Month: November 2022

The Ocean at the End of the Lane: In conversation with Eleri B. Jones

Written by Rosemary Russett on 21st November 2022. Posted in Theatre.

After seven months at the National Theatre in London, The Ocean at the End of the Lane is embarking UK and Ireland tour. Ahead of its regional premiere, at The Lowry in Salford, I talked to the play’s Resident Director, Eleri B. Jones, about returning to Manchester, the joy of theatre, and what a Resident Director does.

Eleri first trained as an actor at the University of Manchester, but even from a young age, she was involved in amateur dramatics: “I’ve always been involved in theatre,” she tells me. When I ask what prompted her to become a director, she explains how it was more of a process than an instant decision: “I was always on the directing team [in amateur dramatics]. But I think I hadn’t given myself permission.” It was not until people pointed out that she had accidentally started an artists collective that Eleri began to recognise herself as a director.

Now, until September 2023, she is Resident Director of The Ocean at the End of the Lane, based on the book of the same name by Neil Gaiman, which is visiting 29 cities and towns across the UK and Ireland.

First, to ask what a Resident Director actually does.

“I’m going on tour with the show, maintaining artistic quality, supporting the illusion, puppetry and movement teams. I’m also in charge of understudies.” It seems like a massive job! Ultimately, it is about making sure the show is “embedded in the theatre”, since each theatre has a slightly different space. This is especially challenging since the show is a hugely technical one, using a range of effects to immerse the audience.

For added difficulty, the actors only arrive in Manchester on the day of the first show. “We’ll arrive around midday on the Tuesday, do a technical rehearsal, maybe a dress rehearsal, and then we perform on Tuesday evening.”

Eleri has performed at The Lowry before, but she tells me, “This is my first time in the main house [the Lyric Theatre].” Although it is a big project, she seems excited to be starting in Manchester and directing in a staple Manchester theatre. “I can’t wait to be back!”

This first series of shows makes up the previews, and while the tickets are often cheaper, they are no less exciting. “At this stage, we’re still making adjustments, we’re rehearsing between shows. They’re really unique shows.” An audience that sees one of these first performances may see something never performed quite that way again. But this is true to an extent for all theatre. As Eleri says, “It’s always a work in progress; it’s what I love about theatre.”

But back to this piece specifically. What is The Ocean at the End of the Lane about? Well, summed up in a few sentences: “It’s about friendship, about adventure, about growing-up. It’s about learning to overcome the obstacles that life puts in your way. It also has these sci-fi elements.”

As Resident Director, Eleri is also on the learning team, talking to teachers and young people about the play. But she insists that it’s not just a play for children. “I really believe there’s something for everybody. The play has a relationship with memory. It’s about childhood, but it also has these big technical spectacles!”

The play is set in Sussex, a setting which begs for a Sussex accent. I ask about the importance of representation of dialects and accents, especially from a theatre such as the National Theatre, where people might expect to mainly hear RP English.

“It’s even more important than ever that people feel involved in the National,” Eleri explains.“Especially for rural communities, it’s such an important thing to be doing. It’s what makes the theatre national.” The commitment to accent shows the range of work the creative team is putting in to make the whole piece feel authentic and truly a piece of fantasy set in Sussex.

Finally, what could follow this tour? Although she has a lot of creative projects in the works, Eleri confides that first, “I think I’m going to go on holiday.” After a nine-month tour and 29 venues, I can only say that I think she will have deserved it!

The Ocean at the End of the Lane is at The Lowry from December 12 until January 8 – the first stop of its UK and Ireland tour, which ends in late September 2023.

Natsu Fest review: From a back garden to Academy 3

Written by Lucy on 20th November 2022. Posted in Music.

This year Natsu Fest burst onto the Manchester student music scene, coming to Academy 3 for it’s second year (the first being in the back garden of a student house). It shaped up to be an absolute hit, taking the audience through five glorious hours of smooth jazz, bouncing beats, and soulful melodies. If you do not already know what Natsu Fest is, then keep reading.

When I came round the corner and entered through the doors to Academy 3, I was greeted by smooth beats and funky rhythms carefully chosen to play in between sets, to perfectly settle you into the right vibe for the rest of the night. We headed to the bar to get a drink and stood near the front just in for time for Begum‘s set.

Begum, a student at Manchester, performs a beautiful half an hour set of RnB and Soul. Her vocals were stunning and moving as she started off with a cover of Lauryn Hill. She then took the audience through some more wonderfully performed songs dedicated to various people in her life, making the emotion in her voice and performance feel even more special. Towards the end of her set, after finding out one of her backing tracks was incorrect, she performed a stunning feat of acapella. By now the crowd were well and truly warmed up, and after enjoying a calmer set, it was about time we got some groove.

10 minutes later, DJ Hass took to the stage. Hailing from Manchester, DJ Hass started his set off with a drum and bass track intertwined with South Asian music, making for what already should be a dance floor classic. At this point, the crowd was already buzzing and moving. For the rest of his set, DJ Hass smoothly remixed various pop and hip-hop samples into his beats. These tracks and remixes felt like the perfect balance of drum and bass and mainstream music, keeping those less into dance music familiar whilst still providing some great beats to get down to. My favourite part of the set was his remix of Rihanna‘s Rude Boy.

The crowd was more than settled into the night as we entered into the headlining act, Messy Bao and Saint Nusu: collaborative duo that sees Messy Bao lay out smooth bouncing beats as Saint Nusu raps over with crisp precision. The quality of their performance and music was incredible – soulful but electronic, smooth and jazzy melodies alongside bop-inducing beats. The quality and stage presence was truly professional; you can tell they have truly honed their craft. I would highly recommend checking out their album Messy Nusu. Their set hit a nice mark between high points of energy that got the crowd grooving, and soft points of emotional lyricism that moved some of the set into an atmosphere of hair-raising poignance.

Mixle closed the night with some beats to leave the crowd dancing into the early hours. His set was formed of high energy dance tracks mixed across some dance classics. Both Mixle and DJ Hass are a part of the collective @anthro.mcr.

Natsu Fest proved that students know how to organise a music event, and know how to get people down and moving. I am already looking forward to the next one.

You can find out more about Natsu Fest here.

Review: Rodgers + Hammerstein’s Cinderella

Written by Jay Darcy on 20th November 2022. Posted in Theatre.

Last year, Hope Mill Theatre’s holiday musical was The Wiz – a whole decade after it last played in the UK. This year, they were even more ambitious: they have produced and directed the European premiere of Rodgers + Hammerstein’s Cinderella.

Though that might be quite the tough task, anybody who has ever seen a Hope Mill Theatre production will have had high expectations – especially after their critically acclaimed adaptation of The Wiz.

This was actually my first ever Hope Mill Theatre press night. I attended The Wiz on a different night, and sadly I did not get chance to see Passion, so it was exciting just being there – but especially because this is the European premiere of a Rodgers and Hammerstein musical!

Grace Mouat. Photo: Pamela Raith Photography

It never fails to surprise me what the creatives at Hope Mill Theatre manage to do with such a small, intimate space. They produce full-blown Broadway musicals in what is, essentially, a black box studio – significantly smaller than my high school drama studio!

But the creatives strive to make us forget the real-life setting, especially in this production – there was even a curtain covering the stage, a convention in bigger theatres that I have never before seen in a studio. It was a sweet touch that added a feeling of majesty to the production – before it even began.

The curtain stayed down for the beginning of the opening number, with impressive visuals projected on to it – and when the curtain lifted, they continued to be projected on the wall at the back. Projections and moving images are becoming more common in musical theatre, and for a small theatre like Hope Mill – that does not have the capacity for whopping pieces of set – they really help bring the story to life.

Julie Yammanee and Grace Mouat. Photo: Pamela Raith Photography

The ensemble-led opening was followed by a scene in the forest, lead by Prince Topher (Jacob Fowler of Since September, who I recently interviewed), who was accompanied by an entourage. An hilarious moment came when his soldiers put their shields together to make the image of an horse. It was a creative, cost-efficient way to bring a horse into the action, and the audience loved it.

The production poked fun at itself when the stage span around to reveal the actors behind the shields. The actors realised they had been seen by the audience, and that the horse was no longer visible, so they freaked out. It was a brilliant breaking of the fourth wall that created a pantomime-esque feeling for this holiday musical.

Jacob Fowler and the company. Photo: Pamela Raith Photography

Some of the set pieces, however, were pretty splendid, such as the golden carriage (moving images were used to show the pumpkin transforming into the carriage, before stencil-like set pieces came together to form a carriage).

Whilst Cinderella was riding the carriage, a couple of actors came onstage with small models of the horse and carriage; they whirled them around, creating a wonderful, whimsical atmosphere. There were so many clever creative decisions that made this production feel special and unique, no matter how small and “alternative” they were.

Some of the costumes were a little pantomime-y (the Stepsisters’ dresses were wonderfully whacky, but some of the supposedly gorgeous gowns were a little gaudy) but, for the most part, they were beautifully designed.

I particularly enjoyed all of the ballgowns at the, well, ball, and I loved the creative decision to leave Cinderella without a mask. She has been magically transformed from a bumpkin into a Princess, until the clock strikes 12: that is the mask, or, rather, the guise. But will the Prince still love Cinderella when he sees the real her? we wonder.

I could talk about the dazzling design forever, but I must also comment on the incredible cast.

Grace Mouat and the company. Photo: Pamela Raith Photography

The cast is lead by Grace Mouat, who is best-known for being a swing in the original West End and touring production of Six and the world premiere of & Juliet (in Manchester, before transferring to the West End).

Mouat injured herself during Cinderella‘s second preview, and whilst she completed the show (for the show must go on!), she had to take time to recover, and her understudy stepped in. The press night was thus postponed by almost a fortnight, allowing Mouat time to recover and step back into the role.

Having seen Mouat twice before (when I saw Six, she played Catherine Parr, my favourite character), I had high expectations, and she did not let me down. She has the voice of an angel and the charisma of a fairy. She’s a star-in-the-making, and I’m thrilled to see her finally getting the recognition that she deserves.

The male lead, Prince Topher, is played by the aforementioned Jacob Fowler. Fowler’s voice is warm, rich and powerful, and he was extremely likeable as the refreshingly not-so-princely Prince. The Prince might not be “Charming”, but Jacob sure is.

Rather than “Charming”, this Prince goes by: His Royal Highness Christopher Rupert Vwindemier Vlandamier Carl Alexander Francois Reginald Lancelot Herman Gregory James, or “Topher” for short!

His full-name was sang many times, sometimes accompanied by grandiose descriptions and honorific titles, such as “slayer of dragons” and “no friend to gargoyles”. Whilst Topher tired of hearing his ridiculously long name sang over and over again, I never did!

Grace Mouat and Julie Yammanee. Photo: Pamela Raith Photography

The Fairy Godmother (aka “Crazy Marie”) is played by an Australian actress of East Asian ancestry (as I like to say, representAsian): Julie Yammanee (Here Lies Love – original UK cast; Bonnie & Clyde The Musical In Concert). Her powerhouse vocals blew the audience away.

Annie Aitken, Grace Mouat and a member of the company. Photo: Pamela Raith Photography

My loyalty always lies with the female villain, and I’ve always loved the Wicked Stepmother. Annie Aitken did not disappoint as Madame. She possessed a delicious, devious gravitas, and you could not help but love (to hate) her.

Like Yammanee, Aitken is Aussie, and she has had a successful career over there, starring in the original casts of Muriel’s Wedding and Melba (as Melba) and the original Australian cast of A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder. It’s an honour to now have her gracing British theatres!

Katie Ramshaw, Annie Aitken and Olivia-Faith Kamau. Photo: Pamela Raith Photography

The stepsisters, meanwhile, are played by the charismatic Katie Ramshaw (Charlotte) and the endearing Olivia-Faith Kamau (Gabrielle).

Charlotte is your typical pantomime-y stepsister, but the 2013 Broadway production has completely reimagined Gabrielle. Whilst even Disney made one of the stepsisters sympathetic (in Cinderella 2, Anastacia falls in love with a baker, much to her mother’s chagrin), this production renders Gabrielle a secondary protagonist – and a victim of her mother’s wicked schemes.

Thus, the iconic number ‘Stepsister’s Lament’ (my favourite number in the piece) is performed by Charlotte and the other women longing for the Prince, with no Gabrielle. At first, I wasn’t sure what to think, but the chemistry between the competing damsels was so captivating that I was quickly sold; I think this version might actually be better.

The reimagining of Gabrielle is but one refreshing change in the 2013 Broadway production. The most noticeable is, of course, the theme of social justice: Gabrielle falls in love with a revolutionary (even worse than a baker), and Cinderella opens the Prince’s eyes to the injustice in the Kingdom, caused by the Prince’s corrupt regent, who has been ruling since the demise of his parents.

Jacob Fowler and Grace Mouat. Photo: Pamela Raith Photography

The production also seeks to make Cinderella more of an active heroin, and it achieves that, in part, through three small twists, which involve the glass slipper (at the ball, the banquet, and, yes, even the slipper-wearing ceremony).

Save for the little twist at the end of the first act, the plot so far had followed the original quite closely. Just before the second act began, my friend, Sally, joked, “I wonder what happens next,” for everyone knows the story of Cinderella – but not this story.

I bumped into Jacob during post-show drinks and repeated a conversation we’d had in our interview about classic musicals, such as Rodgers and Hammerstein productions, feeling dated and irrelevant. We both agreed that musicals should be updated tastefully and cleverly, and this production succeeds in doing that. It breathes new life into a story that we have heard time and time again. We can still appreciate the timeless story and the tantalising music – but it feels relevant.

Cinderella runs at Hope Mill Theatre until December 11.

Review: Pretending by Holly Bourne

Written by Imogen Mingos on 20th November 2022. Posted in Books.

Trigger warning: Discusses sexual assault

As a teenager in secondary school, I loved Holly Bourne’s young adult fiction books such as Are we all just lemmings and snowflakes? so I was very excited when I heard of her new adult book Pretending, despite not really knowing what to expect from it.

I adored this book! I devoured it! It was everything I had been looking for and more to get me out of a reading slump. It left me thinking about it for days and telling all my friends to read it. It was my five-star read for the summer. If you’re not quite convinced that it’s for you yet, then let me explain.

Pretending focuses on April – a pretty and normal woman who can never make it past date five. After heartbreak upon heartbreak and trauma from a previous relationship, April wishes she could be more like Gretel: men’s ideal girl. So that’s exactly what happens. Overnight she turns herself into the perfect woman and that makes dating much more fun. She’s finally the one in control. But how long can she keep it that way? How long can she keep on pretending?

“Maybe you are pretending to be a woman everyone else is pretending to be too?”

I found Bourne’s writing both poignant and witty which made it easy to read but didn’t detract from the important subject matter. The protagonist herself is formidable and I thought she was a really interesting character to share her point of view from. Even though the plot may sound shallow like the classic protagonist makeover to get the guy, Pretending was anything but.

The book felt empowering and introduced a necessary, well-written discourse on sexual assault today. I rarely cry when reading but it was hard not to with this novel. A must-read as we approach Reclaim the Night in Manchester.

52 Forgotten Women: Why you should read Bygone Badass Broads.

Written by Megan Bailey on 18th November 2022. Posted in Books.

Mackenzi Lee’s Bygone Badass Broads: 52 Forgotten Women Who Changed the World, is an empowering tale of struggle and success through a female historical lens. In honour of Reclaim the Night, let’s dig into the book and why you should be reading it.

Having graduated with a BA in History, Lee details 52 stories of women who have left huge imprints on society through both humanitarian acts and technological pursuits. From women living in the ancient world to women who altered the trajectory of modern times, here are some personal favourites from the collection.

Agnodice

Scared that women might perform secret abortions, the ancient Greeks did not permit female physicians or medical trainees. Lee writes of a woman named Agnodice who was so desperate in her mission to be a doctor, that she cut her hair and posed as a man in order to aid women in need.

After being caught, Agnodice was sentenced to death, but a rally of women who she had helped came to the rescue, not only freeing her but allowing her to continue practising medicine.

Thinking of this story from a modern-day perspective allows us to value womanhood and the ways in which women support one another. Whether it’s hyping each other up in club toilets or supporting those who need it most, Agnodice and her patients are a true example of what it means to be a woman.

Mary Anning

Born in England, Mary Anning was fascinated by gathering and collecting fossils. During one of her endeavours, she found and identified a complete Ichthyosaur skeleton which was later sold to the Museum of Natural History.

Not only was this mind-blowing because it challenged ideas proposed by the Bible and suggested new notions of dinosaurs, but because Mary was just twelve years old at the time. The self-taught expert in palaeontology discovered more and more breakthroughs but struggled against men who fought to discredit her. Her story is both frustrating and inspiring to young women hoping to achieve their goals, especially those in male-dominated fields.

Lakshmibai

This story begins when Lakshmibai’s husband became ill and – with no heir to succeed him – adopted a son to reign after his death. When this happened, however, the East India Company refused to recognise this rule as legitimate and annexed Jhansi (the region of India in which Lakshmibai and her son were the head of).

The British did not quite plan for her open revolt and retaking of Jhansi which would come. Lakshmibai continued to lead alongside her son, exempting the poor from taxes and selling her jewellery to pay her soldiers. Though the story ends with her losing her territory to the British, Lakshmibai remains a true symbol of women, especially women of colour, rising up against systems that seek to oppress them.

These are just three of fifty-two amazing women spoken about in Lee’s book. The writing style is witty, and sarcastic and makes reading these wonderful stories all the more powerful. With the most beautiful illustrations by Petra Eriksson next to each woman’s tale, there is so much to reflect on after reading.

Adidas presents SPEZIAL F.C. footwear exhibition at Circle Square Manchester

Written by Erin Osman on 18th November 2022. Posted in Lifestyle.

Adidas is hosting a free exhibition of its football-themed footwear throughout the ages at Circle Square Manchester, open to the public from 18 – 27 November. Displaying the shoes worn by football heroes like David Beckham and Edwin van der Ser, Manchester’s Adidas Spezial F.C. exhibition is celebrating decades-worth of Adidas history within the beautiful game.

The exhibition is open daily from 12-8 PM, with free admission, World Cup match screenings, and exclusive performances from artists, including Happy Mondays, Liam Fray, and Confidence Man, in collaboration with venue CANVAS. Just minutes away from campus, this is the perfect post-lecture treat for football fans (coinciding quite seasonally with the FIFA World Cup).

The displays include iconic Adidas shoes like the ‘Samba’ and the ‘Gazelle’, both purposed initially as football training shoes, now reappropriated for mainstream consumption. The displays showcase the history behind these developments — from the pitch to the streets, each shoe has a fascinating backstory.

Walking between the displays, you will see shoes quite literally star-studded with the signatures of Noel Gallagher, Steven Gerrard, David Beckham, and Edwin van der Sar. In the centre of the exhibition, World Cup footballs are lined chronologically, spanning from the 1978 World Cup in Argentina to the present day. The exhibition also features unreleased 2023 shoe samples plus END. clothing collaborations.

The exhibition is free, but donations to the Manchester Young Community Champions Charity are welcome. MYCC is a non-profit organisation supporting young children in Manchester through sporting activities. The charity has given children the platform to make new friends, express themselves, and engage with their local communities.

So, if you’ve reached an afternoon and find yourself wandering aimlessly up and down Oxford Road, why not pop into this free exhibition? One thing is for sure — I have never seen so many shoes behind glass cases in the same place at once. It’s a treat for football and fashion fans in Manchester and not one to miss!

Representation still represents a problem for Labour

Written by Susannah Leigh on 18th November 2022. Posted in Opinion.

Is the current Labour Party the new ‘all-boys’ club of British politics?

Truthfully, probably not as much as their rivals. But let’s look at why, despite proclaiming to champion peoples’ power in an age of identity politics, Labour is doing even worse than the Conservative Party when it comes to diversity at the top. After all, what better way could there be of highlighting the shortcomings of Labour on diversity at the top than by ceding that the Conservatives — notoriously white and male — are doing better on this issue?

Among the Conservative candidates in the leadership contest of July 2022, five out of eight contenders were from ethnic minority backgrounds, four were women, and only two out of eight were white and male. In the last Labour leadership race, back in 2020, although four out of the six initial candidates (Angela Rayner, Lisa Nandy, Emily Thornberry, and Jess Phillips) were female, all candidates bar Nandy were white. Significantly, a white man won.

Under Conservative majority rule, we have our first Asian prime minister, who recently took the reins from the UK’s third female prime minister who premiered in a Conservative Government, as did the first and second. The race saw diversities beyond gender and ethnic background categories: Sunak takes part in active Hindu practice, Nadhim Zawahi was a former refugee, Braverman is Buddhist (yes, the same Braverman who champions the programme to send refugees from the UK to Rwanda) and Tom Tugendhat describes himself as “Jew-ish”.

Let’s be clear: this is a tokenistic way to think about equality. Margaret Thatcher, the first female British Prime Minister, was hardly on frontlines burning bra’s – she only appointed one woman to her cabinet in all eleven years of premiership. Journalist Hadley Freeman has written of her “notable lack of female-friendly policies, her utter lack of interest in childcare provision or positive action”.

40 years later, Sunak’s win, despite marking the occasion of our first Asian prime minister, is hardly a soaring victory for ethnic minorities. His soaring wealth and secluded Waugh-harking upbringing has left many of us watching dumbfounded, the interview in which Sunak claims to have no working-class mates doing nothing to ease our cynicism.

So, we concede that there is little, if any, depth to the tokenistic diversity at the top of the Conservative party. However deep or shallow, they do have that undeniable gain on the Labour Party. The party which has championed “nearly all the (UK’s) equality legislation”, has never had a non-male and non-white leader of the party. “I think society in the main has moved on but Jacob Rees-Mogg and BoJo are in a bubble laughing at women”, so said Labour’s shadow women and equalities secretary, Dawn Butler, just before the 2019 election. The rumble of misogyny and xenophobia has long been attributed as implicit in the very functioning of the Conservative Party, and it still is. But, if this is the case, then what could Labour’s excuse possibly be for their lack of diversity at the top when the Conservatives this year saw a pool of candidates comprising 50 percent of those from ethnic minority backgrounds?

An insider at the Labour Party’s grassroots campaign has talked about a misogynistic attitude at the lower level in Labour toward women who seem to be ambitious about ascending the political ladder. Women are seen as engaging in social climbing — a common misogynistic trope — for taking the necessary routes to ascend in the party, which their male counterparts do not receive criticism for. This is a point much too unexplored, perhaps because it is an entirely judgement-based view, which, like other feminist plights of this kind, makes it all the more difficult to address.

It hardly seems like access is the largest issue; we saw Corbyn introduce the first shadow cabinet which had more female members than male. The issue here is really with ascension. It would also make sense that the discriminatory views associated with the Conservative Party might make way for the privilege of sheer ambition — a core value in the Conservative Party’s ideology of innovative expansion and economic growth — and thus allow a woman or somebody from an ethnic minority background to succeed, given the right resources, despite underlying prejudices. It should be clear by now that the Labour Party has a lot to answer for about the discrepancy between their ethos, ideology, and the reality of who they are allowing to play with them in their political playground.

Review: Be Home Soon (UMDS)

Written by Witiko Grevel on 18th November 2022. Posted in Theatre, Societies.

The UoM Drama Society makes a grand entrance with its first performance of Be Home Soon. Their first play of the academic year is written and directed by Liliana Newsam-Smith. The heart-warming story follows a young lost soul named Raf (Arran Kemp) who moves in with a stranger and begins to unpack his life with the help of friends new and old.

The play quite neatly begins with Raf bringing a painting onstage and placing it in a central position on an easel. This painting of a masked couple in each other’s arms stays on stage throughout the play. Looking in on Raf, the painting reveals itself to be a part of him and his struggles.

Spoilers ahead:

The intimate studio space allows the audience to indulge in the intricate plot line between Raf’s affectionate relationship with Mel (Evie Carricker) and his awkward bonding with his new flatmate Kaya (Natalia Leaper), seamlessly woven together. One slowly realises that Raf is trying miserably to move on in life. Despite something horrid that continues to haunt him about his past relationship.

Relying on a multi-purpose set, designer – Flora Scutt worked together with directors Liliana Newsam-Smith and Calima Lunt Gomez to introduce more of Raf’s furniture throughout the play beautifully gradually. A visual signifier perhaps of a slow unpacking of the main character. As he attempts self-therapy and reassembles his many memories with the ambition to move on with his life.

Raf appears equally glum before and after his relationship. When he is confronted by his absurd and impulsive girlfriend Mel, he appears stiff and introverted to say the least. She metaphorically carries him on her back to a date in France. Where they may begin a delightfully pleasant relationship with picnic blankets, star gazing, and high hopes for a living.

Similarly, his flatmate Kaya virtually jumps up out of nowhere to shock and disappoint Raf. She explains that he’ll need to socialise with yet another extroverted girl, this time bubbly and giddy. She ambushes him with help, coffee, and almost-one-sided quality bonding time. Raf doesn’t endeavour to reveal much of his past to her. Raf’s behaviour full of apathy and lethargy at this point reminded me much off how I had become after six months of lockdown in 2020.

Unlike Kaya, we the audience learn more about Raf and witness significant events from his past and quite a personal relationship. We start to see Raf’s character surprisingly loosen up to the sentimental song ‘Darling Be Home Soon’ by The Lovin’ Spoonful. He enjoys his time with his girlfriend and they become quite tipsy. Raf discusses the meaninglessness of his life in an almost Monty Pythonesque examination of the universe. Mel brings him back to Earth, reminding him that his little corner of the universe is immensely important to his tiny self.

They proceed to spar with wooden cooking spoons and colander helmets. No caring, simply enjoying their time together. This moment required expert choreography. Avoiding many potentially catastrophic stubbed toes, hit funny bones, and impaled backs on the very closely assembled and sharply cornered wooden furniture. After enough waiting, the couple realises that they are attracted to each other. They dare to follow through on their fourth kissing attempt and take off the colanders. Raf has truly let himself be liberated.

A return to the present day and Raf clumsily let Kaya see a picture of Mel. Then she sees a few more until she understands his backstory and the tragic end of his relationship, and Mel. She invites and encourages him to join her and her friends at the pub. A night of fun to cheer him up but despite her desperate attempts, he opts to mope at home.

Raf’s last memories with Mel show a struggle between them, followed by a seemingly forced amends. Raf chastises Mel for always avoiding reality. He blames her for supporting his ambitions as an artist which turned out unsuccessful much to the distaste of the Drama and Film students in the audience. Raf and Mel still manage to hug and make up.

Raf decides to pick up the phone and arranges to meet Kaya at the pub. As he leaves, he sees his faithful memory of Mel smiling over at him from his half-unpacked boxes. He has dealt with his memories to the point that he can look back fondly, without pain. His self-therapy has taught him he need not fear the past. Instead, he may enjoy the memories he has and try to make some new ones. As his resolution comes to light the dreamy tender song ‘Darling Be Home Soon’ returns and accompanies him out the door, and later the audience too.

An interesting aspect of this play is that although the supposed main character is Raf, most of the scenes end up focusing on Mel or Kaya. Their characters seem more animated or developed, occupying more space on stage and in the script. This effect means that Raf only takes over the reins halfway through the play when he finally has something to say. Perhaps this helps symbolise Raf taking control over his life again.

The limited use of music brought more significance to Raf’s rare states of contentment, the peace within himself and his tumultuous past. Its use in the ending also brought a hopefulness that with the substantial support from his new flatmate, he will open up. Once again having fun and developing a positive outlook on life. And not the email kind.

Overall, I must admit that this play showed real promise and it delivered. The acting and directing around the design all worked superbly together. They formed a very intriguing and delightful story that the Drama Society should be proud of. This first night was successful to the point of an immediate standing ovation. I let that speak for itself.

Musk Off: Why Twitter’s acquisition won’t save discussion

Written by Ashwin Venkatakrishnan on 18th November 2022. Posted in Opinion.

On October 28, Elon Musk confirmed his purchase of Twitter, proudly tweeting on his (yes, his) app that “the bird is freed”. This brings an end to the incessant legal saga keenly followed by the troop of tech geeks and try-hard investors I happen to be friends with.

Just before the deal was finalised, Musk elaborated on his desire to create a “common digital town square” and prevent societal division. He bemoaned the polarisation of traditional media and insisted that his purchase was to “help humanity”. Talk about a hero complex. Nevertheless, it is only fair we give him the chance to “help”.

So far, he is failing. Miserably. Since Musk’s acquisition, Twitter users have been migrating to apps with warmer climates. The Guardian reports that a flock of left-leaning Northern Cardinals seem to enjoy using an app called Mastodon — 70,000 of them joined the day Twitter was taken over. Meanwhile, the right-leaning blue tits might be persuaded to drift towards Parler, the app about to be purchased by Kanye West following his unceremonious banning from most social media apps. This problem appears to be translatable to other parts of the world; the humble Koel birds of India gently soar to Koo, an app that recently crossed 50 million downloads.

It is hardly newsworthy that Twitter is dying; it is one of the reasons why Musk initially wanted to buy it. But will his changes be enough to save it from irrelevance? Will Elon Musk be the soaring eagle he thinks he is, majestically rescuing Twitter from being the echo chamber we see it as? Or is he a vexing seagull with a few eagle feathers, unnecessarily dropping his excrement onto the app and worsening a bad situation?

Only time will tell. Regardless, Musk was correct in highlighting the poignancy of our echo chamber-esque media culture. Left-wingers devour feed from the bird box of Novara Media, Owen Jones, or TYT. Simultaneously, right-wingers swill from the pool that is GB News, The Daily Wire, or PragerU. Meanwhile, ‘unbiased’ media outlets like the BBC and ITV are afflicted with criticism from both sides for being insufficiently ‘unbiased’ and favouring one group over another. Take this famous clip of the conservative commentator Ben Shapiro trying to attack the BBC for being too left-wing, and this article slating the BBC for being “stupidly right-wing” as proof. I guess birds of the same feather really do flock together.

Time for the next question: can Musk ‘fix’ political discourse?

No. he can’t. More importantly, I don’t believe we want him to. People may spew ineloquent wanton gobbets on polarising politics, but they don’t believe what they say. The main aspect of the digital age is the ability to consume the information we want, when we want. We get to separate our juicy mealworms from our off-brand sunflower seeds. We want to surround ourselves with people who congratulate us for our brilliance and share our worldview. In short, we like being in an echo chamber, and the polarisation of politics is a natural consequence of this.

I like debate. I also like being an insufferable know-it-all. Most people, however, are resistant to disagreement. I don’t blame them. When the purpose of political discussion is victory over understanding, when getting intellectually trounced is the alternative to internet fame, what remotely sane human being would share their opinions in a public forum? This creates a space for the divisive attention seekers to dominate discussions, allowing the greatest agitators to revel in our breed’s disagreements with them. As long as we continue to coddle ourselves in nests with eggs of the same feather, we will find ourselves conned by vultures preying on our search for security.

I am going to end this article now; I just don’t know enough about birds to continue using clever analogies. The only thing left to do is to sum up my view with something cheeky and memorable, so here goes:

The Twitter bird may be free, but so is a pigeon in Piccadilly Gardens. And I don’t think much of pigeons.

Live review: Courtney Barnett gives fans a religious experience at Albert Hall

Written by The Mancunion on 18th November 2022. Posted in Music.

Words by Carolyn Pickering

This past Friday (November 11), I was fortunate enough to attend Courtney Barnett‘s first headline show in Manchester since 2018. As a long-time fan who has never had the chance to see her live, I spent most of my week in eager anticipation. I was clearly not alone; her return was met with great enthusiasm from a diverse crowd who sold out Manchester’s Albert Hall.

The Australian singer-songwriter first appeared on the indie rock scene in 2013 with her EP How to Carve a Carrot into a Rose, followed by her critically acclaimed successive studio-length albums Sometimes I Sit and Think, and Sometimes I Just Sit and Tell Me How You Really Feel. Barnett’s signature blend of dominant and moody guitar with her witty, anecdotal lyrics, are even further juxtaposed through the singer’s understated and plaintive voice. These unique tensions which characterize her sound are why Barnett has remained one of the most distinctive voices in indie music for almost a decade.

Arriving at the venue (a converted 19th century chapel adorned with a wall of stain glass windows, embellished ceilings, and a massive baroque organ suspended over the band), we make our way to the front of the crowd as Barnett, radiating charisma, greets the audience. The reserved staging is lit with the same melancholic blues which make up the cover art of her latest album Things Take Time, Take Time.

The singer’s gentle nature is transformed as she strikes the first note of her guitar and falls into a rhythmic trance. Her seemingly understated all-white outfit is now luminous in the celestial glow of the stage lights, and from our view she even appears framed, saint-like, against the backdrop of one of the stained-glass scenes.

She begins her set with the melodic pairing of ‘Rae Street’ and ‘Sunfair Sundown’, the opening songs on her third album, before pivoting to the iconic opening riff of her most popular song ‘Avant Gardener’. The reaction from the audience is euphoric: everybody, no matter how far back, high up, old or young repeatedly chants the self-deprecating lyrics back to her, “I’m not that good at breathing in”.

The crowd’s elation continues with the next three songs, ‘Nameless Faceless’, ‘Need a Little Time’, and ‘Small Poppies’, which showcase the trio’s grungier guitar ensembles. At this point, Barnett introduces her long-time bandmates: Bones Sloane (bass) and Dave Mudie (drums), both of whom share the spotlight with energetic solo sections throughout.

What follows is very special. My three favourite songs ‘Depreston’, ‘City Looks Pretty’, and ‘Elevator Operator’ are played consecutively! Within the chapel setting, this may be the closest I’ll ever come to a religious experience. The enthusiasm from the crowd echoing the lyrics of ‘Depreston’ back to Barnett has the singer visibly overwhelmed. The communal atmosphere only intensifies when the soaring guitar riff of ‘City Looks Pretty’ fills the air and perfectly accompanies the moment we realise how much joy is being felt.

The spirit of her music to find the beauty in the small moments permeates the room: looking around, couples are suspended in warm embraces and friends are laughing and dancing whilst the music plays on. Barnett articulates this experience herself in ‘Here’s the Thing’: “The windowsill, is momentarily filled with sun / And it’s these small thrills, that get me through the day until the next one”.

With guitar interludes teasing the audience for what is to come, Barnett kicks off an exuberant second half with the stomping drums of ‘History Erasure’, igniting a newfound zeal in the crowd. This energy reaches its pinnacle when the fuzzy drone of the guitar introduces the first iconic lines of everyone’s favourite scream-along anthem, ‘Pedestrian at Best’: “I love you, I hate you / I’m on the fence, it all depends”.

The shared experience of releasing our pent-up angst by yelling along with Barnett seems to be intensely cathartic for both audience and performer. This symbiotic exchange is facilitated through her down to earth persona; she is clearly introverted by nature and finds an extraordinary comfort on the stage, not only embracing but returning the audience’s joy with sincerity. Out of the many gigs I have seen recently – most identifying within the post-punk genre – Barnett is a refreshing contrast to the nihilistic and apathetic image often projected towards the audience.

She is personable, and her enthusiasm for the fans shared joy in her music seems incredibly genuine. Even songs I am less familiar with were delightful! Her refusal to play into the ego of the aloof indie-rocker seems to mirror her defiant lyrics: “Put me on a pedestal and I’ll only disappoint you”.

Ending a generous 21 song setlist, Barnett comes out to endless applause for the fitting encore, ‘Before You Gotta Go’. Giving equal weight to each of her albums, including many crowd pleasers, her performance did not disappoint – she slayed! . The vivid imagery conjured up in her songwriting found extraordinary expression through her live performance, gifting audiences an unforgettable experience.

Things Take Time, Take Time is out now, and you can stream it below:

Pie Night with The Great Northern Pie Co.

Written by Hannah Wellock on 17th November 2022. Posted in Food & Drink.

There is nothing like a pie night to liven up a Thursday evening in November. My housemates and I were experiencing some winter blues which we resolved with a classic autumnal meal because after all, in pie we crust.

The Great Northern Pie company, home to award-winning traditional handcrafted pies, offers a regularly changing seasonal menu of pies which are delivered to your door and baked to pie-fection. Their menu rotates every four months with their signature Lancashire cheese and onion pie available all year round.

The pies came in perfect individual portions for a household with varying diets like ours: a meat eater, a pescetarian, and two vegetarians. And what’s more, they can be frozen and enjoyed later with the local products maintaining their fresh seasonal fillings.

It was a fun night of trying to differentiate between the pies — a lucky dip with so much at steak. Alongside our pies, we made mashed potatoes, roasted carrots, and gravy, creating the ultimate comfort meal and the perfect house family dinner. Allow me to give you a lay of the table:

First up, we have the beef mince and onion pie: Yorkshire grass-fed beef mince, roast onion puree, ale gravy, peas, redcurrant jelly, Worcestershire sauce, cinnamon and white pepper tested by the house’s resident meat eater, Isi.

This was what can only be described as a well-filled pie; whilst it lacked sauce, there was a lot of filling — a meat lover’s dream if you will. It was heavy on the beef mince and a nice alternative to your classic chunky steak and ale pie. The pie was well-balanced, although more peppery than spiced. Isi noted that as she is not a huge pea fan herself, so the low pea count was perfect, but for pea lovers, it could be disappointing. Her final notes were that she was more than satisfied by her pie, comparing it to that of a gastropub.

Next up, we have the first of the two veggie options, the spinach and cheese pie: white Chesire cheese, spinach, white sauce, star anise, and black and white sesame seeds sampled by a vegetarian Phoebe.

Phoebe’s immediate comment was that the pie had a beautifully smooth consistency and an incredible. strong cheese flavour. The spinach was more of a subtle undertone as it didn’t fully cut through the cheese and white sauce but added to the overall flavour palette of the pie. The pastry stayed together well — an essential for a pie with a creamy filling — and allowed for the perfect forkful without falling apart. Phoebe’s final comments? The pie paired very well with gravy and that she would order it again in the event of another pie night.

Last, but very much not least, is the classic Lancashire cheese and onion pie: Dewlay’s tasty Lancashire cheese, caramelised white onion, white pepper, nutmeg, and Japanese breadcrumbs which, as the token Northerner in the house, I tried myself.

This pie was the sauciest of the three, it had an incredible creaminess and a nice consistency, not too thin or thick, with gorgeous caramelised onion running through. There was a perfect amount of sauce — arguably the main component of this pie. The pastry held itself together very well which is incredibly necessary with a saucy pie — there is nothing worse than a soggy bottom. The only thing I could say is that some parts of the pastry were slightly too thick, but with the well-balanced flavours and great filling, this really wasn’t an issue.

The Great North Pie Co’s pies are available for home delivery, order boxes of four for £18 or 8 for £34 online. While they stand on being slightly expensive, they are super convenient and undoubtedly delicious every time.

English National Opera considering move to Manchester

Written by patrickwhiteford on 17th November 2022. Posted in News.

The English National Opera (ENO) has announced that it is considering moving to Manchester.

The move comes as the Arts Council shakes up its funding policies as part of “levelling up” the arts sector, a measure designed to reduce inequalities across areas in England.

The shake-up will see the company set to receive a £17 million grant over three years, instead of a £12.6 million per annum grant, to develop a “new business model” – part of which includes considering Manchester as a new home.

An ENO statement said that “Today’s [November 4] announcement marks the start of a new chapter for the English National Opera (ENO).”

The ENO has pursued a modernisation drive in recent years, citing efforts to improve diversity, digital outreach, and supporting the NHS during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Praising Arts Culture England’s decision, Culture Secretary Michelle Donelan said: “Thanks to this new government funding package, spreading more money to more communities than ever before, people living in areas from Wolverhampton to Wigan and Crawley to Chesterfield will now get to benefit from the deep economic and social rewards culture can bring.”

However, not everybody is pleased about the move. Philippa Childs, head of the broadcasting union Bectu, said she was “deeply concerned” by the impacts of the announcement. She said that the ENO and other institutions represented, including the Royal Opera House, now faced the “uncertainty” of a move out of London.

Hugh Morris, arts journalist for publications such as the New York Times, the Financial Times, and The Guardian, tweeted that it would take a “significant change of fortunes” for the English National Opera to find success in Manchester.

Speaking from a Manchester perspective, reckon it's gonna take a significant change of fortunes to develop an audience for opera in the city, given Opera North's existing presence, and the reduced numbers post-Covid at comparable classical gigs.https://t.co/nkdGAjGs2b
— Hugh Morris (@hwfmorris) November 4, 2022

It remains to be seen if the ENO will relocate to Manchester, however, it is clear that Manchester may benefit from these changes in the culture scene.

Women in Media returns, kick-starting with fundraiser at Fallowfield’s Handlebar

Written by Erin Osman on 17th November 2022. Posted in Lifestyle, News.

This academic year’s Women in Media Conference (WIM) is running from April 22 to 23, and promises to be a jam-packed weekend of inspiring live interviews, networking, and workshops. Born and bred in Manchester, and founded by students of the University in 2016, this is now the conference’s eighth consecutive year.

WIM is a conference which celebrates the voices of women and non-binary people across the media, from photographers and journalists, to filmmakers and podcasters. As it has always been in the past, this year’s conference is sure to be a truly inspiring weekend, with networking opportunities available for students hoping to get a foot in the industry.

Generally, I noticed a lack of opportunities for networking and events available for students wanting to work in the media. When comparing this to other subjects, such as law, business, and the sciences, there are huge discrepancies in terms of accessibility and general opportunity. This year’s conference in particular hopes to address this discrepancy, expanding opportunities to those who might not otherwise have them.

This year’s conference is sponsoring two incredible charities working to support women in the city: Manchester Action for Street Health (MASH) and Smart Works Greater Manchester. MASH helps women working in the sex industry to have better access to good health, safety, and emotional well-being. They provide drop-in health clinics as well as personal case workers who help women set up bank accounts, report crimes, attend appointments, apply for courses, and fill out forms.

Smart Works also does fantastic work, helping women across Greater Manchester secure employment and write their CVs – helping to change the trajectories of their lives. The conference will also be collecting for UoM’s Once a Month, a student-led project which aims to reduce period poverty in Manchester. We are so proud to be fundraising for these incredible charities and are hoping to raise as much money as we can towards their causes.

Our first fundraising event for this year’s conference is taking place at Handlebar on December 8, with a quiz commencing at 8:30pm. Entry is only £3 and prizes for the winners are up for grabs! You can stay until late, or use the quiz as a vamped-up pres. Whatever you decide, we can’t wait to see you all there!

If you want to keep up to date with WIM and receive the link to buy tickets to our fundraiser, check out the Instagram @wimconmcr.

Up the creek without a pad

Written by annanixon on 17th November 2022. Posted in Opinion.

Are the new pads in the SU enough to save the stress of a bloody mess? All of us who have experienced the endless joy that is the monthly period are probably all too familiar with looking down with dread at those first bloody spots. Sometimes, this stress can be cleared up with supplies sunk into the corners of book-filled tote bags or a favour from the pocket of a good friend, but this is not always the case. Not all of us can be pre-planned Pamelas, and I, for one, have found myself caught out many a time. So what can you do when you are caught in a sitch without a fix? Well, the new emergency pad dispensers may be just the absorbent ticket.

At the beginning of this academic year, I was pleased to see that the Students’ Union mixed-gender toilets had acquired some new decoration. Upon the wall between the sinks hung a glorious white box with tampons and pads for those of us who suffer the monthly bleed. These are provided by the company Grace and Green which partnered with the NHS to bring free period products to University of Manchester students. On the box, the phrase “it’s about bloody time” is written, and these pads could be just the thing to save you when that stressful time of the month arrives.

As well as this, the placement of pads in a public space, especially one seen by both men and women, is extremely beneficial to the destigmatizing of periods. Periods are (roughly) a monthly occurrence for around half of the student population and should not be something people feel embarrassed about or feel the need to hide.

So, the theory is great, but what about the practicality?

As an English Literature student, I am not usually one for maths; however, even I know that a bleeding person plus an absorbent pad should equal problem solved. But there are so many more factors, especially when we consider the differences between people’s periods and the volume we bleed. Whilst some of us produce just enough blood to paint an A4 sheet with a nice shade of red, others could paint a whole room to look like a murder scene. Differing levels of bleeding are completely normal (though if you could fill a whole room, you should probably get this checkout with a GP) and different women need different pads.

And this is where the problem occurs.

Although the pads in the SU may be suitable for some very light bleeders, they would not be suitable to hold much more than the bleed of a barbie doll. In fact, the pads provided in the SU are so thin that you’d probably be better off tearing out a few pages of whichever academic text is boring you the most and stuffing that in your pants instead.

So we are stuck with the same problem. Those with too heavy bleeds to be stopped by a literal panty liner either have to use a tampon (which, again, is fairly small, and some women cannot or do not like wearing them) or go home. This means that the natural bodily functions of half the student population may force them to miss out on education as they have to go home to collect pads instead of attending lectures.

If you are caught out in this situation there are a few places you can go: Milk and Honey café and the engineering building both have pads in the women’s toilets that are more absorbent and would last you at least a couple of hours. Be careful though; it might take you a while to find toilets that have period products in the engineering building as that place is a maze!

To conclude, the SU now has free pads (yay!) but they wouldn’t hold more than a fly’s wee (boo!). If you are caught out in an emergency, there are places with pads on campus, but pick the right ones as some like the Samuel Alexander Building have nothing. It’s a bit like pad roulette — the loser gets bloody trousers.

So, as much as free pads are a wonderful addition to campus and are acknowledging a far too-overlooked issue, we may have to keep bleeding for justice a little while longer.

How our popular culture has failed us

Written by Daniel Galloway on 17th November 2022. Posted in Opinion.

Governments of every shape and size continue to herald the market as a force for good, perpetuating a glamourisation of inequality and elitism. Economic policies have a reach far beyond their practical implications; by shaping our conditions, they shape our everyday attitudes and approach to life. The innate schadenfreude of free-market economics in their pedestalisation of wealth and shaming of any less thus has a damaging effect on our behaviours and interests.

Despite flip-flops from swathes of tax cuts to spending cuts, the same fundamentals remain: no effort to create wealth, simply to drain it from the already-parched mouths of the millions. Instead of inciting popular opposition, sympathetic media pumps out programme after programme that sows internal division, rather than revealing the true cause of economic hardships.

As neoliberal economics have grown and changed since the time of Von Hayek, the idea of “balancing the books” has come to resemble a hostility towards systems of welfare. Chris Philp, the Chief Secretary to the Treasury since 2015, published a 2013 paper calling for “workfare” in which claimants are pushed into tasks akin to community service. The removal of the £20 universal credit uplift post-Covid, despite the comfort it provided to many, as well as a current lack of commitment to increasing benefits in line with spiralling inflation further proves an apathy to welfare, despite it being such an essential factor in enabling the population of Britain to pay for the necessities of life.

These very values have dangerously permeated every level of popular culture. Benefits Britain is a prime example of this, with the use of terms like “raking it in”, or “the taxpayer dolls out the lion’s share” designed to rouse anger with the benefits system among the wider population. This portrays welfare as stealing from the wallets of the taxpayer to provide for the “lazy”; an ideology that diverts attention from real political mismanagement of the public purse into fostering internal conflict. As of a 2018 government survey, 34% of the population see social housing allocations as unfair, likely a result of this stigmatisation of welfare systems, as such a widespread pessimism is doubtfully deduced from personal experience or research.

The impact extends beyond a hostile approach to welfare systems with an ingrained economic rat race designed to impose conflict amongst all members of society, no matter their position. This manifests itself in disturbing practices – the financial crash of 2008 was generated by bankers granting high-risk mortgages to those they knew could not afford repayment schemes in order to profit. This is uniquely sadistic, with morals discarded for the pursuit of wealth, and a continual struggle to gain foothold in a volatile market, no matter the harm it causes others. Thus, the economic context of competition ingrains and exploits a sense of success at another’s expense.

This is again reflected on every level of media today. Granting the Kardashians a platform for so long has glamourised consumerist wealth — reflected in their palaces of valuable commodities — and fostered the hostility and individualism that comes with this pursuit. On the flip side, The Jeremy Kyle Show preyed on the misfortunes of others for the entertainment of an audience of millions, used as a modern-day witch trial to encourage aggression and violence, reflecting the ability to relish in comfort while others suffer. The suicide of a guest on the show and its subsequent cancellation told us all we needed to know about the dangers of such a practice.

This runs even deeper; Love Island is a show in which the aim is to sell love for the pursuit of wealth — whether that be the prize money or the inevitable swathe of brand deals that follow “stardom”. This show proves the impact of dog-eat-dog economics in two ways: driving forced relationships and ingrained hostility manufacturing a popular viewing experience. The failure to cancel this show despite the suicides of multiple associated individuals — both guests and presenters — proves that the pursuit of wealth makes us stoop to ever-lower moral levels to pay our way. An incomparable obsession, only possible in such economic volatility.

Our everyday experiences shape the values and interests we hold. As long as our culture shames welfare and glamourises wealth, we will never reach a place at which we value the well-being of society over our own narrow victories. If we live in fear of the invisible hand of the market snatching away all we have, we will never learn to sympathise with the misfortunes of others. If the fetishisation of the market continues — as heralded by continuous Conservative governments, whoever the leader — we may never be liberated from the chains of this irrational self-interest.

Rishi Sunak at a COVID-19 press conference. He stands behind a banner which reads "Stay Alert, Control the Virus, Save Lives".

Sunak science: Can the new PM be trusted?

Written by Lauren Holland on 17th November 2022. Posted in Science & Tech.

In recent history, it seems we have gone through more Tory prime ministers than DFS Sales. We have moved past our nation’s brief ‘Truss era’ and are now in the age of Rishi Sunak. But is Sunak scientifically aware enough to lead a post-pandemic country out of a climate crisis?

What has Sunak done for science in the past?

Sunak’s past actions could help us understand his perspective on science. As Chief Secretary to the Treasury from 2019 – 2020, he oversaw many post-Brexit budgets and research grants for UK scientists, before he became Chancellor of the Exchequer in 2020.

In 2020, the proposed Research and Development budget was £22 billion per annum over three to five years. However, this was reduced by 17% in 2021, adding further pressure to independent funding bodies. This was an attempt to reduce the post-Brexit impact on the scientific community when many UK researchers lost out on collaboration opportunities and support from industry.

In addition, Rishi Sunak has also had some less-than-positive ideas about the role that scientists should play in government. In an interview with the Spectator during his initial leadership campaign, Sunak said he felt it was a mistake to “empower scientists” during the pandemic and that the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE) had too much influence over decisions.

Several members of SAGE and experts in the scientific field responded with criticism to his comment, stating that SAGE is an advisory group set up to provide relevant scientific data, not to inform on economic issues. Some suggest that Sunak is blaming SAGE for the government’s own mistakes.

This suggests a hesitance by Sunak to let scientists influence scientific policy.

What might Sunak do for science in the future?

With Sunak now head of state, several new statements regarding science and technology have been made, including his promise, “I will make the UK a science and technology superpower.”

He is aiming to reach an annual Research and Development budget of £20bn within the next two-three years, claiming that science and innovation will be at the heart of his government. This could provide the scientific community with tentative confidence, particularly within the life sciences and offshore renewable energy industry.

However, Sunak’s recent flip-flopping on the issue of his attendance at the COP 27 Summit did not portray him as a Prime Minister who prioritises scientific issues.

Despite finally agreeing to attend the conference, his last-minute decision to do so will no doubt linger in the minds of many environmental scientists. Likewise, his decision to give tax deductions to companies investing in oil and gas extraction is unlikely to win him many friends in this arena, despite his recent reinstatement of the fracking ban.

Only time will reveal whether or not Sunak will follow up on his promises and funding commitments, and what his overall impact on the British scientific community will be.

Six of the best places to catch all of the World Cup drama

Written by kayaharia on 16th November 2022. Posted in Lifestyle.

The 2022 FIFA World Cup is fast approaching, commencing on November 20 and running until the final on December 18. Naturally, many people who may not usually be so a-tune with football will be excited to watch the biggest sporting event in the world, and Manchester is the perfect city to head out and support your team.

Manchester has a rich football history and has always been at the centre of the footballing world, as the home of two world-class clubs: the reigning Premier League Champions, Manchester City, and one of the most decorated football clubs in the world, Manchester United. Both teams will be seeing many of their players represent their countries during the World Cup. Whilst there are many spots throughout the city to catch a match, this list will highlight some of the best options for a great atmosphere and student-friendly deals.

1) Depot Mayfield

Location: 11 Baring St, M1 2PY

You’ll find the biggest fan park in the city to catch all the action, with a capacity of 6000 in Manchester’s well-known former railway depot. Tickets start from £5 to enjoy the festivities, so for a lively atmosphere and 140M screens (Europe’s largest!), this is the place to be. The Depot’s ‘Road to Victory’ event will be filled with DJs, special guests, and much more, so promises an action-packed evening of football.

2) Escape to Freight Island

Location: 11 Baring St, M1 2PZ

One of the best ways to celebrate the World Cup is to visit Escape to Freight Island’s Festival of Football, a free event jam-packed with food, pop-up stalls, and half-time performances, as well as a dedicated traditional pub setting. Every England match will be televised on the big screen, with other matches shown throughout the pub zone. With a wide variety of events, this is perfect for football and non-football fans alike!

3) The Piccadilly Tavern

Location: 71-75 London Road, Piccadilly, M1 2BS

The central location of this venue makes it a great option to watch football when out in the hustle and bustle of the city centre. Known for hosting a wide array of sports, you can be sure to catch all matches televised here, along with pub food classics for a good deal.

4) The Courtyard

Location: 2 Chester St, M1 5SH

The Courtyard makes for a great location for even just watching club football matches, especially high-profile matches such as the Manchester Derby, with a lively, passionate crowd of football fans gathering here every weekend. The Courtyard is also equipped with a beer terrace outside, housing a large screen perfect for viewing big matches, and a wide array of cheap cocktails and snacks that are perfect for students.

5) The Flour and Flagon

Location: 126 Grosvenor St, M1 7HL

The Flour and Flagon provides a more homely, cosy location compared to many Manchester venues, while maintaining the feeling of a classic Northern pub. This is the ideal spot for a quieter location to watch football, especially with many student deals being offered within the pub for drinkers and non-drinkers alike. With sofas and comfortable armchairs, The Flour and Flagon is perfect for viewing the World Cup in a homely environment, despite the cold November gloom.

6) Student bars

Location: Various throughout campus

One of the most accessible locations is the numerous student bars (Squirrels in Fallowfield, Victoria Park Bar, and the 532 Bar and Kitchen in the Student Union), which all house screens to watch matches on, as well as having the best deals on drinks. These bars are the best for a safe and chilled experience, whether you’re on campus or nearer to home.

Of course, apart from these locations, there are also many other fantastic options to watch all the drama unfold, especially in a city with such a rich and deep love for football. Wherever you decide to watch, you can be sure to know that you’ll be watching football coming home!

A Sephora store at night with neon lights and a photo of a female model wearing makeup

Sephora has finally launched in the UK!

Written by Imogen Mingos on 16th November 2022. Posted in Fashion & Beauty.

After years of rumours, every beauty guru’s dream has come true as Sephora has finally launched in the UK (again)!

Now seventeen years since they closed their six six stores in May 2005, Sephora is returning both online and with shopfronts. Sephora fans have been patiently hoping and waiting for its return.

We can now confirm that Sephora UK has arrived! As of the 17^th October, Sephora UK is available online so you can start ordering all your favourite products and, even better, add them to your Christmas wish list.

Despite various rumours of its return that had circulated and then not come to fruition over recent years, things started to look very real in June 2021 when Sephora bought UK online beauty retailer FeelUnique. It has since been confirmed that FeelUnique would be replaced by Sephora UK, allowing customers to transfer loyalty points and start shopping straight away. However, it should be noted that shoppers of the US stores cannot use their rewards on Sephora UK as it is run by Europe, not America.

Whilst you can now order online to your heart’s content, actual stores won’t be opening until Spring 2023 with the launch of Sephora’s flagship store in London. After that, they will then move nationwide – hopefully, we’ll get one in Manchester ASAP! Cosmopolitan interviewed the President of Sephora Europe and Middle East, Sylvie Moreau, who said “We’ve used the London launch to elevate our European view on the store of the future,” which suggests that we should be getting a huge Sephora store.

Currently, you can order from 1400 brands on Sephora including Makeup by Mario, Tarte Cosmetics, HUDA beauty, and Medik8 but more brands will be dropping this month.

Already on TikTok, beauty influencers have bought their hauls and are finally trying out the cult products that we have seen raved about in Europe and the US. Most reviews of both the shopping experience and the products themselves have been positive but apparently, the amazing offers that Sephora is known for have not lived up to the standard seen in other countries. Hopefully, these will improve over the next few months and maybe in time for Christmas!

There’s no doubt that this news isn’t some of the biggest and most exciting for beauty lovers this year so hopefully both ordering online and shopping in store will meet expectations. I’m certainly looking forward to trying out some products myself – I just need to narrow down the list!

Live review: 90s Baby POP at AO Arena

Written by Jay Darcy on 16th November 2022. Posted in Music.

90s Baby POP has been touring the UK with Atomic Kitten, Five, Liberty X, Gareth Gates, S Club Allstars, 911, Damage, The 411, Big Brovaz & Booty Luv, and Honeyz. But the Manchester date was the main event, with 10 extra artists on the bill. Sadly, 2 Unlimited and Aqua, the headliner, dropped out last-minute.

I saw 2 Unlimited at a similar event, We Love the 90’s, which was headlined by Vengaboys. Anita Doth is no longer with 2 Unlimited, and her replacement, Kim Vergouwen, left the group this year. The problem with We Love the 90’s is many of its acts were not the original artists; some of them were essentially tribute acts. 90s Baby, however, prides itself on securing top talent from the 90s (save for Livin’ Joy featuring Luzahnn, who they love hiring) – and this line-up was their best yet. Aqua’s departure was felt but nevertheless the night was nostalgic and naughty.

The event was opened with a DJ session from Nick Coulson, before the host, Jonny Meah, took to the stage. He would return in between each act. He was a great host, not too cheesy, and he never made himself the star of the show.

The first of the main acts was Chico, who was given a healthy four-song set, but his penultimate song was the only one anyone cared about: ‘It’s Chico Time’. Whilst few people recognised his other songs, he is a showman and really brought the entertainment (and a little cringe). For a fleeting moment, I forgot he was an antivaxxer.

Chico was followed by another cheesy artist: The Cheeky Girls. This fever dream began with a grating cover of ‘We Go Together’ from Grease before ‘Hooray Hooray (It’s a Cheeky Holiday)’ and their biggest hit, ‘Cheeky Song (Touch My Bum)’. Shout out to their camptastic sparkly outfits.

Things then got a little more tasteful (though less entertaining). Honeyz’ four-song set featured three of their hits, including ‘Finally Found’, and a cover of TLC’s ‘Waterfalls’. They were followed by Big Brovaz and Booty Luv (for those of you who don’t know, Booty Luv is made up of two of the female members of Big Brovaz). After performing Big Brovaz’ ‘Nu Flow’, they sang Booty Luv’s (superior) cover of Tweet’s ‘Boogie 2Nite’ and ended with the former’s ‘Baby Boy’.

Next up was S Club Allstars, which is currently made up of S Club 7‘s Bradley McIntosh aka City Boy (an original member of Allstars) and Tina Barrett, alongside S Club Junior‘s Stacey Franks. They opened their set with S Club 7’s ‘Bring It All Back’, which they followed with S Club Junior’s ‘Automatic High’ and ‘One Step Closer’. They then finished their set with the former band’s biggest hit, ‘Don’t Stop Movin’, and a song that any British party is not complete without: ‘Reach for the Stars’. This set was particularly nostalgic, even though S Club 7’s lead singer, Jo O’Mara, is no longer a part of Allstars (but given her racism scandal, I am glad). Admittedly, I’m more of a Steps fan, myself!

The cheesy nostalgia continued, with Gareth Gates singing his questionable cover of Elvis Presley‘s ‘Suspicious Minds’, his second single, ‘Anyone of Us (Stupid Mistake)’, and his joyous cover of Norman Greenbaum‘s ‘Spirit in the Sky’

The cheese-grating was then brought to a halt, with The 411 giving us RNB and sensual moves. They first sang ‘On My Knees’ then ‘China Girl’ and cleverly ended their set with ‘Dumb’.

More groups followed. 911 showed off their incredible moves with a 6-song set that ended with the crowd-pleasing ‘Bodyshakin”. Damage sang 3 or 4 songs, I don’t quite remember, but I do remember seeing them sing the sexy, soulful ‘Ghetto Romance’.

Liberty X, a fixture of Pride festivals, opened their set with their signature song, ‘Just a Little’, following it up with ‘Thinking It Over’ and finishing it off with ‘Being Nobody’ (their cover of Chaka Khan‘s ‘Ain’t Nobody’).

Las Ketchup then transported us from the cold, wet streets of Manchester to sunny Spain. After singing a song nobody knew, they began speaking, in Spanish – and still, nobody knew what they were saying, but we were thrilled to be in their presence and looked forward to inevitably seeing them singing ‘The Ketchup Song (Aserejé)’.

Las Ketchup had the whole audience doing the iconic dance moves, as did the next act, Whigfield, with the timeless ‘Saturday Night’. I saw Whigfield at We Love the 90’s, and she sang the exact same three songs in the exact same order: ‘Think of You’, ‘Saturday Night’, and ‘Sexy Eyes’. But whilst We Love the 90’s was on a Friday, 90s Baby Pop took place on a Saturday – which made her performance extra exciting.

Next up was one of the acts I was most looking forward to seeing: Corona (aka Olga de Souza). Whilst she did not sing ‘Try Me Out’, she opened her set with ‘Baby Baby’ and ended it with ‘Rhythm of the Night’. In between the two iconic tunes, she sang a little bit of ‘I Will Always Love You’ (a cappella) to thank us for our support. Now, Olga did not actually sing her own songs (she merely lip synced in the music videos) so I don’t know what possessed her to give Whitney a go, but you’ve got to admire her confidence (slash ignorance). Other than that questionable song choice, it was a fun, fierce performance, and she looked fabulous.

Lou Bega had us swaying along to ‘I Got a Girl’ and a newer song but then he sang ‘Mambo No. 5’ – and you can imagine the audience reaction!

Meah then told us that he had been playing one of the next artist’s songs on the other dates, and the audience always went wild – but we were getting it live! The artist in question? B*Witched! They sang ‘Rollercoaster’, ‘Jesse Hold On’, ‘Blame It on the Weatherman’, and, of course ‘C’est La Vie’ – but they mixed it up by including a bit of Ed Sheeran‘s ‘Galway Girl’. With umbrellas and huge balloons that they threw into the audience, this was possibly the best performance of the night.

Next up was England’s answer to B*Witched: Atomic Kitten (well, Liz McClarnon and Natasha Hamilton). They sang their cutesy cover of Blondie‘s ‘The Tide is High’ and ‘Eternal Flame’ before they got the audience ecstatic with ‘Whole Again’.

Meah then killed the vibe by telling us that some of us might have seen the news on social media: Aqua had pulled out. It was wise to leave the news until later on in the show, for it meant we got to enjoy the majority of the show (ignorance is bliss, y’all).

Luckily, Five were their to lift the mood, with a fiery six-song set – with literal fire! They got everybody up on their feet with ‘Everybody Get Up’ and had us all moving with ‘Keep On Movin”.

Meah then told us that there would be a wait whilst they set up for the next act. He joked that Aqua should have called ‘Doctor Jones’ (too soon) and then had the DJ play ‘Barbie Girl’. To my delight, the set that followed included Ricky Martin‘s ‘Livin’ La Vida Loca’. By this point, people had begun leaving so there was plenty of room for me to dance! It then dawned upon me that this is why they saved the bad news until later on in the show: they knew that people would leave.

After the world’s longest set up, Gala took to the stage – for a five-song set that, judging by the audience reaction, was four songs too long. It just seemed to go on forever, and the majority of the audience was not familiar with her music – plus everyone was reeling from the Aqua news.

Gala is a great performer, and the flamenco dancer was a nice touch, but spending so long setting the stage for the band she was allowed to bring and then letting her sing five songs, four of which most people did not know, was not a wise decision.

Admittedly, ‘Freed from Desire’ had everyone buzzing, but then she sang another song – one which she even told us we do not know. It killed the vibe, after ‘Freed from Desire’ saved her performance. Finally, after a fifth and final song, we were freed from Gala…

The DJ then played Oasis‘ ‘Wonderwall’, a bid to get the Manchester audience back on their side – but it was Heather Small that saved the day. She sang three M People songs – ‘Search for the Hero’, ‘What Have You Done Today’, and ‘Moving on Up’ – but she should have been allowed to sing more. I wish she’d sang ‘Sight for Sore Eyes’. Why did Gala get to sing 5 songs but Small only 3?

Los del Río, aka The Del Rios, followed, with two Spanish songs we did not know, the second a fun salsa song. They then performed the song that made them a one-hit wonder, ‘Macarena’ – and, in turn, were responsible for the biggest Macarena in history!

Whilst Eiffel 65 were supposed to be the penultimate act, Aqua’s departure left them with the main spot. The audience waited patiently as they sang ‘Too Much of Heaven’ and ‘Move Your Body’. Then, finally, they performed ‘Blue (Da Ba Dee)’ – a riotous end to a rave-tastic night (well, day and night).

Then, everybody left.

90s Baby POP did not manage to recover from the sad news of Aqua’s departure but it was still a fun, naughty night of nostalgia – and most of the remaining acts were fantastic.

Global cinema series: First stop, France

Written by Ibiwunmi Balogun on 16th November 2022. Posted in Film.

Le Scaphandre et le Papillon (2007): The powers of the human spirit in the eyes of Julian Schnabel’s – Grace Humphreys

Released almost 15 years ago, Le Scaphandre et le Papillon (The Diving-Bell and the Butterfly in English) tells the touching story of Jean-Dominique Bauby (Matheiu Amalric); a man living with “Locked-in syndrome” after suffering a stroke.

The film follows Jean-Dominique, known as Jean-Do, Editor-in-Chief of French Elle, as he suffers a life-altering stroke at 43 which leaves him comatose for 20 days. As he regains consciousness, Jean-Do discovers he has no control over his body, except for blinking his left eyelid.

This neurological disorder is often referred to as “Locked-in syndrome”. Jean-Do compares his condition to that of a “diving bell”; a rigid device used to lower divers to the sea floor, but cannot be controlled by it’s occupants.

Cared for in a hospital in Northern France, Jean-Do is regarded as unresponsive, until a speech therapist derives a simple device that allowed him to communicate with just his left eye. With this he begins to write a book depicting the claustrophobic life he now leads, whilst also reflecting on his life before the stroke.

In his memoir, Jean-Do reflects on how writing helped him to accept his new way of living: “my diving bell becomes less oppressive, and my mind takes flight like a butterfly”. This book went on to sell 25,000 copies on it’s day of release in 1997, becoming a European best-seller.

Opening with fuzzy shots of a hospital room, the audience experiences the confusion and shock with Jean-Do, as the first third of the film is shot in first person. We look through Jean-Do’s eyes as he processes his diagnosis, and its effects on his friends and family. As the film progresses, the field of view widens and we can observe the body Jean-Do is trapped in.

As an artist himself, Director Julian Schnabel paints beautiful memories of Bauby’s life with a level of skill that is truly a tribute to Bauby and his brilliant mind. Schnabel expertly brings life to the mundane, lending us a hand into Jean-Do’s imagination, crafting poignant memories of his past in heart-wrenching detail.

Laced with dry-humour and melancholy portrayals of a lost life, Le Scaphandre et le Papillon is more than deserved of its critical acclaim, receiving Best Director at Cannes film festival in 2007. The film is a must-see, the perfect portrayal of the unyielding human spirit.

Films similar to Le Scaphandre et le Papillon:

Les Intouchables (2011)

Populaire (2012)

At Eternity’s Gate (2018)

C’est Quoi Cette Famille ?! (2016): An insight on the complexities of blended families – Imogen Mingos

C’est quoi cette famille ?! (‘We are Family?!‘ in French) is a 2016 comedy film directed by Gabriel Julien-Laferrière and starring Thierry Neuvic, Julie Gayet, and Lucien Jean-Baptiste. A topical film about a famille recomposée, meaning “blended family” in English, and what happens when the kids have had enough of playing by the parents’ rules.

The movie follows teenager Bastien who has six half-brothers and sisters, eight parents, and a grandmother whom he is constantly having to move between multiple times a week. When the siblings decide they can’t take it anymore, they trick all of the grown-ups so each of them thinks the children are staying with someone else and instead live alone in an abandoned apartment. The children then propose that the adults move between homes rather than themselves.

Despite being a comedy, there are also poignant moments – particularly with regards to the sibling’s sharing conversations or the younger children talking to their parents. Blended families are a huge phenomenon in France with approximately 45% of marriages ending in divorce and one in ten children living in blended families. This movie is light-hearted and doesn’t critique the parents in these families, but it raises awareness of the difficulties that the children can sometimes face in these cases.

However, it also highlights the joy that can come from being in a large family and the lovely moments that can be shared between them. It feels nostalgic, in a sense, for all of the silly times that people share as children, whether that’s with their siblings or members of their extended families.

Overall, this film is less well known than say Les Intouchables or Amélie but it is certainly a good watch that supplies the ups and the downs: both the laughs and the emotional punches. I would recommend it to anyone but particularly to people looking for a funny, easy-going film that they haven’t seen before.

Films similar to C’est quoi cette famille ?!:

Il a déjà tes yeux (2016)

C’est quoi cette mamie ?! (2019)

Petite Maman (2021)

La Haine (1995): Criminology in film – Ibiwunmi Balogun

La Haine (1995), translated as “the hate” from French and directed by Mathieur Kassovitz, is proof that film is incredibly powerful. This film is arguably one of the most influential films to come out in the 90s in France. Even the French prime minister at the time, Alain Juppé, was moved to the point of dedicating a special screening for his cabinet despite the negative, yet arguably accurate, representations of the police and ultimately the government and its policies.

Saïd, Vinz, and Hubert are three young men from the outskirts of Paris, known as “banlieues” by the French, are at the centre of this film. La Haine depicts the unfolding of 24 hours in the lives of French working class youth in the 90s. Contextually, a local named Abdel has been gravely injured while in police custody which is engendering unrest in the nearby areas as protests and riots emerge in response. La Haine, inspired by the real life case of Makomé M’Bowolé and the case of Malik Oussekine that both consisted of death in custody of minority youths that rattled the French nation in the 80s and 90s.

Within criminology, and specifically policing and politics studies, it is argued that effective policing is defined by the public’s consent to said policing. Protests are a primary example of the public withdrawing this consent and in La Haine, like in the countless real life cases of police killings around the world, local communities stand against the violence and brutality inflicted on them by those supposedly protecting them. This film sheds light on these dangerous contradictions within the French justice system.

Social inequalities are also highlighted in the film with constant visual contrasts between the city of Paris and its outskirts. These same inequalities have the power to potentially lead some down the path of crime for basic survival.

Kassovitz demonstrates this phenomenon, similar to Merton’s strain theory, with Hubert’s character as he deals to provide for his family. La Haine effectively portrays the double standards of societal views around crime and deviance and how certain behaviours are overlooked for some and dangerously punished in others.

The rawness of Kassovitz’s film almost feels like a stylistic documentary due to the indirectly true stories being told and the impressive and captivating cinematography used. Director of Photography, Pierre Aïm, most likely inspired by Russian filmmaking techniques, captures the film in a black and white filter that is so beautifully contrasted that it adds more dimension to the images and pulls viewers into the scenes. This filter is also heavily associated with street photography which further adds to the realism of the film.

While it is visually pleasing to watch and captivating at times, Kassovitz uses the opportunity to educate France about the way the police are sometimes given the right to treat certain civilians poorly simply because of their socio-economic backgrounds and marginalised identities. My research within criminology makes me very critical of on-screen representations of crimes of the powerless and La Haine truly captures the nuanced topics related to cultural hegemony and delinquency.

The characters in La Haine, portrayed impressively and effectively by all the actors, have specific roles that greatly affected the rising and calming tensions throughout. The devastating destructions and limitations that come with capitalism, are gravely affecting each of the main characters, both dividing them yet connecting them. The weapon that is poverty is trapping Saïd, Vinz, and Hubert in a cycle where those affected by it have no choice but to fight, flee or surrender to it.

These sociological themes are also reflected in the environment from the architecturally brutalist buildings to the graffiti art decorating its walls. Similar to Spike Lee’s Do The Right Thing (1989) the graffiti is telling a story of its own, a story of dreams and contrasting realities.

While we know La Haine is not going to end well because of how situations like these play out in the real world, there is still somehow a sense of hope amidst the constant unease. The Director sprinkles in some humanity in the chaos, as the characters are seen using their artistic expressions to envelop their surroundings despite the desolation and underfunding of said surroundings.

I recommend this film to those who dedicate their time to being socially aware, to those who have no choice but to be socially aware and to those who don’t know where to start. I beg those who decide to watch this film to also understand that this is not simply a story but the reality of many youths around the world.

Films similar to La Haine:

Do The Right Thing (1989)

13th (2016)

Sorry To Bother You (2018)

(La Haine trigger warnings: police brutality & violence)

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