to make their beers more accessible.
Strange Times held a tasting event for the opening of their crowdfunder and announcement of the new beer’s name. The brewery is crowdfunding to raise £40,000 to buy a new canning machine which will allow them to expand their offerings nationwide.
The autumnal timing couldn’t have been more perfect for the witchiness of the brewery (unless, of course, the event coincided with Halloween). The event, being held at the cute Bee Orchid Bar just ten minutes walk from the brewery itself, naturally featured all the beers Strange Times has to offer.
For those less inclined to beer, special cocktails were also available that creatively utilised the beers in twists of classic drinks. The bright, refreshing Lorelei Lager was combined neatly with tequila and lime for a lighter spin on a margarita, and the citrusy Coyote APA added a distinct, malty sweetness to the classic sidecar.
Find Strange Times beers online and at bars and pubs in and around Manchester, and find out more about their crowdfunder here.
If you haven’t heard of The Lightning Seeds, then you’ve still heard their biggest hit. ‘Three Lions’ entered into the nation’s heart in 1996, and chants of “It’s coming home, it’s coming, football’s coming home” still ring in the ears of football fans every time there’s a match on.
November in Manchester is almost embarrassingly on brand: rainy, dull, and a blanket of grey. Forget the usual tonics to seasonal depression: The Lightning Seeds are here! On Saturday, they took to Albert Hall to deliver a resplendent set of hit after hit that was so livened with feeling and energy, it felt like a chorus of vitamin C tablets fizzing in your throat.
They weren’t alone either, joined by Badly Drawn Boy in an oversized beanie, as support. It’s sometimes frustrating when an artist is only referenced by ‘that big thing’ they did 20 years ago. In Badly Drawn Boy’s case, it not only makes sense but he leans into it. About a Boy, the finest Hugh Grant film ever made, also happens to have the finest film soundtrack ever made. Badly Drawn Boy played a chocolate box selection of the soundtrack, which contains beautiful songs such as ‘Silent Sigh’ and ‘Something to Talk About’.
He also played fan favourites ‘You Were Right’ and ‘Once Around the Block.’ This was clearly a personal performance, in part a tribute to his brother who sadly passed away last year. Both his parents and wife were in attendance, making for an emotional show. Unfortunately, issues with the sound plagued a visibly frustrated Damon Michael Gough, who repeatedly told us “I can’t hear anything.”
The Lightning Seeds at Albert Hall – Photo: Izzy Langhamer
Once sound issues were resolved, The Lightning Seeds took to the stage. Beginning with their latest single ‘Sunshine’, they smashed through a set that took us through their much-loved back catalogue, a few covers, and a couple of surprisingly sublime new songs – surprising only because the new songs of bands of a certain age, are rarely received as warmly by the crowd.
There’s no over-stating the warmth of this crowd: even Ian Broudie seems overwhelmed by the affection of the crowd. Their new album See You in the Stars, for better or for worse, is sonically cohesive with their last 30 years of work. ‘Emily Smiles’ and the uncloying – despite its name – ‘Great to be Alive’, were great additions to the set.
Broudie’s stage presence was dynamic, joyous and just the right side of frenetic, frequently jumping up and across the stage. The hits, ‘The Life of Riley’, ‘Pure’, ‘Lucky You’, and ‘You Showed Me’, were performed as if they were written yesterday. Listening to The Lightning Seeds on Spotify just doesn’t do them justice, they’re a band to be seen live, where the energy and pure pump of their clattering, dizzying music can be heard at its best. The Albert Hall added to the transcendence at play here, as beams of light collided over the crowd. As for the rest of the band, they were on excellent form, particularly Adele Emmas on harmonies and keyboard. Broudie’s son, the eponymous Riley of ‘The Life of-‘, also gave his all.
The Lightning Seeds at Albert Hall, Photo: Izzy Langhamer
Most notable was the unrelenting, exhilarating, never-too-earnest optimism of their lyrics. Their encore brought a cover of ‘Be My Baby’ which Broudie dubbed “The best song ever written”, and ‘Marvellous’, which is also a pretty excellent song. “Things could be marvellous/ Things could be fabulous/ Soon”, Broudie sings. And you believe it.
During this highly controversial world cup season and coming on the heels of a fantastic summer for England women, fans still cherish the image of the plucky underdog that The Lightning Seeds’ song dreams up. You might think the band would be sick of hearing about their 90s hit, considering they’ve got a pretty impressive and extensive back-catalogue, but if they are it doesn’t show. ‘Three Lions’, as an encore, brings the house down. Broudie seems to burst with genuine appreciation for the crowd. The band leave. The crowd keep singing. All is well.
You can keep up with the latest news from The Lightning Seeds on their official website here.
UNISON is to re-ballot its members in response to the University and Colleges Employment Association’s (UCEA) August pay offer, it has informed the University of Manchester.
The ballot will be open from November 30 until December 21, after what the Union claims is a “below inflation pay rise” in the 2022-23 higher education pay award.
The August pay award tabled a 9% increase for staff on pay point 19 or lower (£24,871) and a minimum of a 3% pay rise for staff on pay point 20 or above (£25,627).
This was negotiated through the UCEA, which represents 145 higher education employers, and the New Joint Negotiating Committee for Higher Education Staff (New JNCHES), which represents the five higher education trade unions, including UNISON.
Due to RPI inflation hitting 14.2%, UNISON argue “this pay rise [of 3%] is a pay cut”. Therefore, UNISON members are striking for “a pay rise that keeps up with inflation”.
UNISON is the UK’s largest cross-sector union. It represents higher education members employed directly by universities.
These roles include: IT and administration staff, cleaners, library and sports centre services, and Students’ Union services.
The University of Manchester has stated that they “recognise how important pay is to colleagues” and that they “are committed to the fundamental importance of the University remaining a great place to work”.
UCEA and UNISON negotiations are held at a national level therefore, despite acting as a strong voice in discussions, the University of Manchester cannot independently affect pay changes in response to the industrial action.
Nonetheless, the University of Manchester took to StaffNet to remind employees of internal measures set out to ameliorate the effects of the cost-of-living crisis, such as their cost-of-living support package and the University’s status as a Real Living Wage Employer.
Results of the UNISON ballot are expected shortly after the closing date of December 21.
Reclaim the Nightlife, a club event organised by the Students’ Union, has been cancelled three days before the event was set to take place due to low ticket sales.
The “all-inclusive” event was set to take place on Thursday November 24, with a focus on creating a safe space.
The event, set to take place in Academy 2, was sponsored by The Warehouse Project. All profits from the night were going to be donated to this year’s Reclaim the Night campaign’s two partner charities: Manchester Rape Crisis and Galop. However, tickets are now due to be refunded.
This year’s Reclaim the Night campaign has received a £10,000 donation from Sacha Lord and The Warehouse Project.
This charitable donation is still intact, despite the cancellation of the Reclaim the Nightlife. The Reclaim the Night March on Wednesday November 30 will still go ahead.
The previous Reclaim campaign in February saw a similar Reclaim the Nightlife Event hosted at YES featuring student DJs.
The Students’ Union had announced DJ Paulette, with more artists to be announced, ahead of the cancellation.
Thursday’s event was also due to feature student artists in 532 Bar from 9.30, with doors to Academy 2 opening at 10.
A safe space had been planned to be set up in The Hive filled with student campaigning groups, University support representatives, and merchandise stalls.
Tickets had been tiered, starting at £3 but with the option to add up to £20 to fund specific specialist charity services. A £20 donation, for example, was intended to provide a one-hour counselling session for a survivor.
The SU will still be running Reclaim themed events throughout the week, including self-defence classes, banner making and interactive sessions on knowing your rights. More information can be found on the SU website.
When contacted for comment, a Students’ Union spokesperson said:
“We made the unfortunate decision to cancel Reclaim The Nightlife due to poor ticket sales for the event. Ticket purchasers have been contacted with refund information. Our partnership with Sacha Lord and Warehouse Project hasn’t been affected by this decision, including the one-off donation, and we look forward to working with them again in the future. Reclaim The Night continues to be one of the largest student-led campaigns in the country and we can’t wait to see our students taking part in the march on Wednesday November 30.”
Launching this year’s Reclaim the Night campaign, the Students’ Union have stated that they are “raising awareness of sexual violence on campus, building a speak-up culture, and calling it by its name”.
This years campaign will involve several events in the student’s union including: self-defence classes, a “know your rights” workshop, and a banner-making event.
Self-defence classes will be running on November 22 and 28. These classes are free to attend and will teach “basic self-defence techniques through the Filipino martial art eskrima”.
This event aims to teach people how to defend themselves in the face of gender-based violence.
A workshop to inform people on their legal rights when attending protests is also being hosted on the November 28. This is especially relevant following the passing of the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act in April, which strengthened laws against protests.
This workshop is being run by Green & Black Cross , an “independent, volunteer-run organisation providing legal advice and support to protestors in England and Wales.”
This workshop covers legal advice relating to police tactics and private security, laws commonly used against protestors, stop and search, and what happens in the event of an arrest.
In a report conducted by Resist Rape Culture into sexual violence on campus from May to July last year, 78% of respondents said they had experienced unwanted attention or sexual assault. Alongside this only, 3% said that UoM had a good survivor support system.
In the wake of these findings, the Reclaim the Night campaign is seeking to increase the use of the safe zone app, increase student satisfaction with counselling and reporting services, and make consent workshops adequate and mandatory.
Over 1000 students from the University of Manchester have joined a claim arguing that the University breached its contract by failing to provide in-person teaching and appropriate support to facilitate their learning during lockdown.
The 1022 students, who attended the University in the years 2017-2022, are claiming that the quality of teaching delivered during this periods was inadequate. This, they claim, has severely hindered both their academic experience and the start to their careers.
They have joined a multi-million-pound group claim that spans several universities and nearly 20,000 students. The group includes students from University College London, London School of Economics, and the Universities of Leeds, Birmingham, and Cardiff.
They claim that students were disrupted by both strike action and Covid-19, and that the University was contractually obliged to provide in-person support. Even when all lockdown measures had been removed, some courses continued with online learning.
Medical student Layla Zohar explained how her first year learning was limited in this way by Covid-19, saying: “There were parts of the physical examinations we weren’t allowed to do, and still aren’t actually.”
These physical examination included “anything to do with the face/head/mouth” and Zohar claimed “we [the students] couldn’t go on hospital placements in the first semester last year, which this year’s first years have been able to do”.
Many universities have faced similar backlash for their handling of teaching during the pandemic.
Earlier this year, Durham University’s largest donor, Mark Hillery, withdrew his funding over disagreement with Durham’s use of unnecessary Covid restrictions to learning.
Discontent with the handling of the pandemic by the University of Manchester has not only been expressed by these recent claims.
The University made headlines in November 2020 over protests in Owens Park following the placement of fences around the halls of residence.
The University of Manchester has declined to comment, but passed us onto Universities UK. Their statement is as follows:
“The Covid-19 pandemic threw two years of unprecedented challenge at the higher education sector and our students, and we are proud of how universities adapted and managed in adverse circumstances.
“During some periods of lockdown, universities were not permitted to offer teaching and learning as usual and instead universities adjusted quickly and creatively to ensure students could learn and graduate.
“We are not able to comment on individual institutions or cases. Universities continually look to improve, and raise standards if students are not getting the learning opportunities they deserve.”
Manchester fell short of its predicted reduction in carbon emissions during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Councillors have now been warned that the city may run-through their carbon budget for this century within just 5 years.
During the pandemic, the city had a reduction target of 13% per year. This was part of Manchester City Council’s target of halving their emissions by 2025.
Manchester has pledged to be a zero-carbon city by 2038. This is ahead of the UK government’s 2050 net zero carbon emissions target.
Despite this, Climate Emergency Manchester reported in 2021 that the city had used around 40% of their recommended emissions for the century in just three years. Yearly emissions will now need to be at a 16 % reduction to meet the target.
The City Council have determined 43 actions to help reach their targets, through five workstreams. Their aims include: a comprehensive investment programme to deliver energy efficiency; improvements to sustainable and active travel; and a goal to be single use plastic free by 2024.
They are also seeking to influence, lobby, and work in partnership with Greater Manchester and the UK government to tackle the climate emergency
Whilst the city council is on track with their emissions targets, Labour councillor Tracey Rawlins has pointed out that “the emissions that we’re responsible for as an organisation are quite small. We’re doing what we can, but it’s really important we continue to drive that.”
The council has generated a refreshed action plan. This includes investing in carbon-friendly schemes such as improving council buildings’ energy efficiency and investing in large-scale sustainable energy generation.
Manchester City Council is sure they will reach their 2038 target and stated that they are on track to meet their 50% reduction of “CO2 emissions from the Council’s operational estate and streetlighting” by 2025.
The 22nd edition of the FIFA World Cup kicked off this week, making it the first World Cup to be held in the winter. But who will win? Here are the Mancunion’s predictions for the World Cup.
Adam
Winner: England Top Goalscorer: Kane Best Player: De Bruyne Surprise team: Serbia Most disappointing team: France Where will England finish: Winners
Call me deluded but I genuinely think it’s England’s year. While recent performances have been poor, England are one of the few sides to now have genuine experience in the closing stages of major tournaments. Our attacking options are world-class and although the defence is shaky, players such as Maguire and Pickford always seem to be at their best in international tournaments. I don’t think much attention has been paid to Serbia, but they are my pick for underdogs. They finished top of their qualifying group, ahead of Portugal. If Mitrovic is on form, they will make it to the quarter-finals. France will continue the reigning champions curse, becoming the fourth consecutive side holding the World Cup trophy to be eliminated in the first round.
Ava
Winner: Brazil Top goalscorer: Kane Best player: Jude Bellingham Surprise team: Senegal Most disappointing: England probably! Where will England finish: I’m hoping for at least a quarter-final
The World Cup is always the time for a young talent to shine, at the last competition it was Mbappe. So this could be the tournament where English young talent performs on the big stage, so I’m going to go with Jude Bellingham! Of course, a safer prediction would be to go with Messi or Ronaldo.
Stef
Winner: Belgium Top Goalscorer: Kane Best Player: De Bruyne Surprise team: Mexico Most disappointing team: Portugal Where will England finish: To get knocked out in the Quarter finals to Argentina
Some very controversial opinions. Whilst lots seem to fancy Argentina or Brazil to win, I am selecting Belgium to collect the Jules Rimet. Key performances from Champions League winning saviour Courtois, and 2022/23 Ballon D’or hopeful De Bruyne will allow Belgium to one-up their last campaign to reach the final and go all the way. Watch out for Mexican heroics, I have them down to reach the semi-finals – outlasting England! Although I believe we have a strong enough squad to compete, we’ll ultimately be let down by our defence personnel. I’m predicting Ronaldo’s swansong to end in disappointment – I think Portugal will struggle to make it out of the group!
Jaz
Winner: Argentina Top Goalscorer: Messi Best player: Messi Surprise team: Denmark Most disappointing team: France Where will England finish: Semi-finals
Qatar 2022 will be Lionel Messi’s tournament. His return to fine form, accompanied by a squad bursting with hunger and momentum, will give Argentina a great chance to better last year’s Copa America success and secure that all-elusive third World Cup. I fancy Denmark’s chances of reaching the quarterfinals, topping their group with France along the way, whose injury woes and cursed honour of current champions may see them fail to make it past the round of 16. England will likely top their group, but Gareth Southgate’s men will find it hard to build on recent tournament success.
Andrea
Winner: Argentina Top Goalscorer: Messi Best Player: Valverde Surprise team: Denmark Most disappointing team: Germany Where will England finish: Round of 16
It would be the perfect end to Messi’s World Cup career after years of frustration; a World Cup Victory and the Golden Boot for Argentina. After winning the Champions League and La Liga with Real Madrid, the star midfielder Valverde is a strong contender for the best player. Most surprising could be Denmark following their form at the Euros in 2021. With the return of Eriksen, I would not write them off at all. The most disappointing team would be Germany who have yet to achieve their top form in recent years. Although I hate to admit it, England will get knocked out in the round of 16.
Tom
Winner: Portugal Top goalscorer: Messi Best player: Messi Surprise team: Wales Most disappointing team: France Where will England finish: Round of 16
Despite the fact that I believe Messi will dominate this World Cup, and showcase his mind-bending talents for what might be the last time; I see Ronaldo having the last laugh in Qatar, as Portugal, with their incredible squad depth, will claim the ultimate prize. Meanwhile, in his swansong, I see Gareth Bale leading Wales – in their first World Cup for 64 years – to be the dark horse of this tournament. While France, with their evergrowing injury list, will be the next team to fall victim to the champions curse. Sadly, I also see the Three Lions having a poor tournament, with a paltry group stage performance followed by an uninspiring Round of 16 exit.
Dhara Winner: Argentina Top Goalscorer: Benzema Best Player: Messi Surprise Team: Ghana Most disappointing team: Qatar Where will England finish: Semi-finals
I think this World Cup will be very interesting, especially considering there are a few teams that could win and not one clear favourite. Aside from Argentina, I think Portugal, Brazil and France also stand a good chance. I feel like Ghana will also have something to prove considering they have Uruguay in their group, and come for revenge against Luis Suarez and his team for their unfair elimination back in 2010. Though, I do think Darwin Nuñez will have a stand-out World Cup, contrary to popular belief.
As you can see most of our writers believe the Jules Rimet Trophy will be heading back to Buenos Aires, alongside Lionel Messi’s golden ball. As for England’s chances, we wouldn’t hold our breath.
While the matches are taking place, it’d be wrong to ignore the debate over the World Cup. The run-up this year has been filled with controversy due to Qatar’s gross violations of its citizens, especially when it came to preparing for the World Cup. Read our article ‘Blood on their Chests: Holding the FIFA World Cup in Qatar to Account‘ to find out more.
It’s the time of year when puffer jackets are brought out, chunky colourful scarfs are popping up everywhere on Oxford Road, and another big collab has dropped! This time, Dries Van Noten has collaborated with the Southern Californian brand Stüssy with a collection that is available now.
Hints were dropped earlier this month when rapper A$AP Nast unveiled a haul of items on Instagram gifted to him thanking both Stüssy and Dries Van Noten. However, the collab was officially announced on November 6 by Stüssy and Dries Van Noten on their respective Instagram accounts. Campaigns showed photos and videos starring Flea from the Red Hot Chilli Peppers modelling their clothes, exciting fans globally.
Highsnobietydescribed the collab as two brands having “found love in a hopeless place,” as they merge “Stüssy’s iconic graphics with Dries’ love of all things flora and fauna.” Highsnobiety have also taken partial responsibility for the collaboration as they said that their creative division put the two brands in touch last year.
The collection features pretty standard garments like denim jackets, graphic t-shirts, shorts, and jeans but with an epic streetwear feel. With bold colour, tie-dye, and emblazoned with flames, peace symbols, and eight balls the collaboration is sure to stand out.
Whilst Stüssy is no stranger to collabs, having previously teamed up with brands like Dior and Nike to Birkenstock and Converse, Dries Van Noten, on the other hand, rarely works with other designers – the exception being with Christian Lacroix in 2020 for a Spring/Summer collection.
Having started as part of the Antwerp Six in the 1980s, Dries Van Noten’s brand has grown massively since with The New York Times already describing him as “one of fashion’s most cerebral designers” in 2005. In more recent years, he has dressed stars such as Cate Blanchett and Maggie Gyllenhaal, continued to impress with collections, and had one of his suits worn by Villanelle in Killing Eve.
The Antwerp Six was a group of fashion designers who graduated from the eponymous Royal Academy of Fine Arts at the beginning of the 1980s. They were classed together due to their “origin and common experiences rather than style,” as people struggled to pronounce their names, they started calling them the Antwerp Six. As Dazed Digitalwrote, “It’s fashion folklore – how in 1986, a gang of Belgian designers bundled into a van, headed across Europe and caused a stir at a London tradeshow, making their mark indelibly on the decades of fashion to come.”
So where are the others now? Well, Ann Demeulemeester ran her own brand known for its grunge themes until 2013 although she still oversees special projects. Dirk Van Saene incorporated his love of painting with fashion design to create his own collections, and he also teaches at the college from where he graduated. Walter Van Beirendonck is head of Antwerp’s Royal Academy of Fine Arts and has styled celebrities including Bono. Dirk Bikkembergs was well-known in the fashion world before he joined the Antwerp Six and has since drawn inspiration from athleticism for his label which he sold in 2012. Finally, Marina Yee still designs for her brand which focuses on sustainability and repurposing flea market finds.
After their pop group-esque split up in the 1990s, each member of the Antwerp Six appears to be doing well in their solo careers! Dries Van Noten, however, arguably remains the most famous out of the six and I have no doubt that the collab with Stüssy will only bring him further success.
Working Men’s Club, off the back of their UK top 20 album Fear Fear, are about to embark on their biggest UK tour yet. With a unique, electronically-carried sound played as guitar music, Working Men’s Club are among the most compelling live acts circulating at the moment. Ahead of their headline show at Manchester Academy, and to celebrate the release of the ‘Steel City’ remixes on the deluxe edition of Fear Fear, we spoke to frontman Syd Minsky-Sargeant about playing in Manchester, Steel City music, and songwriting processes.
With this massive headline gig at Manchester Academy, what can we expect from it?
I think we’re obviously trying to step up our production for this tour. These are the biggest venues we’ve played throughout so there’ll be the addition of a few things we haven’t added in for a long time. There’ll be extra lighting and stuff like that, so I think it’ll be a really good show. We just want to keep upping the live performances as much as possible. Obviously, last year we did The Ritz and that was brilliant, but this is a much bigger venue so we just want to make it twice as good if possible. It’ll be a pimped-up show, I think, especially for Manchester.
You’ve played a lot in Manchester over the last little while, what is it about the city that you love so much?
I don’t know, we just seem, for some reason, to be really well-received there, so it’s kind of an incidental thing. It’s a great city and we’ve spent a lot of time there, and half the band lives there, so it makes sense to appreciate that city.
You’ve also played a wide variety of venues in Manchester, with the show at White Hotel and even shows at YES quite recently. Is that something we can expect more of soon?
I wouldn’t say so, no. It [the Manchester Academy show] definitely will be the last show there for a while because we don’t want to overdo it, but we’ve played in most places in Manchester. I think now we want it to be a special thing each time we go back there.
Last year, you supported New Order at Heaton Park. What was that experience like, and did you get to speak to any of the New Order guys at all?
We didn’t because we had to get off to play another gig at the White Hotel, but it was really good. It was a nice homecoming because I travelled back and forth between Todmorden and Prestwich growing up between my parents. My dad used to work in Heaton Park, so it was a coming full circle thing to play there.
Who would you say your main live influences are in terms of how you carry yourself as a live band?
I really like Cabaret Voltaire and the way they change stuff up constantly, and always flip between different setups and the way that there was never one way of doing things. I never saw Cabs but from watching videos, I love what they’re doing, and I love the records so that would be one for me.
To the album, and specifically the remixes, how did those come about, because they’re all Sheffield-based remixes. Was it by virtue of chance or did you recruit specifically Sheffield producers to remix the tracks off Fear Fear?
For that EP we did [recruit from Sheffield]; there are a few more remixes that aren’t out yet which aren’t specifically Sheffield-based. But that EP, it’s specifically Sheffield producers, half of which we know and half of which [we] approached. It was my manager’s idea because he’s from Sheffield, and the first records were made there, so it’s another nice full circle thing to do and made sense for that record.
I read a quote from Toddla T saying that it sounded like Sheffield was all over the track he remixed, what do you think the sound of Sheffield is?
I think obviously the sound of Sheffield was Warp Records really in an electronic sense, started off with people like DJ Parrot, Sweet Exorcist, and Richard Kirk and then [Cabaret] Voltaire before that which Richard Kirk was half of. Ross [Orton] who I make the records with learnt his basics in dance music from working with Parrot and then Toddla learnt his basics from working with Ross, and then I’ve learnt my basics from working with Ross, so I guess it’s that domino effect of lots of different producers working together.
It was a nice thing to do, and it definitely felt close to home. It’s nice for Toddla to put his spin on it, but also for Forgemasters to do something because they were the first Warp release, ‘Track with No Name’ by Forgemasters. They’re Sheffield originators and it’s still an underground scene I think, so it’s very important within the dance music world.
On the subject of Ross Orton, as he produced the first album Working Men’s Club, was it not even a question that you would work with him again?
Yeah, it was very natural on the second record to work with Ross again. With lockdown and everything, it was an easy option to keep working with someone that I’ve been making music with since the first record and I still make stuff with him. So, yeah, it was just natural.
With your songwriting process, is it lyrics or music first or do you have an archive of beats? How does that all work?
For the first two records it was definitely music first, then add either just layered lyrics on top immediately or take some time out, but nowadays I try and be less traditional about it and do it one way or the other, just so it doesn’t sound the same. I don’t know, I think things will constantly change.
Are you writing at the minute?
Yeah, I’m always writing, but there’s no rush to get anything out at the moment.
Is the current political situation influencing you?
I don’t think there’s anything influential in any form of politics at the minute, just the fact that it’s all very bleak and boring! I wouldn’t say that’s an influence in any way, it’s best ignored in my point of view.
Just to touch on your music videos, they’re very expressive and potent. How involved are you with that side of things?
Quite thoroughly within the most recent campaigns and more thoroughly going forward. I think the visual side of stuff is very important as well as the music. They’re quite random so it really does depend. All of those videos have been directed by other people but I like to oversee things.
In the future, would you be interested in directing a few videos?
Yeah, definitely, but it depends on the scenario.
Finally, where next after the tour for Working Men’s Club? Is there new music on the way?
No, we’ll just be dipping for a bit. I’ll get into writing another record, I think. We’ll be putting in plans for what comes next after the tour; January’s always quiet, isn’t it? So we’ll see.
Working Men’s Club play their headline show at Manchester Academy on Saturday 26 November, and you can buy tickets here.
Fear Fear (Deluxe Edition) is out now, and you can stream it below:
Throughout the 2000s, millions of parents planted their children with Jacqueline Wilson books to keep them quiet. Unknowingly, they were feeding them with stories of divorce, domestic abuse, mental illness and homelessness. Under the bright front covers and jazzy illustrations lurked a whole array of dark themes.
At the time, we didn’t bat an eyelid. We gobbled up stories of TracyBeaker’s time in care, Hetty Feather’s abandonment, and Vicky Angel’s traumatic death. But as the years have passed and Wilson’s readership has matured, questions have begun to arise. Why were we consuming such heavy topics at such a young age? Were the books exploitative of traumatic experiences? Or was Wilson pushing boundaries and writing about otherwise taboo topics?
While children’s books are so often concerned with fantastical adventures and far-off lands, Wilson’s books stood out for their gritty realism. Drawing from her own childhood experiences witnessing her parents’ turbulent marriage, Wilson’s stories depicted family tensions and adult themes through a child’s lens.
Her first major success came with The Story of Tracy Beaker. The story of a feisty ten-year-old girl navigating life in a care home became a cultural staple of any mid-2000s childhood. It spawned three sequels, a film, and a CBBC television adaptation, cementing both Tracy, and Jacqueline Wilson, in the cultural zeitgeist.
From then on, Wilson became a force to be reckoned with in the children’s literary sphere. Often publishing multiple books per year, it became hard to go into a bookshop or school library and avoid the instantly-recognisable rainbow covers. However, despite being a Children’s Laureate from 2005 to 2007, not all of Wilson’s work was received with praise. From bickering on Mumsnet to writers dissecting her books, she has remained divisive among parents and critics.
One of the worst offenders is the infamous Love Lessons. It follows fourteen-year-old Prue, struggling to fit into her new school. She forms a bond with her art teacher, who begins to reciprocate her romantic feelings. By the end of the book, Prue is expelled, while the teacher keeps his job and goes unpunished. The lack of repercussions and Wilson’s romanticising of grooming sends an undoubtedly disturbing message to her young readers.
Another example of this questionable messaging is Secrets. Middle-class, privately educated India befriends Treasure, from the local council estate. Inspired by her hero Anne Frank, India hides Treasure in her attic, to save her from her abusive stepfather.
The exploration of class dynamics, as well as the attempt to parallel Anne Frank’s experience, feels uncomfortable and misjudged. It’s an example of how close Wilson gets to sensationalising her characters’ experiences for pure shock value.
Along with some particularly shocking standouts, there are some overarching issues within Wilson’s oeuvre. Given the otherwise diverse range of backgrounds, social classes, and experiences, her protagonists are overwhelmingly white.
The absence of non-white characters is glaringly obvious, suggesting that her depiction of suffering and victimhood is only applicable to whiteness. It’s also contentious that Wilson has made millions off of stories about poverty and suffering whilst continuing to profit from these stories over the decades.
These criticisms and extreme examples raise the valid question of why we were consuming such heavy themes as children, and what made Wilson’s formula so popular. At a time when bookshops were filled with Harry Potters and Percy Jacksons, Wilson captured a distinct sense of girlhood and female coming-of-age. Her protagonists didn’t have magical powers or predestined fates. They were ordinary children with flaws and fears, navigating the adult world (which in itself is often scarier than any fantastical land).
Wilson wrote about the topics that felt otherwise forbidden, restricted to whispered conversations between grown-ups. Children going through similar things could see their reality reflected on the page. Those navigating divorced parents could see themselves in Andy in The Suitcase Kid. Those living in poverty were represented in The Bed and Breakfast Star. Those struggling with bullying found a friend in Mandy from Bad Girls.
Equally, children from more conventional backgrounds were shown the harsh reality of the world beyond the walls of their home. Whether you could relate or not, Wilson’s novels opened our minds and started important conversations on otherwise taboo topics.
When taking a look at Wilson’s current work, it’s clear that she won’t be shying away from heavy topics any time soon. Her most recent release, Baby Love, is a heartbreaking story of teen pregnancy. Meanwhile, 2020’s Love Frankie made headlines for being Wilson’s first queer novel after she came out as gay in the same year. Her continued dedication to these themes, as well as her philanthropy and involvement with various charities supporting vulnerable children, shows that her commitment to these issues goes beyond her literary output.
While we tend to remember Jacqueline Wilson for her most trauma-inducing books and shocking moments, these shouldn’t cloud over her legacy. While it’s debatable as to whether some of her work would be received as warmly in today’s cultural climate, our connection to her and her characters makes her a figure that almost transcends cancel culture.
She forged characters and storylines that stuck with us long after we returned the library books or cleared out our bookshelves. Her impact can still be felt, both in the cultural shift she caused in the children’s genre, and in the conversations she sparked on otherwise unspoken social issues. Yes, Jacqueline Wilson traumatised us all, but also shone a light on modern social issues.
The RMT strikes have taken the UK by storm in the past few months, with supporters quick to brand June to August as the season of ‘Hot Strike Summer’. This was more than a summer fling: more and more unions are balloting – and winning – to go on strike to redress unfair pay and workload.
In light of this, I spoke to members of the Communication Workers Union (CWU), the University and Colleges Union (UCU), the National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport workers (RMT) and Labour Students, for comments.
Whilst the RMT strikes have been accused of national disruption, general secretary Mick Lynch released a statement pinning blame upon “Britain’s broken private model.” Adding that “companies that make huge profits from the industry and charge exorbitant fees to passengers are trying to blame staff for shortcomings.”
Understaffing is also an issue in the Royal Mail; when people quit or are laid off, they are often not replaced. Increasing stress for the remaining workers, according to postman Rufus*. The CWU are rallying against changes to their terms and conditions, which crucially could mean their hours being annualised. “Other companies should be fighting to get their conditions the same as Royal Mail’s, not the other way around – no one can make a living out of zero-hour contracts,” he continues.
This round of UCU strikes regards pay above inflation – resulting in the highest ever UCU ballot turnout where 81.1% voted yes for strike action nationally. Historically, they are the first union in the education sector to win a ballot since the 2016 anti-trade union laws were passed. The UCU claim that this is a result of staff feeling angry at a real terms pay cut given that the university sector made a record £41.1bn last year, with vice-chancellors receiving £45mil from this.
However, even though it is likely that the average person has more in common with strikers than those in management making record sums, media reception has largely been negative. CWU member Rob* feels that they are up against a “much more powerful organisation, with much better access to the press.”
There are certainly questions of democracy at hand, too. Unions are legally required to re-ballot every six months in order to call strike action. RMT member Joanne* feels that because so much labour is expended upon administering a vote, members can be disillusioned by the cause, leaving their demands delegitimised.
Re-ballots can be triggered by issues in motion. For example, if the university management shuts down a building, and changes the workplace of teaching staff, the university isn’t obliged to inform unions. Unions staff have to tell their employers all information about the strike, including where staff work, and if the information is wrong, a re-ballot must be triggered, shutting down strike action. In fact, even if there are widespread and related workplace issues raised during the strike unless discussed on the ballot, action can be vetoed.
“Everything in law is made to stop taking action,” Joanne notes. Adding that if the Tories can have online leadership elections, why should the unions have to use postal ballots if not to obstruct democracy? She argues that if ballots were online, turnout would increase due to the ease of voting, and it would require less work to have to call every member for updated details every few months, streamlining action.
The anti-democratic nature of how unions are treated extends also to their relation to corporate. At the Manchester South Post Depot, there was much disgruntlement surrounding their relationship with the CEO. Postman Moses* explained that whilst the real terms pay cut was ‘unjust’ considering how much the shareholders were given in dividends (£400m of the £700m made in total), if Royal Mail were really struggling for money, the workers would accept the cut. However, a cut would only be accepted so long as employment terms and conditions remained unchanged.
Royal Mail strikers were supposed to meet with ACAS that night. When asked if union reps were allowed direct contact with the CEO, a roar of laughter erupted from the otherwise quite timid strikers. “It’s all about the CEO refusing to cooperate! It comes across as ‘what I say goes.’ He won’t show up to meetings, he sends his lackeys to do the talking, and there’s no compromise. It feels like we’re already at a done deal.”
If the Royal Mail service was both renationalised and further democratised, workers feel like the culture would shift back to the way ‘it used to be,’ where it was more of a community, and less of a business. Royal Mail worker Moses compares their situation to the miners: “It’s not as extreme, but these little offices are like communities, smaller versions of the mining villages. One of my friends met his wife here, and his wife’s parents worked here, too. They [Royal Mail] want a new generation of posties they can indoctrinate and exploit.”
An ex-manager once told workers, “we’re not a service, we’re a business now.” Whilst the posties are in the CWU, managers are in Unite. I asked him if he knew anything about management going on strike, but he dismally responded that “those higher up have essentially been bribed management a £2,000 pay-out to repress us.” Rob has worked at Royal Mail for 11 years, and has had 12 managers, and says that “they don’t want managers to be in too long, because then relationships will be built and communities strengthened.”
Royal Mail postman Sam* reveals that corporate monitor workers using mapping technology, confronting them if they notice them stopping for too long. This means that posties feel that they aren’t able to stop and speak to customers even when issues arise for fear of reprimanding, and parcels must be prioritised over letters. Not only has this cultural and priority shift led to damage to the quality of services provided, but it has also led to the deterioration of working conditions.
“Last year, rounds were too big and no one could keep up. This year’s strikes are causing far less problems than that last year, and now there are murmurs that they’ll do it again after changing it back. Computer software can’t show the reality of what’s going on, there is an arrogance of senior management following algorithms and not listening to workers on the ground.”
He continues, saying that “ten years ago, this was a job for life, and now you come in one day, and aren’t sure if you’ll be there the next.” He tells the story of a man in his mid-60s who has worked as a postman for 35 years and is constantly told he’s not going fast enough. “His personality has totally changed; he’s really gone into himself.”
Similarly, high workloads, job insecurity, and pay are issues David Swanson of UoM’s UCU emphasised: “Like other workplaces, universities are run in the interests of a small minority, based on pointless competition and the pursuit of profit. We need universities that are fit to work in, that are run in the interests of the people who work and study in them.” CWU member John* echoed the same sentiment: “We all know what the problem is – fat cats at the top taking the money.”
An activist at MMU emphatically explained that “people don’t take going on strike lightly,” as was A UoM counterpart who acknowledged that while the quality of students’ education is affected, strike action has the potential to improve it long term. It would be more detrimental to the quality of education if staff continued to be “overwhelmed, stressed, worried about if they’ll have work in six months, and face mental health difficulties because of, or alongside this.”
UCU and CWU reps were also keen to emphasise that solidarity with strikes is imperative in the face of management which uses the “negative effect” strikes can have on customers as an emotional weapon to make workers rethink their ballots. Demonstrating the value of outside support, one MMU activist recalls the ‘singing students’ last year, reminiscing on how “alive people became during the last rent strike,” saying that he “account[s] the surge in interest to how it felt like we were all breaking point during covid, making building solidarity much easier.”
Labour Students North East Rep, Joshua Freestone, wants to stress that whilst students are about to “face the brunt of a national cost of living crisis. We must not feel as if our struggle is isolated.” The group advises students to, “look to the militancy of the RMT as an inspiration.” Joshua asks us to remember that “their fight is our fight, and a victory for them is a victory for workers everywhere.”
*Names have been changed for this article to protect anonymity
The fashion shows of 2022 have seen models clothed in latex, fur, and increasingly little clothing. Think Cher in a latex one-piece for Balmain or Miu Miu’s ever-famous micro skirt. Of course, women can wear whatever they want; showcasing the female form is an act of empowerment. But, it would be unfair to ignore the styles’ origins, and even more so, naïve to overlook their reception.
Defined as the exchange of money or goods for sex and intimate services, sex work has been acknowledged as an industry since 1780 BC, when the Code of Hammurabi (a Babylonian legal text) specifically mentioned the rights of a prostitute or child of a prostitute. At that point, the colour red was already associated with the ‘Whore of Babylon’, adultery, and lust.
It’s not a coincidence that the Red Light District in Amsterdam, often referred to as the ‘Pleasure District,’ is famous for its cluster of sex services. Most common in the region is female street prostitution. Outlined in red window lights, women attempt to attract passers-by with their appearance, manipulated and enhanced with clothing. Most women opt for lace lingerie in various cuts and colours, some choosing erotic costumes like policewomen and nurses.
Sex appeal must be high to attract business, and fabric plays an essential role. Lace is stereotypically feminine — innocent even — yet the delicate cut-outs reveal small windows of skin, hinting at what lies beneath. The duality between innocence and eroticism is romanticised. Many women choose to wear lace due to its association with wealth too. Lace was traditionally associated with luxury — it provides women value in a world which repeatedly denies them as soon as they are associated with sex work. Similarly, latex is fetishized. Its smooth, shiny appearance can be considered skin-like and phallic. Leather clothing is viewed similarly.
The Vivienne Westwood x Malcolm McLaren partnership was the first to pick up on the sexual appeal of the leather-punk look. Unlike Yves Saint Laurent, who was fired for designing a leather jacket for Dior in the 60s, they figured out how to sell it as fashion. Westwood and McLaren opened their famed shop SEX in 1970. Brands such as Vivienne Westwood, Louis Vuitton with their Playboy-inspired show in 2009, and Marc Jacob’s use of latex and buckled boots in his 2016 AW show still use sex as a source of inspiration today.
But is it possible to reinvent sex work-inspired attire as something entirely empowering? The line between self-expression and being branded a ‘slut’ is slim. Appropriating sex work is problematic; it romanticises a sector of underrepresented workers who are vulnerable and discriminated against.
As much as an outfit may empower a model on the runway, it’s challenging to alter the reception of sex-work outfits in the public sphere when the trade has such a stigma.
The University of Manchester’s Students’ Union has announced that it supports the upcoming UCU strikes.
In a statement, posted to the official Manchester Students’ Union’s (SUs) Instagram account, the SU stated that it “appreciate[s] that our staff’s teaching environment is our learning environment” and thus stands in support of the UCU.
The UCU, the union that represents further and higher education academic and support staff in the UK, announced that all branches would participate in three days of strikes in November.
These days were announced as November 24, 25, and 30.
Strikes on November 24 and 25 will be held on University campuses, whilst on November 30 the industrial action will culminate in a demonstration in London.
In a continuation of the SUs statement, they acknowledged that the fight was not about “staff vs. students” but “reflects a bigger issue regarding management and operations within Universities and the Government”.
The Students’ Union is planning on supporting students affected by the strikes by holding “teach outs” – a series of lectures covering a variety of subjects – on the days of industrial action.
The Manchester Socialist Worker Student party took to social media to commend the Students’ Union’s decision to support industrial action.
However, it criticised the Students’ Union’s wish to help “foster discussions between the UCU and the University” instead calling for it to encourage students down to the picket lines, which have been, historically, sparsely populated at the University of Manchester.
The Students’ Union maintains that it represents the students of the university and that it will do its best to mediate the impact of the strikes on the student body, including students who teach (for example Graduate Teaching Assistants).
Student officers will be present in the Student Union building all day “to answer any questions and hear your thoughts” about the strikes.
The British reality TV show I’m a Celebrity Get Me Out of Here! has been running for 20 years as it tortures celebrities with bush tucker trials that involve a host of disgusting elements usually including slime and insects. The show takes place in Australia (and in a Welsh castle during Covid) as 12 celebrities survive in the jungle on one meal a day that can only be won if those voted successfully complete bush-tucker trials.
This season of the popular show was particularly remarkable for various reasons. Firstly, after the pandemic forced the previous season to be filmed in a different location, the show returned to its roots in Australia. Secondly, it created quite a buzz as one of the contestants was none other than former Health Secretary, Matt Hancock. Traditionally, the show introduces two surprise celebrities to the campmates and audience, but this year was different. The announcement that Matt Hancock would be participating in the show made headlines before the season aired. His appearance on the show became even more controversial when he was suspended as a Conservative MP. Despite the leak, the campmates were still surprised by his arrival in the jungle.
The nation was astounded to see the man who set out health regulations during the Covid-19 pandemic and consequently broke them in June 2021 when he was caught having an affair with fellow adviser Gina Coladangelo. This stirred up much resentment both in and outside of the camp but whilst the campmates questioned him about his actions, the public was voting for him to take part in bush-tucker trials in the hopes of getting him back for all his wrongdoings. As tends to happen, this has not worked in the public’s favour. Usually, it is the celebrity who performs worst in the trials who gets continually voted to partake in them. However, this time around it was Matt Hancock taking part in most of them. In the public’s eyes, they were making him suffer by having him eat fisheyes and get covered in slime and cockroaches. But Matt rarely complained and won all the stars in each of his trials, earning respect and some forgiveness from his campmates. According to Sky News, perceptions of Hancock seemed to change after only a week in camp as bookies placed him as the people’s ‘third favourite’ to win. So ultimately Hancock will walk out of here sometime this week, potentially crowned King of the Jungle, and with £400,000 in his pocket — one of the ‘largest show fees’ ever paid to a contestant.
Former Health Secretary Matt Hancock. Credit: itv
Other contestants on the show were fan favourite Love Island’s Olivia Atwood who left after less than 24 hours in the jungle due to mental health reasons that had been made known to producers before the show started, but she still received her £125,000.
The show also featured former rugby player and royalty Mike Tyndall MBE, as well as ’80s musical legend Boy George, and recently retired Lioness Jill Scott MBE. After a surprise exit for Boy George on Tuesday night, currently Jill Scott is the favourite to win but we won’t know for sure until this Sunday.
As the season draws to a close, viewers eagerly await to see who will be crowned the next King or Queen of the Jungle. Despite the controversy surrounding his participation, Matt Hancock has won over many with his resilience and determination in the bush-tucker trials, and he remains a strong contender for the title. However, the competition is fierce, and there are several other celebrities who could take the crown. As the final votes are tallied and tension builds. Fans eagerly anticipate the next installment of this iconic reality show. Let’s see how it ends and who will be crowned Monarch of the Jungle.
Netflix’s The Crown has returned with its newest season starring beloved actors such as Imelda Staunton (Queen Elizabeth II) and Dominic West (Prince Charles), as well as newer faces including Elizabeth Debicki (Princess Diana). It’s safe to say that fans were eagerly awaiting Season 5 with great excitement and anticipation, but not everyone feels that way. The show has previously faced criticism for being inaccurate and even “anti-monarchy”, but the current season, which is set in the more recent past of the 1990s, is receiving even more backlash. There’s no doubt that the ’90s were some of the most controversial and pivotal years for the royal family, with the divorce of Princess Diana and Prince Charles and her subsequent death, as well as Queen Elizabeth’s “annus horribilis” in 1992. However, in the wake of Prince Phillip’s death and the Queen’s passing, the show has come under fire for its depictions of the royal family and for airing the Season 5 so soon after the Queen’s death. Moreover, with Prince William now next in line to the throne, and Prince Harry publishing his autobiography in January 2023, it begs the question of how ethical actually is The Crown?
Photo: Keith Bernstein
Many argue that The Crown doesn’t need an accuracy warning as it’s not a documentary but rather a biopic or soap opera version of the royal family’s lives. A Cosmopolitan article even argued that because the showuses primary evidence, interviews, and authorised biographies that royal family members took part in, there’s no need for it. Others disagree, including Oscar-winning actress Judi Dench who wrote an open letter to Netflix saying that the show was “cruel and unjust towards the individuals and damaging to the institution they represent” and that they should “reconsider – for the sake of a family and a nation so recently bereaved, as a mark of respect to a sovereign who served her people so dutifully for 70 years”. Of course, Netflix did no such thing and Season 5 is currently available for streaming now.
However, a YouGov poll found that 74% of respondents thought that “programmes or films that dramatise real-life events should show warning saying they may not accurately reflect what really happened”. The Crown does have a research team that works to make the show as accurate as possible with regards to everything from costumes and props, to relationships and events. Some matters have been confirmed as accurate (such as the now King Charles and Camilla’s Tampongate and Diana’s secret tapes that she made for her biography), but others are fictional including the conspiracy between former PM John Major and Charles to overthrow the Queen. There are also events that haven’t been confirmed by evidence and so their truthfulness remains unknown, for example the affairs of Prince Phillip with Penelope Knatchball and Princess Diana with Hasnat Khan.
This has led to differing views from the public and critics alike. Some take the view that the show is “humanising the royals” by showing “what they are feeling”, and that it “reignites an interest in the Royal Family that is not only beneficial to them, but a requirement of their continued existence and (…) an ability for the royals to remain relevant to the British people is essential – without that, there seems little purpose in continuing to fund them”. Whereas others have branded the show “sadistic and wicked” especially since “Diana can no longer speak for herself”.
Andrew Morton, the author of Diana’s biography Diana: Her True Story, that she went against royal protocol to secretly work on has said that Debicki’s portrayal of her “conveys the Diana I got to know”. The show also used Diana’s former private secretary as a consultant for Season 5 and he has claimed that the programme “created in my mind a story that chimed truthfully with the reality through which I had lived”. So as far as we’re concerned, The Crown is largely accurate in terms of its depiction of Princess Diana and large events that were made aware to the public. However, it goes without saying that anything that takes place outside of the public eye i.e. in the household itself is subject to imaginative retellings.
Since Prince Harry and wife Meghan Markle stepped back from their role as senior members of the royal family in 2020, they have been granted much more freedom in terms of what they’re permitted to say to the public. Consequently, in his autobiography Spare published in January 2023, Harry shares “a remarkably moving personal journey from trauma to healing, one that speaks to the power of love and will inspire and encourage millions of people around the world” according to Global CEO of Penguin Random House Markus Dohle. Proceeds from the book are donated to British charities.
Elizabeth Debicki (as Diana), Teddy Hawley (as Harry), Timothée Sambor (as William), Dominic West (as Charles). Credit: Netflix
Harry has also attempted to stop Netflix from producing The Crown, which is understandable given this season’s plot focuses on himself and his brother as children, as well as their deceased mother Diana. His biographer Angela Levin said “[y]ou can’t stand there and expect people to respect you when Netflix is exposing your mother and not walk away. He’d be a hero if he walked away.” So, it will certainly be interesting to see if Harry mentions the popular Netflix series in his autobiography.
Personally, my main issue with The Crown is its new season airing so soon after the Queen’s death, but as for the ethics of the show it appears that they have done what they can to make the show as ethical of possible. Of course, one could argue that in order to be the most ethical they should stop airing completely but Netflix would never resort to that. I also don’t think that there’s any harm in issuing an accuracy warning at the beginning of the show but, again, given Netflix’s somewhat blasé attitudes about what content they stream I doubt that this would be a concern of theirs.
The charity Police Now were advocating for the police in the Students’ Union building, despite the passing of a recent ‘cops off campus’ policy at last month’s Union Assembly.
Two members of the charity, who run a graduate scheme offering “a structured route into policing” were trying to add students to a mailing list. This is despite their stall in the Students’ Union being cancelled.
The stall was cancelled due to a vote led by group Cops off Campus at the Union Assembly, which led to the Students’ Union adopting an anti-police stance.
This means that police, and police-affiliated groups, such as Police Now, are unwelcome on the premises of the Students’ Union, excluding times in which it might be a matter of safety.
One student reported that they were offered cake if they filled in a form for the mailing list.
The organisation described itself as “a charity to increase diversity and inclusion in the police force”.
This does appear to be part of the charity’s mission – which their website describes as “recruiting, developing and inspiring outstanding and diverse individuals to be leaders […] on the policing frontline”.
Cops off Campus, the group responsible for promoting the policy, spoke to The Mancunion, saying:
“Cops Off Campus have been made aware of members of Police Now approaching students in the Student Union building today to promote their mailing list. This is blatant disrespect for the democratically passed policy of the student union which bans police and police-affiliated groups like Police Now from the Student Union.
In the policy students made it clear that we believe the presence of the police makes students, particularly from marginalised backgrounds, unsafe. A complaint has been lodged with the Student Union. We encourage students to get in touch with us if they see further breaches of this policy.”
The University of Manchester Students’ Union has been contacted for comment.
The inaugural FIFA World Cup began in 1930, globalizing football’s game, viewership, and fandom onto the world stage. Televised coverage introduced for the 1966 World Cup has helped to transform football into how we know it today, establishing the beautiful game’s premier tournament as the most viewed sporting event in the world.
Every four years there is anticipation about how each tournament can surpass the last. Until it arrived at Qatar’s door.
The parameter of international football has shifted course in recent years. The delaying of the 2020 European Championships in line with the Covid-19 pandemic to 2021 started a notion of expectation of delay in football, causing exhaustion to players and scheduling issues.
Further interruption has progressed into the 2022 World Cup, however for separate and divisive reasoning. The shifting of the tournament to the winter aimed to benefit players, supporters and others involved in the tournament – with summer temperature highs reaching 50c. This shift signals more tolerable conditions, beneficial for the purpose of football.
Unfortunately, since its announcement in 2010, the World Cup controversy has attached itself to the combination of construction, health and safety issues, and the lack of worker rights. The heavily documented issue surrounds a Qatari World Cup regime that is striving to succeed at all costs.
Human rights issues are rife in Qatar. Concerns surrounding employment focus on the ‘Kafala’ system, an unfair structure that legally binds workers to employers, restricting their freedom of movement. An estimated 95% of Qatar’s labour force are migrants, and many involved in the World Cup stadium construction have been forced to work in dangerous and unbearably hot conditions. By sacrificing the safety of these workers, Qatar has shown itself to be inhumane, risking lives to benefit the tournament.
The lack of LGBTQ rights in Qatar is another worrying issue. Homosexuality is criminalized, and this has led many members of the community to steer clear of the World Cup altogether. A hugely depressing state of affairs for 2022.
While Qatar have begun their transformation to being a safer and fairer place to live and work, there is the sense that it is happening too late. The global development of football and the collaboration of culture and celebration should be the main goal of a World Cup. Yet before it has even begun, Qatar 2022 has been overshadowed by the violation of human rights and subsequently, a high volume of deaths. Although it is unconfirmed, deaths are estimated at 6,500.
As the World Cup approaches, the scrutiny surrounding it is intensifying. Many have called for boycotting the event entirely, and social marketing campaigns have targeted increasing public knowledge of the human rights violations.
As every World Cup nears, kit providers combine with their represented country to provide a new marketable kit which their team will wear at the tournament. Normally, the design that is created is used to tempt consumers to buy the jersey, in support of the nation.
Abnormally, Denmark’s kit sponsor, Hummel, are using their jerseys to demonstrate their opposition to Qatar’s human rights breaches. Their kit management technique has embraced a global social marketing campaign to attempt to influence change on how the tournament of Qatar is viewed.
Both the home shirt and the away disguise patterns of the Danish national team badge and the Hummel sponsorship badge. A statement by Hummel raised that the camouflaging of both objectifies a wish to not be “visible during a tournament that has cost thousands of people their lives.” These toned-down, plain shirts support Denmark’s identity and past success, whilst targeting Qatar’s mispractices.
Hummel have explained that they “believe that sport should bring people together. And when it doesn’t, we want to make a statement.” Denmark are using their third kit to reject any claim of unity through Qatar’s event. Presenting an all-black kit to display negative views on the fatalities caused over poor human rights, directing support to those who have lost their lives, with the implementation of a shirt in the ‘colour of mourning’.
The Danish Football Federation requested the usage of a training kit supporting pro-human rights in the tournament. Featuring the slogan ‘Human Rights for All’, Denmark has wished to use “a jersey with a very simple message about universal human rights” to rescind support for Qatar.
The world football’s governing body has rejected the design, citing a prohibition of all political messages. Instead, the governing body requested that Denmark’s team keep the “focus on football.”
Despite the rejection, the other three statement kits ensure the death of migrants is not forgotten amidst the World Cup, remaining forefront in the minds of spectators while watching Denmark.
Imagine placing these famous people in chronological order of birthdate: Taylor swift, Henry VII and Marilyn Monroe. How did you picture it? Was it on a line from left to right, right to left, vertically or not on a line at all? Your answer most likely depends on the languages you speak!
A fascinating area of cognitive science is dedicated to studying how language affects the way you think about the fourth dimension of the universe: time.
It’s about time
Time is inherently difficult for the human brain to comprehend. Great scientists, such as Einstein and Lorentz, dedicated much of their work throughout the 20th century to understating the fourth dimension of our world. Laid out in Einstein’s infamous papers comes the destruction of the universality of time. Time is key to investigating the nature of the universe, and is not as simple as it seems at first glance.
Even the basic concept of time having some inherent direction is difficult for our brains to process. Unlike dimensions of space, which are multi-directional (left and right, forward and backward, and up and down), we can only move forward in time. We can also only see the past, with the future remaining invisible to us.
It makes sense that throughout the evolution of language, humans have coined metaphors that link time events to spatial events to help us feel more comfortable with picturing time. These metaphors, limited by the language you speak, have been shown to have a profound effect on the way you picture time.
Boroditsky extended this to other languages and found that Hebrew speakers, who read their language from right to left, typically order events on a timeline from right to left. Mandarin speakers follow the way ancient Chinese texts were read, placing events on a vertical timeline from top to bottom. Metaphors for time in Mandarin follow suit, with the word ‘xia’, used to mean ‘next’, translating literally as ‘down’.
Timelines or Time volumes?
Time intervals are often difficult to visualise, so other phrases which are easier to understand are therefore applied to durations of time. In English, Swedish, and many other languages, durations of time are given in length units for example; a ‘long’ or ‘short’ time. In contrast, in Spanish, they are assigned volumes with ‘big’ or ‘small’ time.
Athanasopoulos found that Swedish people’s estimations were mostly determined by how much the line had grown, whereas Spanish speakers focused on the volume filled. This is consistent with their respective linguistic associations of time with length, and time with volume.
The experiment was repeated with bilingual Swedish and Spanish speakers. It was found that when the Spanish word for a period of time, ‘duracion’ was flashed on the screen, the results were the same as those for Spanish monolinguists. Likewise, when the Swedish word ‘tid’ was flashed up, the results matched those of Swedish monolinguists. This provides evidence that linguistic context affects the thinking of bilingual individuals.
Need for diversity in science
Time is one of the most perplexing areas of modern science and poses difficulties to the unification of physics into one consistent theory. Language clearly plays an important role in the way that time is viewed, pictured, and understood.
It seems clear that linguistic diversity in science could help deepen our physical understanding of the universe. Different approaches of picturing and comprehending time could make the confusing and unintuitive nature of time itself more approachable.
Is it now time for a new wave of development in the physical understanding of time, driven by a more diverse and multicultural generation of physicists than existed a century ago?
Rihanna has spent the past four years extending her empire beyond the music industry and into the world of fashion with her lingerie brand Savage x Fenty. This year’s fashion show was set to feature a surprise guest. However, ahead of its release, TMZ leaked that the surprise guest would be none other than Johnny Depp.
The actor, who spent most of the past two years in courtrooms with his ex-wife Amber Heard battling libel and defamation cases, was the “star” of the show modelling the brand’s first men’s collection. So what does this mean for Rihanna, her brand, and Depp himself?
Despite Depp losing his libel case in March 2021, he won his defamation case in June of this year and consequently, The Guardian reported, “the once-disgraced actor [is] being rehabilitated by the entertainment industry.” This year alone, Depp has appeared in August’s MTV Video Music Awards and Dior resumed screening his Sauvage Eau de Parfum advert. This means that the actor is well on his way to regaining his place back in mainstream pop culture.
It’s no secret that Hollywood loves a redemption arc. We have famously seen with Robert Downey Jr, and we are currently witnessing one with Brad Pitt, following accusations by ex-wife Angelina Jolie of abuse on a private plane. Could this be the revival of Johnny Depp that he has been waiting for?
Before we get to that, Depp isn’t the only one facing a renaissance this year as Rihanna herself is also making a comeback. After focusing on her beauty and lingerie brands, the singer has earned herself billionaire status – making her Barbados’ first billionaire. However, after six years of radio silence in the music industry, Rihanna released her first song ‘Lift Me Up’ for the new Black Panther movie: Wakanda Forever. She will also be performing at next year’s Super Bowl.
There has been no explanation from Rihanna or the Savage x Fenty brand as to why Depp is starring in ‘Vol. 4’, but it was reported that it was Rihanna’s own idea. The cameo had already been filmed before the news was leaked but there’s no doubt that the other stars such as Cara Delevingne and Taraji P. Henson will, “fall under his shadow.”
Rihanna’s fan base is known for being loyal, but could this cameo be a test of such? The singer herself was a victim of a violent attack by then-boyfriend Chris Brown which brings into question her reasons for featuring Depp in her brand’s fashion show. Especially since Amber Heard’s lawyers are calling for a retrial.
Vanity Fairargues that, “[c]ourting controversy has never been for her,” which does little to explain her decision. They say that both Depp and Rihanna might even benefit in the short term as his fans are equally if not more “powerfully vocal and loyal” than hers.
Whilst I can’t argue with Hollywood redemption tales and fanbase loyalty, is there a wider implication for featuring Depp in her fashion show? It’s rather a grey area since both parties were accused of alleged abuse during their divorce in 2018, and Depp won his defamation case but lost his libel case.
Moreover, Depp is already set to make comebacks both behind the scenes and on screen, which suggests that Rihanna’s stunt would have little to impact this. I, myself, however can’t help but wonder why she chose to do so in the first place – but I suppose sadly we’re never likely to find out.
