The Stag - Issue 45

Newspaper of the students of the University of Surrey

Issue 45 – Tuesday 8th May 2012

Surrey passes policy at NUS Conference
Read the conference report in News (starting page 5) and get the lowdown on how Surrey passed policy to revolutionise students’ personal finances.
NEWS Discover who will be running the NUS next year and how it can effect you on page 5... UNION Find the Summer Term 2012 events planner in the centre of your Stag today... SPORT “WE’RE SURREY AND WE KNOW IT” - The full report from Varsity 2012 is here on page 36... FEATURES Learn new ways to be more savvy with your funds this summer... page 12 FILM From the newest films to those timeless classics, read the latest reviews here on page 23... LITERATURE Surrey’s own Liam Bell celebrates the launch of his debut novel, So It Is on page 25 SCIENCE AND TECH Discover the Science behind the Tupac hologram that rocked at Coachella 2012 on page 15...

WIN TWO TICKETS TO BLOC 2012! GO TO PAGE 30 FOR DETAILS...
By Jyoti Rambhai, News Editor & Chris Sibthorpe, News Team

Class A drugs found in student area
A property in Park Barn, Guildford, a popular student residential area, was found to be connected with the production and supply of a Class A drug.

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urrey Police have obtained a closure order on a property in Guildford after a warrant to search the property found evidence of drug use and supply at the address. The closure notice comes due to concerns raised by local residents, who at a local panel meeting on 11th April, voted that tackling drug related problems was to be a neighbourhood policing priority. The closure notice was served under the Antisocial Behaviour Act for the address, 16 Southway Court, Park Barn, and put before South West Magistrates Court by Surrey Police and Guildford Borough Council. Evidence was produced to suggest the property was connected to the unlawful use, supply and production of Class A drugs. On 19th April, a search warrant was executed and found traces of Cocaine insides a microwave, on the entry phone at the address. There were also traces of the drug Paraphernalia and a list, detailing names of people with amounts of money next to them, which is supposed a dealer list. There was also further evidence of drugs related anti-social behaviour. In the eighteen months since the tenants entered the property, there have been two incidents involving

firearms and a stabbing recorded at the address. One incident on involved 12th January, two men in balaclavas approaching the property with air rifles. There was a significant damage done to the property and the police firearms team was called out, however, the two men responsible had fled the scene. Other police calls to the property included to an allegation of domestic violence in March, shots being fired from a BB gun and a car window being smashed. The property has already been boarded up as a result of the notification, with the public told the closure is to protect the neighbourhood. The order came in to force with immediate effect and the property will be sealed for three months. It is also in the process of being repossessed by Guildford Borough Council. The tenants, Stephanie Machay and Robert Whittaker, must also pay £250 each in costs. Anyone seen entering the property whilst the order is still enforced will be arrested, and could face a fine or a custodial sentence. Local residents had previously raised concerns over the way the property was being used with some residents claiming they were too scared to leave their

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Editor | Jack White [email protected] Editor-in-Chief | Bakita Kasadha [email protected] Deputy Editor (Design) | Hollie Rowe-Roberts [email protected] Design Team | Ellie Brodie, Paul A Richmond, Hannah Roberts-Owen, Christina Morman, Louisa White and Alexandra Wilks Deputy Editor (Marketing) | Tom Goulding [email protected] Marketing Team | Shervin Hejazi, Imogen Jones, Eleanor Pearson and Genevieve Webb News News Editor | Jyoti Rambhai [email protected] News Team | Kathryn Braid, Sophie Howard, John Kavanagh, Jyoti Rambhai, Melissa Raske and David Williams Features Features Editor | Nicole Vassell [email protected] Features Team | Peter Bailey, Ellie Brodie, Chris Thomas, Hannah Wann, Becky Powell, Stephen Cartwright, Louisa White, Ellis Taylor and Sophie Vickery Science and Technology Science and Technology Editor | Nathanael Roome [email protected] Science and Technology Team | Lawrence Finn, Dave Holcombe, Shourya Khanna, Kate McAtamney, Melissa Raske, Alex Smith and Ruth Smithers. Societies Societies Editor | Chris Dighton [email protected] Arts Dance and Theatre Editor | Hannah Jelliman [email protected] Dance and Theatre Team | Emily Bourne, Sarah McDowell, Beth Hedges, Lucy Jarvis, Tiffany Stoneman and Lexi Sutton Film Editor | Tiffany Tucker [email protected] Film Team | Laura Howard, Caroline James, Kristie Marchant, Christina Maria Webb and Louisa White Music Editor | Sophia Field [email protected] Music Team | James Campbell, Liam Conroy, Dan Davidson, Amy McGivern, Tanya Noronha and Elliot Tyres Literature Editor | Alexandra Wilks [email protected] Literature Team | Rachel Burgess, Stephanie Davies, Tessa Heenan, Candice Ritchie, Emily Smart, Emma Thomas, Sophie Vickery and Rebecca Worley Sport Sport Editor | Jordan Vine [email protected] Sport Team | Douglas Elder, Arabella Gilby, George Gigney and Sam Limbert Copy Editors | Megan Barnacle, Michaela Fulton, Emma Giles, Candice Ritchie and Louisa White [email protected] Webmaster | Andrew Smith [email protected] Photo Editor | Tessa Morgan [email protected]

BT Art of Sport exhibition comes to Surrey
traditional bronze and statuary marble. Dearnley will in fact be working on a “Modern Day Heroes” series sculpting Olympian and Paralympic athletes Mark Foster, Leon Taylor and Ade Adepitan MBE. Jeremy Houghton will apply water colours to Olympic control and stealth as well as former street artist Dylan Izaak, whose complex pen and ink portraits portray exciting atmosphere of the Olympics. Classical realist painter Darren Barker’s work will also be present alongside Richards Booth’s emotive photography and Dominic Wheadon’s passionate interpretation of sports and water. The artist recently awarded the Silver Medal for the Sculpture at the Royal Academy Schools Lorne McKean has recently finished a commission for BT ambassador and Olympic dressage gold medallist Lee Pearson and his horse Gentleman. Teresa Witz’s will be exploring her interest in the portrayal of ordinary people as “iconic unknowns” capturing the position of Olympic and Paralympic hopefuls. Associate member of the Royal British Society of Sculptors Christine Charlesworth and large scale sculptor Michael Speller will also present their interpretation of the energy and passion behind the Olympic and Paralympic athletes.

Guildford Nightclub saved from closure
By Chris Sibthorpe, News Team By Katharine Braid, News Team

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ackline Live, a popular nightclub in Guildford, may have been saved from closure after a potential investor made a lastminute approach. The club had been due to open for the final time on Saturday 21st April as the current tenants are facing a 350 per cent increase in rent, raising the monthly bill from £1,000 to £3,500 for the premises. Network Rail, the current owner of the property situated under the Farnham Road Bridge raised the rental cost following renovation work on the property by the previous tenants. After reassessing the rent, Network Rail argued that due to the amount of money spent on the premises by the previous tenants, the new rent reflects the value added to the property by the changes made to it. The current tenant’s current temporary trading licence has now expired and a contract must be signed with Network Rail in order for the licence to continue. The club was first opened in June 2010 by Backline Entertainment. An estimated £500,000 was initially spent on making changes to the venue, which included adding a second floor. Backline Live took over the running of the premises, which has a capacity of 300, after the business went in to administration and paid the pre-existing rent to the administrators. The current tenants may agree a deal with the potential investor to ensure the venue remains open, and enlist solicitors to continue negotiations with Network Rail. If the agreement is signed, they will owe Network Rail £35,000 due to rent being backdated from when they took control of the premises in July 2011. The bill will also include three months’ rent in advance. Network Rail has confirmed the current tenants will not have to leave the property whilst negotiations are ongoing.

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T Art of Sport has chosen University of Surrey’s Lewis Elton Gallery and Surrey Sport’s Park to host the London 2012 exhibition of Olympic-inspired art as part of the Cultural Olympiad programme. June 2012 will open the doors to the exhibition displaying the art work of the BT Art of Sport project featuring painting, sculpture and photography produced by twelve prominent artists. The artists have been commissioned by London 2012 premier partner BT, with guest contributor Faith Winter. The artists will draw upon the passionate nature of Olympic athleticism in order to portray the drama of this historic event. In order to fully capture the true Olympic experience the artists will work closely with Great Britain’s elite sportsmen and women. Surrey Sports Park Chief Executive, Paul Blanchard said: “We are both excited and proud to be hosting the BT Art of Sport exhibition here at Surrey Sports Park ahead of the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. “The exhibition is set to be a spectacular visual showcase of both the Games and some of the UK’s leading artistic talent and I encourage everyone to head to Surrey Sports Park and the Lewis Elton Gallery to take a look.” University of Surrey has revealed that artists included in the project are prominent sculptor Ben Dearnley, who will be working with

Apologies
In the print edition of the Stag dated 20th March 2012 we reported the existence of a rumour circulating the University relating to a senior member of the University staff. We accept this should not have been published and would like to apologise for publishing the rumour which we accept to be untrue. On a personal level, I apologise to both the individual concerned and the University for any distress and inconvenience caused.” Jack White Editor Also in the last issue, we incorrectly attributed the article entitled Sport Relief to Tom Goulding. This article was in fact written by Katy Sawyer. Many apologies Katy!

The Stag is a newspaper editorially dependent on and published by the University of Surrey Students’ Union. The views expressed in the paper are those of the individual authors and do not necessarily represent the views of the educational team, the whole Students’ Union or the University of Surrey. Trinity Mirror (South) 8 Tessa Road, Reading RG1 8NS The Stag reserves the right to edit all submissions and the right to decide which articles are published.

News Editor: Jyoti Rambhai | Copy Editor: Emma Giles

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Depot of Class-A drugs was found in Dry winters force the popular student area of Park Barn water companies to
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homes. One student living only a few houses away on Applegarth Avenue told the stag: “I walk past this flat ever day on my way to campus, it pretty scary to think that something like this was to 30 people visiting the address in one day. Neighbourhood Sergeant Steve Hill said: “Local residents have suffered serious nuisance, including noise and aggressive behaviour, associated with this property and I hope the community will benefit from the closure order served on the address. I hope now there can be a return to the environment which these people had enjoyed within their locality. “The purpose of the notice is not only to help the community affected by the persistent behaviour but to offer support to those involved and help them permanently change their behaviour. “I hope this order will send out the message anti-social behaviour will not be tolerated by Surrey Police and we will seek powers such as using the Hearsay Act which was used by residents to give evidence anonymously to bring offenders to justice and keeping Surrey a nice place to live and visit.” Lead Councillor for Housing and Social Care at Guildford Borough Council, Cllr Sarah Creedy said: “This action demonstrates that behaviour of this nature will not be tolerated within our communities. We will continue to work closely with police and neighbourhood teams to stamp out this sort of activity which blights the lives of some residents.” Surrey Police have urged anyone who has information on illegal drug activity or antisocial behaviour in their area to contact their Surrey Police Safer Neighbourhood Team by calling 101 or Guildford Borough Council on 01483 505050.

ban hosepipes
By Alex Smith, News Team

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“The purpose of the notice is not only to help the community affected by the persistent behaviour but to offer support to those involved and help them permanently change their behaviour.
happening on our doorstep. “I remember seeing police being called out on a number of occasions, but I didn’t think much of it at the time though. “ The flat in the Park Barn, Neighborhood Officer PC Grant Darbey told a district judge on April 24th, would sometimes see up

Surrey Police have urged anyone who has information on illegal drug activity or anti-social behaviour in their area to contact their Surrey Police Safer Neighbourhood Team by calling 101 or Guildford Borough Council on 01483 505050.

Government cutting Culture, Media and Sport departments
By Sophie Howard, News Team

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t was announced last week that the Department for Culture, Media and Sport may be closed down, after the 2012 Olympic Games are over. The department’s current responsibilities include the Olympics, the government’s role in the Diamond Jubilee celebrations as well as the switch to digital television. Labour’s deputy leader and culture spokesman Harriet Harman claimed the Prime Minister was poised to close down the Department for Culture, Media and Sport once the Olympic Games are over. Though she opposed such a move, and Downing Street sources insisted it was ‘not in the offing’, economists and some Tory ministers back the idea, pointing out that the Government functioned perfectly well before 1992, when the department was created.

According to Mrs Harman, the Department for Culture, Media and Sport is ready to close after the Olympics, and has already halved in size. The Institute of Economic Affairs has claimed that closing the department could save up to £1.6bn, which in turn could give the Government room for tax cuts. This would also cease taxpayer subsidies for museums, libraries and art galleries, which in total account for about a third of this saving, approximately £540 million. However Mrs Harman, deputy Labour leader, said she feared Prime Minister David Cameron “is about to deal yet another blow to the arts by abolishing the DCMS altogether”. Writing in the Evening Standard she said: “There are wellsourced rumours in Westminster and the arts world that after the Olympics, the government will announce that the DCMS is no longer needed.” And on her website on

Friday 27th April, she said the Prime Minister should offer a “categorical assurance” that he would not abolish the department, once the London Games are over. However the government are keen to downplay these rumours, officials have said this to be “complete rumours”, with Downing Street saying that they did not recognise the reports.

fter a second dry winter, leaving all but the far north of England officially in drought, seven water companies have been forced to declare hosepipe bans. The ban has been issued in an effort to curb water usage and maintain current reservoir levels. Seven major water companies in the south east, including Veolia Water, Thames Water, and South East Water have all declared temporary use bans to help conserve supplies. The last 18 months have been the driest for a century according to Anglian Water, and Thames Water state: “Last year was one of the driest on record and groundwater levels are now lower than during the 1976 drought”. A figure backed up by the Environment Agency. In-contrast, Scotland has had its wettest winter on record (with around 120 per cent of the average rainfall over the country), while parts of the South East of England had as low as 60 per cent of the usual volumes. Even in western European countries such as France and Spain there is a state of drought, with some regions only receiving 20 per cent of the normal rainfall. Speaking after a meeting with key players in the water industry, the environment secretary, Caroline Spelman, said: “Drought is already an issue this year with the South East, Anglia and other parts of the UK now officially in

drought, and more areas are likely to be affected as we continue to experience a prolonged period of very low rainfall. “It is not just the responsibility of Government, water companies and businesses to act against drought. We are asking for the help of everyone by urging them to use less water and to start now.” With a few easy steps it’s relatively easy to save water. Simple things like taking shorter showers can save 10 litres a minute and keeping the tap off whilst brushing your teeth can save 6 litres of water a minute. Thames Water also suggests using a washing-up bowl to clean the dishes, only filling the kettle with as much water as necessary and hope that ‘we all learn to use water wisely to ensure there is enough for everyone in years to come.’

University leaps up student poll
By Jyoti Rambhai, News Editor

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Are the London 2012 Olympics keeping the departments of culture, media and sport alive?

ccording to the latest Times Higher Education Student Experience Survey, the University of Surrey has rocketed up the tables. The University leapt from 43 amongst UK universities to 15. Over 14,000 undergraduate students from across the country took part in the survey, rating their institution’s performance in twenty one various categories that ranged from the quality of staff and lecturers to the social life and accommodation. Director of Student Support, David Dickinson told the Times Higher Education that the results were “gratifying.” He continued:

“We are co-ordinating ourselves to deliver what students need when they need it. “This really is the result of a team effort. Colleagues from right across the University have all pulled together to make things better for our students.” The University achieved the fourth-greatest improvement this year. In the last two year the University has implemented a new ‘student experience strategy’, which includes a £13.2 million investment in the library and learning resources centre, which is open 24 hours a day, and a major overhaul of its “student welcome,” says the magazine.

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The CAREERS SERVICE presents…

A REASON BIG ENOUGH
think bionic – the possibilities are endless

MONDAY 21 MAY 6PM VENUE: LTB
NOEL FITZPATRICK is a neuro-orthopaedic veterinary surgeon, a pioneer of bionic development in animals and star of BBC1’s The Bionic Vet. Noel will be speaking about his own career to date, embracing his passion for both art and science. His focus is on inspiring possibilities that aren’t restricted by your studies. All you need is a Reason Big Enough! Entry is FREE but booking is essential. Please access the link below to reserve your place. www.surrey.ac.uk/careers/noelfitzpatrick

Union Contact: [email protected]

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NUS CONFERENCE 2012
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What does Pete Mercer, NUS VP Welfare have to say on housing?
and students in FE (with EMA and ALG now removed), the prospect is even bleaker. That’s why this year I lobbied internally to make student finance an organisational-wide priority. And that’s also why I’ve conducted the biggest ever piece of research into student finance off the back of this, undertaking a comprehensive literature review of the current financial landscape (i.e. what students get) and a survey of over 14,000 students to find out about their experiences- looking at all tertiary education, right from apprentices in Further Education through to research postgrads. The ultimate goal is to win greater investment in student financial support, but also to evaluate and discern where this money needs to go, i.e. make sure it goes to those who need it most. With regards to regional weighting, I think this is ’ve been very clear this year that the faults in the current system and in the new fees regime are not all to do with fees themselves – there are a number of different aspects that need an entire rethink. One of the areas that I’ve been keen to highlight this year has been student financial support. Policy on tuition fees must be a priority, but when some of our arguments revolve around widening participation and social mobility, we have to recognise that inadequate funding is often the biggest threat to access and retention. The average annual income shortfall for an undergraduate is around £8000 - a shortfall presumably to be made up by parental contributions, savings and earnings from part-time work. As this trend increases, it’s my belief that we’re heading towards a national student crisis. And that’s just HE undergrads: for postgrads something both the sector and the Government need to consider more than they currently are. In London and the South East in particular, living costs have inflated at a rate that transcends any current loan weighting. For accommodation alone, students can expect to pay a premium in the thousands, when compared to other parts of the country, let alone other rising living costs. So whilst I think that students living in these areas should definitely be eligible for more funding and that these levels should be scrutinised more closely, I also think we need to tackle issues relating to housing markets too. So that’s why housing is another main priority for me: I’m a part of various housing coalitions and together we’ll be presenting ideas to the Government about what it can do to solve housing inflation in the private rented sector, including building more homes for a start(!), but also looking towards other models, such as housing cooperatives.”

Surrey’s very own Aaran Steers takes the stage at the NUS conference 2012

LIAM BURNS Re-elected as NUS President:
Liam Burns was elected with 57 per cent of the vote in the final round of the count and will now continue in office until June 2013. “I am delighted students have put their trust in me and reelected me to serve a second term as NUS President. “With the government’s abandonment of the proposed higher education bill, scrapping of EMA, and presiding over record youth unemployment, so many of their wrongheaded reforms are taking place behind the scenes and we will continue to vigorously contest them out in the open.

VICKI BAARS Elected as VP Union Development:
Vicki Baars was elected as the new VP Union Development with a total of 385 votes in the final round of the count. “I am absolutely ecstatic about being elected. I am massively excited about the demonstration, the officer training programmer and online training modules, and making sure the skills we have in the movement are getting out to students.”

TONI PEARCE Re-elected as VP Further Education:
Toni Pearce was elected with a total of 127 votes out of 199 votes. “I’m really excited about being re-elected Vice-President Further Education and putting purther education students and the lost generation back on the agenda where they absolutely belong.”

UJS stall vandalised at NUS conference
By Jyoti Rambhai, News Editor

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DANNIE GRUFFERTY Re-elected as VP Society and Citizenship:
Dannie Grufferty was elected as VP Society and Citizenship, receiving a total of 374 in the first round of counts, well above the quota. In her manifesto, Dannie states that this year she aims to work towards getting a minimum of 20 FE and HE institutions to commit to paying a living wage to all their staff and to help community organisers across the UK and to ensure that SUs are at the heart of it.

PETE MERCER Re-elected as VP Welfare:
Pete Mercer was elected with a total of 388 votes in the first count, giving him a comfortable win. “When I found out I’d been re-elected, I was just overwhelmed with excitement - excitement about being given the opportunity to get stuck in again! I’m really thankful to those who have supported me and placed their trust in me as Vice President Welfare for one more year. “I believe the reforms to education are entirely reversible, armed with the right arguments and a student body mobilised behind us. But we can do better than that even: it’s time for the Government to go back to the drawing board, and it’s the student movement that can point the sector forwards.”

RACHEL WENSTONE Elected as VP Higher Education:
Rachel Wenstone was elected as the new VP for Higher Education with a total of 230 votes. Rachel focused her campaign on the fight for fair access and retention with the slogan: ‘Fighting for the Real Value of Our Education’. “I am so grateful to everyone who has helped me over the last four or five months. I cannot wait to work with some of the most incredible officers I have met, and to get the campaign going.”

he Union of Jewish Students (UJS) stall was vandalised on the first evening (April 24) of the NUS National Conference. The UJS stall appeared to be a target in a discrimination act, whereby posters and banners were defaced with antiIsrael stickers and included the Star of David emblems on the UJS logo being covered up. One student, who asked not to be named said: “I couldn’t believe what I saw when I came down to the stall. We were all just so hurt, to think that someone here, somewhere that is supposed to be safe place for all students could do such a thing.” The following day, NUS President Liam Burns made a statement on conference floor, stating that the act was “utterly disgraceful’ and that ‘”anti-Semitism is vile, it is hate and it has absolutely no place in our movement. “...NUS does not tolerate racism, facism or anti-Semitism in any of its forms. We will work day and night to drive our hate from our student movement, education system and society.” NUS have launched a full investigation into the attack.

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8th May 2012

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Surrey leads national students towards fair students’ finances
By Jack White, Editor

NUS CONFERENCE 2012
one outgoings of bills. On campus, more students live in Band D accommodation than in all the other bands put together (2500 vs 2300). Next year the Band D rent will be £500 a month. Where is this money coming from? Surrey’s new NUS policy aims to tackle this situation from several angles. First and most importantly in the long term, we have mandated NUS to lobby government and universities to build more houses. As Surrey University’s Director of Traded Services and Business Support points out in his article on page 8, rent prices locally are a key consideration in pricing rent on campus. So whether university or private, your rent is part of a much wider market and if there is a greater choice of housing for everybody, prices for students will go down. We have also now mandated the NUS and local student unions to lobby for a geographical weighting on student loans and grants. If that happened, we at Surrey would be right at the upper end of the scale. We could be in line for an extra £2,000 a year like London students have now. But even if we all got that extra money, we would still have a maximum income less than £14,000. The Centre for Research in Social Policy at Loughborough University has started a campaign called the Minimum Income Standard, which says that £15,000 a year is the minimum income a single person can have a decent quality of life for. That is with a weekly rent of just £56. That’s why our policy also an obligates NUS to lobby universities and unions to get prices on campus down to the level they would be at if everyone in the local area earned the average income of a student. In the case of Surrey, that would mean no more £4 paninis, no more £9 pizzas and no more ludicrous rents. NUS Conference also criticised fee waivers, which many universities including Surrey are now going give out instead of cash bursaries. In 2012, some students will start getting a £2,000 fee waiver and £1,000 in cash instead of the £2,100 in cash. At first look, that may seem better, but consider this: if as a graduate you are earning enough to pay off your student loan, the difference between paying back £6,000 and £9,000 in fees will be small. But for students who are already close to poverty income, the missing cash will mean your years at university will be more miserable and more stressful. Maybe you can think of ways to help us all achieve these aims. Perhaps the Government needs to do more. If we set one goal as a 40% of student loan cap on campus rents, then universities will have a good reason to get on our side and help lobby the Government for a fair financial deal for students. Our motion to NUS is now part of a larger policy on students’ finances. You can see Surrey’s main action points below, but to read the whole policy you can see the NUS Conference motions document, where Surrey’s policy is amendment 601a to motion 601. Motions 601, 601a and 601b all passed in policy at the conference: http://tinyurl.com/bpdvdbu

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his year our Union made a little bit of history by submitting and passing a major National Union of Students (NUS) policy. I authored it and spoke for it at NUS Conference, so I would like to tell you a bit about it – what prompted it and what we can all hope and work for under its mandate. It won’t have escaped your notice that we live in a very expensive part of the country – by some reckonings the most expensive outside London, in fact. To put this in perspective, the House Price Index from the Government’s Land Registry puts the average house price in the UK at £160,000, but the same figure for Surrey is £297,000 – 85% more than the national average. These figures translate directly to the amounts we pay in rent. But that does not mean that we have any more income. A single student under the standard student loans and grants arrangement is able to get (at the most) about £9,500 from the Student Loans Company and a bursary of £2,100 from the University. Under Government rules, this £11,600 is supposed to last you for the whole year. In the cheapest places in Britain £11,600 may be just about enough to live a reasonable life, but in Guildford that would be absurd if it wasn’t so serious. Take £3,500 off that figure for tuition fees. Take off another £4,000-£5,000 for rent. That leaves around £4,000 if your rent is low for the area, for everything else. Those who live off campus then have the added day-

“Two thirds of students regularly worry about covering living costs”
By Denise Juvane, News Team

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Action points: Surrey’s new NUS policy
1. That NUS and its Constituent Members shall directly lobby Government to introduce geographical weighting to student support arrangements with the aim of bringing student income in line with local costs of living. 2. That NUS shall directly lobby its Constituent Members, Government and educational institutions to commit to attaining prices on campuses commensurate with average student income, instead of the average income of working local residents. 3. That NUS shall lobby to obtain access to Housing Benefit for students. 4. That NUS shall lobby to obtain access to Jobseekers’ Allowance for students during the summer vacation. 5. That NUS shall move to reduce students’ reliance on parental financial contributions. 6. That NUS and its Constituent Members shall lobby local government and universities to provide more housing for students in line with average student incomes. 7. That NUS shall lobby for the introduction of a UK-wide national minimum standard on living space in line with other high-output European economies.

ollowing the NUS’ ‘Pound in your pocket’ survey, of students’ perception of financial support, it was made clear that two thirds (66 per cent) of undergraduates aged between 21 and 24 continuously worry about not having enough money to cover basic living costs. President of the National Union of Students (NUS), Liam Burns added in regards to the lack of sufficient funds that ‘students at all levels of education are telling us that financial support is not reaching the pockets of those that need it most’. Indeed, the survey, which was released on the eve of the NUS conference in 2012, investigates the costs faced by students today and the impact of the different ranges of support measures available to them. Severe financial worries, the survey shows, are visible in more than a third of students in every group; with NHS students, students with children and mature students in further education suffering most. Mr Burns further added: “Students who struggle to meet basic living costs will also struggle to continue their education”. With the recent increase in student tuition fees, there will also inevitably be a certain level of struggle for some students in the future. Websites such as ‘The Student Room’ have outlined possible effects of dropping out of university due to high living costs.

However, today it seems that it is more cost effective for most, to remain in university as otherwise the debt would accumulate and no degree would be achieved. Nonetheless, the problem with being able to maintain costs is not only existent in university level education. The report also showed that 68 per cent of further education students between 16 and 18, struggling with costs such as travel. Of those students, many would have been eligible for the Education Maintenance Allowance (EMA) had it not been scrapped and it is estimated that they spend around £30 a week for transport; equal to the maximum weekly EMA payment that they would have been eligible for. Regardless of such hurdles which students are faced with, Mr Burns stated that the ‘government must ensure that no student is forced out of education because of cost’ but it seems as though the opposite is what may happen in years to come.

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Sabbaticals Say...
‘Don’t be a sheep stand from the crowd’
Student’s Union president Osama Salih reports back on the annual NUS conference
conference works and how we can vote I was more comfortable with the whole process. The day started by a brilliant and inspiring speech from Omar Mohammed president of students union in Egypt, he spoke about his experiences as a student and the uprising in Egypt; he said that this wouldn’t have been possible if all the youth have not come together fighting for one thing. The days then continued with reports from the different zone committees, Higher Education, Further Education, Union Development, Welfare Zone, Societies and Citizenship. After the reports there were discussions on motions submitted and cases put for and against, then the voting was done. There were a couple of interesting fringe sessions to attend, but the highlight of the conference was the Presidents Hustings, it was an interesting battle with 4 candidates all been elected before for a fulltime officer role at NUS. Surrey joined forces with Reading SU to put a motion through about the London Living Wage and that NUS should battle the government that the London weighting should be available to areas outside London with similar costs of living. This motion was past and was on of the first times that Surrey Students Union has put a motion to NUS conference. Thanks to Jack White and the NUS Delegates for making this happen. It was a great experience and I urge as many of you that are here next year to help shape the future of your life and the life of others that are around you. Whether being involved in the elections locally or running as a delegate for the NUS conference or even for NUS block of 15. There are many ways for being involved so ‘Don’t be a sheep stand from the crowd’.

Osama Salih
Union President

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Enihicium dolessus experibus eius aut volendictes ium ditemos rem fugit alit

Do something a little different this summer
Jake Willis
Union VP Societies

ver the last couple of weeks of the eastern holidays, we have been gearing up for the NUS conference in Sheffield. The NUS National conference is where policy and agenda is set for the year ahead in each of the 5 zones and elects the President, Vice Presidents and Block of 15 representatives on the National Executive Council. It is also where the budget for the year ahead is decided through the Annual General Meeting (AGM). On the day of the conference, the journey started at 7:00 am leaving Guildford. It took us almost 5 hours to get there, on our arrival there were thousands of delegates attending. It was all very overwhelming being the first National Conference that I have attended, but as the day has gone with the introductions of how the

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ummer is fast approaching (not that you would know it), and so is the time of freedom. Right now, you may be facing a pile of books, looking for that one quotation that will score you that magic 70%, but in just a few weeks time you will be free! For these first few weeks this will seem like heaven. And yes, you’ve probably got some recovering from EOYS and the Lake Party to do as well. However, then what? What’s the plan for those wonderful three months with little more to do than catch up on iPlayer and eat everything at home? Summer is the perfect time to do something a bit different. You have just over

three months to do something you’ve never done before, or even something you love to do, before you return in October. Yes, you may have some reading to do. Maybe even some dissertation preparation to begin. But you could also do something like volunteer. At the Students’ Union, we’re here all Summer, as are the volunteering opportunities that have been compiled for you. If you’re staying around in Guildford, then we may be able to find something for you to get involved in, so pop into the office and see Clem, our Volunteering Coordinator. Yes, it is important that you relax this Summer, but it’s also important to remember the word that will be thrown at you every time you sit down with your tutor: Employability. Three months is a long time – so why not head out and do something different. It’s worth it in the long run.

Keep Wednesday afternoons free
Join the KWAF Campaign and sign the online petition to the University at http://ussu.co/kwaf12
University has invested a lot of money into Team Surrey (University Sport) and has a strong focus on becoming a world class university for sport. Universities across the country measure their performance in sport through the BUCS (British University & College Sport) tables. The games on Wednesdays contribute to the University’s BUCS tables and if the University is really serious in achieving a top 10 position, then they need to help students out... by keeping Wednesdays afternoons free from 12pm. This year, thousands of lectures/seminars/tutorials/labs have been scheduled past 12pm on Wednesdays. I talk about sport but it’s not all about sport. As I mentioned before, sometimes teaching in the afternoon on Wednesdays can deter people from joining or taking part in societies or other extracurricular activities such as languages. This may not affect you; however it may affect your friends, course mates, even the fellow student sitting next to you in the library. This campaign seeks to get the University to enforce its own Wednesday afternoon policy and also make changes to push the teaching cut-off time to 12pm as well as including Health & Social Care lectures. Help a brother out, join the campaign, it’s real easy… Sign the petitions online here: http://ussu.co/kwaf12

Trung

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Union VP Sports & Recreation any students have told me about their problems with Wednesday afternoons; mostly that they have to choose whether or not they go to lectures or skip them in order to make it to their sports games. Some choose to skip and some don’t but why should students have to face that choice? Of course students are here for their degree, but there are many other opportunities that the University brings to students. This includes sports clubs, societies, language courses and other extracurricular activities. In the case of sport, the

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OPINION & ANALYSIS

The Stag |

8th May 2012

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Opinion & Analysis
The cost of Surrey living
By James Newby, Director of Traded Services & Business Support, University of Surrrey

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he University houses more than 5,000 students on campus and helps many more find appropriate accommodation in the private rented sector. Guildford is a great place to live but is located in an expensive part of the country. We recognise that some students face real difficulty meeting current living costs and that all students wish that accommodation costs were lower. The issue of living costs, particularly accommodation rents, featured heavily in the recent SU sabbatical officer elections and is the subject of a national NUS campaign – supported by Surrey’s SU – to challenge the government and universities to provide better financial support for students. To help the debate about student rents which it has triggered, I thought it might be helpful to outline to students our approach to setting prices for this important aspect of their University experience. When determining rent prices the University must meet two important obligations. Firstly, it must ensure that if a student chooses to live and study at Surrey, they can be confident that they will not have to pay more for accommodation here than they would for a similar standard room elsewhere; and what they do pay, must represent good value for money. We therefore benchmark

our rent levels carefully to ensure that they are amongst the lowest in the region. This year, we are proposing to increase rents by 3.5%. Although below current rates of inflation and the level set by many other universities we recognise that this increase will be unwelcome to students. However, Surrey will remain one of the lowest cost Universities in the region and nationally for accommodation and will offer one of the best packages of services covered by rent. This includes energy costs, insurance, broadband and mentoring support. As well as offering good value accommodation to students we also understand that we must provide a range of accommodation types including a substantial stock of lower cost rooms where students share facilities such as bathrooms. We have been challenged recently to build more of this type of accommodation to help lower average rents. Our experience of students applying for accommodation is that two thirds typically express a strong preference for the more self-contained, en-suite rooms. This represents a change in requirements from previous generations of students but one the University must respond to. Therefore the new accommodation block currently under construction on Manor Park will provide more en-suite accommodation but our commitment to maintaining

significant quantities of lower priced rooms remains in place. The University’s second obligation is to set rents at a level necessary to generate sufficient operating/cash surpluses to meet the cost of maintaining its accommodation units and to build the new facilities needed to benefit present and future students. Government grants to fund maintenance and invest in new infrastructure have all but ceased so universities must now generate the cash needed for these important investments from their day to day activities. Whilst it will always be difficult to “match” a rent increase to a particular investment or initiative, we can highlight a number of recent major improvements funded largely by rent income including the exciting new reception and social facility on Manor Park and thousands of refurbished bedrooms, kitchens and bathrooms. Managing these two conflicting obligations will always be a challenge, particularly given the profound changes to University funding and student finances that we are all now experiencing. We will continue to engage closely with students both individually and via their elected SU representatives as we seek to find that elusive balance between delivering what current students rightly expect and investing for future generations.

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The cost of living in Guildford can be very high. The SU is fighting to make accommodation more affordable for students.

10 FEATURES

The Stag |

8th May 2012

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Placement years: Yea or Nay?
By Hannah Wann, Features Team

Features

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he placement year: one of the reasons why a lot of us chose Surrey as the university to spend the three/four years of our higher education at. A chance to gain work experience – for our CVs and our industry knowledge, a chance to form contacts and make ourselves that little bit more employable. Come second year, the panic sets in... Researching, organising, applying, cover letters, interviews – argh! And that one big fear: what if no-one wants me? What if I just don’t get one? Competition is high – in some industries, ridiculously high – and securing a placement is by no means guaranteed. But, is it really the end of the world if you don’t get one anyway? Or, even more so, if you choose not to apply for one? Sure, a placement year can give you great opportunities, you can put what you’ve studied for the last two years into some practical use and some lucky students that do well on their placements can even end up coming out at the end of it with job offers. However, despite the recognition given to them, taking a placement year does have its flaws. Money and living issues can

be a problem; commuting is expensive, many placements do not pay and you may find you’re faced with having to move quite far out to be able to do the placement you ideally want. Although loans can be taken out for the year, this is still a loan. You will have to pay it back, on top of the other three years of university you will already have debt for. Adding an extra year onto your course does have its drawbacks! As well as that, the stress of the application process seems to be reported by many second year students to take its toll. Some recruitment procedures include online tests and various interview stages, as well as the standard CV and tailored cover letter. Say you are doing that ten times, for each company you’re applying at? You can imagine it gets a little hectic. Applications can be very timeconsuming and balancing your uni work with it can be tricky, so applying for a placement year is by no means the easy route. Although going through the application process is obviously a valuable learning experience – one which we’ll sadly all have to do eventually - you can save yourself a lot of time and tedious effort if you do make an executive decision not to do one.

The most central issue with the placement year comes down to whether it will really be beneficial, for you. A head of department from Royal Holloway University, who doesn’t currently run placement years, says the main problem with them is suitability. The suitability of the placement depending on the course you do and what field you want to go into is crucial. For instance, he says that many of his psychology students are hoping to go into clinical psychology, but students are unable to secure placements in that setting for obvious reasons. Spending a year working for say, a bank, is not going to be highly beneficial. Therefore the cons of taking one far outweigh the pros. Now I’m not at all condemning taking a placement year – far from that – but it is true that taking one isn’t for everyone. Focusing on extra-curricular activities and work in societies can be similarly beneficial to your CV and your employability. Using the extra time you have from not applying for a placement year – and then not working nine till five for a year – to get a little proactive, rather than just relaxing and doing your course, can make you stand out in the job market too.

Moreover, deciding not to do a placement year in third year doesn’t prevent you from doing any work experience by any means. In some industries, finding a YEAR placement is pretty impossible and they tend to run in weeks or months. Student holidays are pretty damn good – a month off just at Easter leaves quite a lot of opportunity to apply for a week or so at a company, making the most of the time already given to you. It also has less of the drawbacks

of taking a whole year out for a placement and is a more financially viable option, as many current second and third students seem to have found. So, overall, no – not doing a placement year isn’t the end of the world. For a lot of students it seems to be the smarter choice. But not doing one also doesn’t mean you can sit on your arse doing the bare minimum for another year, despite how oh-so-tempting it is...

Y’know what really grinds my gears?
be talking about you. I’ve been working in Rubix and Chancellors for a few years now and I’ve served my fair share of fools. I asked my boss if I was allowed to moan and he said so long as no-one were identifiable from my description you’re lucky. Here’s a list of things you may do to annoy: Firstly, if you don’t have the decency to put their money in my hand but instead put it on a sticky bar like my hands are diseased. It’s cool, I’ll just start putting your change on the sambuca drenched bar too... how do you like it? We don’t, and never have, accepted debit/credit cards in Rubix. We’re in May now, learn this already. Those people who complain about the waiting time at the bar

Union customers!
by all means; if it hasn’t worked for the last few years, I doubt it’ll work for my remaining few weeks. Also (seeing as we’re still on box office), moaning, “but it’s only 11.15, why can’t I just pay £1.50?” Reason: because it’s past 11pm, so give me the £3 for your Citrus entry and next time try getting here before 11pm if the £1.50 matters that much to you. Those of you who spill your own drink and ask for a free “cheeky” re-fill. To those of you who lose your cloakroom tickets, don’t expect the description “it’s a black coat” to do anything for you. No. Wait until the end of the night to claim your coat and don’t lose your ticket again. BOTTLE bar - the clue is in the name, people! To any of you who like screaming my name and waving frantically, like we’re friends, because you want to get served before anyone else, hmmm. I have a method for dealing with people like you: I turn around, with an ecstatic look on my face (I’m really happy to see you), smile and wave frantically back, and then walk off. The satisfaction - I can’t describe it. Wait your turn. Rant done. I’m only telling you this for your own good, looking out for your welfare an’all. I’m not a moany mare all the time; it’s just that some customers need to think more and it just really grinds my gears!

By Bakita Kasadha, Editor-in-Chief

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his GMGs is more angry than funny (if any of the other previous ones could be described as ‘funny’). I’m not gonna lie, I could

but don’t know what they want when it’s their turn to order: idiots. Speaking of waiting, can I just say that we’re not intentionally trying to punish you (most of the time), sometimes we honestly don’t realise that you’re next, but clicking your fingers could see you waiting at the bar for longer than the person who came along 10 minutes after you. Obviously, I wouldn’t do this because I’m professional. Oh yeah, toilets: what the HELL are you doing in there over the course of the evening ‘ladies’?! Those of you who think you can get free entry into Rubix when I’m working at box office; this especially goes out to the guys who try and wink their way to a free ticket. It’s not gonna work, it hasn’t worked yet, but try the challenge

© Stacey Hunter

© robson magalha£es

Features Editor: Nicole Vassell | Copy Editor: Michaela Fulton

The Stag |

8th May 2012

FEATURES

11

Stella does sportswear
Ellis Taylor
© katherinegeraets

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s one of the least sporty people in the world, I have no interest what so ever in taking part in some sort of sports event. I am so un–sporty that one of my friends only believed that I had cycled around Hyde Park after seeing photographic evidence. So why on Earth would I ever be writing about the Olympics?! Stella McCartney. That’s why. Ever since she graduated from Central Saint Martins in 1995, this designer daughter of Sir Paul McCartney has had fashion success of Olympic proportions (see what I did there?) Just 2 years after finishing, she became Creative Director of Chloé, a massive achievement in itself, but to take over from Karl Lagerfeld?! Woah. Just woah. She had some big (and fabulous) shoes to fill. And her obvious talent doesn’t stop there; McCartney has built her entire design empire without using fur or leather and yet remains at the top of the mighty tower of fashion. So the fashion industry loves her, PETA loves her (I presume) and animals really love her, but does the British sporting world, and the British public, love her f o r her Olympic

kit design? Ermm…sorta. The design by McCartney for Adidas is based around the Union Jack, and the re-styling of the iconic flag hasn’t been welcomed by all. There is a notable lack of red within the design, with the flag print being made up of different shades of blue, and collars and socks taking responsibility for the red. Images of the kits have been put up on the Team GB Facebook page, and whilst there are a lot of negative comments, there are some positives too. Personally, I’m not a massive fan of it. I understand the restyling, showing that Great Britain is fresh and up to date, not stuck in the past...however Britain is Britain, we need our red back! STELLA, WHERE IS OUR RED?! But please, please, please do not judge Stella McCartney on this kit. Each season, she sends new and inspiring looks down the runway of her shows, whether its structure, texture, colour or print, McCartney can do it. Ask her to do a romantic look? No problemo, spring 2004. Tailoring? Spring 2006. Androgyny? Fall 2010. With such an obviously talented designer falling a bit short on the design for the Olympic kit, it leaves me wondering, can fashion and sport actually mix? If they can’t, then that’s my new excuse for never doing sport.

Will we be proud of our era?
By Sophie Vickery, Features Team

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© urban don

t is not uncommon to hear the phrase “ah, the good old days”, voiced among older generations overcome with nostalgia as they lament dusty memories, when children could play safely outside and families ate dinner at a table, absent of phones ringing or televisions blaring. It is inevitable that people look back to their own eras with fond memories, reminiscing the best music, television, fashion and general ways of life. So, what will we remember about our culture? Arguably, the most dominant parts of culture develop following influences from the media. Television culture of today offers a vast number of programmes thanks to digital and satellite switchovers. Consequently, the last decade has brought many new faces of younger generations to our screens. The Only Way is Essex, The Inbetweeners and Skins have certainly made their mark, producing new celebrities and highlighting cultures which were perhaps previously misunderstood. Meanwhile, many of us have found ourselves singing away to High School Musical and Glee. Of course, one could not forget to mention the importance of the nation’s favourite sarcastic narrator on Come Dine with Me and admit to watching back to back episodes on Dave during a lazy Sunday afternoon. There are other celebrities who have risen to great fame during our era. Figures s u c h as Kim

Kardashian and Louie Spence seem to have simply sprung up from nowhere. There are also less obvious aspects of our culture which are such a regular part to our everyday lives that we don’t even realise their prominence. For instance, comparison websites producing the loveable Meerkats and the catchy “Go Compare” song which becomes rather torturous during a Saturday evening of the X Factor, as it is repeatedly drummed into our heads. There are many other television adverts which largely impact our lives. ‘Have you recently had an accident or injury at work which wasn’t your fault? Have you considered compensation?’ Following the latest health concerns, there’s now an abundance of adverts supporting products which can ‘lower your cholesterol’ and ‘boost your Omega 3!’ And thank goodness for ‘Best of Both’ bread; we can still have the ‘great taste of white bread but with the goodness of wholemeal’. Advert breaks are otherwise dominated by ways to help us save money in the tough economic climate; ‘Feed your family for a fiver’, ‘Marks and Spencer dine in for £10’. Meanwhile, as we wait for our ‘Caramelised Onion and Goats Cheese tarts’ or ‘Moroccan Cous Cous’ to cook (the retro days of chicken Kievs and Walnut Salad having passed), many of us have a quick game of ‘Angry Birds’ and then tweet our latest scores because, of course, everyone cares. Following dinner, we turn to our Kindles for a spot of reading or to our iPads for internet shopping Primark anyone? The next morning we awake to find the joys of being able to make fancy coffees thanks to posh

coffee machines for the home. Now we can have cappuccinos with extra froth, hazelnut lattes and caramel mochas until our hearts are content. If we don’t have time to make one at home, there’s no panic as the local Starbucks is never far away. We wait for our Tesco delivery to arrive or struggle around the store, get to the till and cry “Oh no - I left my bags in the car!” Our culture has seen the mighty ‘Bag for Life’ conquer the carrier. And then we head to the gym for a spot of Zumba. Guys load up on protein shakes and women focus on the complex mathematics involved in calorie counting so they can calculate if that caramel macchiato prevents them from enjoying a delicately iced cupcake later. Speaking of which, has anyone noticed the sheer number of women entering the ‘homemade cupcake’ market lately? Their beautiful designs and dreamy icing certainly shows the jam doughnut and Belgian bun their place! It’s Saturday afternoon so we all head to Ikea and fill big, blue bags (baskets are so yesterday) with random kitchen accessories invented for no reason. The Ikea, coloured ice cube trays have brought ice cubes in the shapes of arrows, hearts, stars, cats, dogs to our freezers. As you continue your hectic day (‘life is so busy these days’), take a moment to consider the part of today’s culture which you will nostalgically be lamenting to your grandchildren in the future. In the meantime, I’ll leave you with a tweet only we can relate to: ‘The awkward moment when you change your Facebook status to “single” and your ex likes it.’

12 FEATURES

The Stag |

8th May 2012

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Rule Britannia?
By Rebecca Worley, features Team

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Many students are probably, by now, confusing their maintenance loan with a winning lottery ticket...

Give me my money!
By Nicole Vassell, Features Editor

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y the time this goes to print, most of us will hopefully have a much prettier looking current account. That text from Student Finance England consisting of ten beautiful words creates a feeling of joy throughout the student community like no other: “Your student finance will be paid into your bank tomorrow”. Finally! I thought, rubbing my hands with glee. Now I can buy some new day shoes – unfortunately, I’d managed to leave all my shoes without holes at my permanent home over Easter, and getting soaking wet socks every time I ventured outside was becoming a drag. Saying that, I also need a new umbrella…and maybe some wellies. You know what? Why not treat yourself, Nicole - a new dress? Ooh, and finally I can get those festival tickets! Oh, I should put some aside for a lastminute holiday this summer too… Before the money was even safely into my account, I’d made big plans for my incoming funds and went to bed with dreams of rolling around in scattered £20 notes. Clearly, I’d confused ‘student maintenance loan’ with ‘EuroMillions win’, because after I’d thought rationally and sectioned off the money I needed for rent and bills, I could just about afford to upgrade from Tesco Value products to their basic stores’ own brand. “How about your overdraft?” I’m asked. Yet, for someone who only receives enough to keep their landlady happy, the overdraft ship has long ago sailed. So for me, the student loan joy only really lasted for more than a few hours back when I was a fresher without rent to pay over the summer. But while there are many students in a similarly annoying position to mine, I know

that before long, a large percentage of us still end up wondering where their money has vanished to. So, here’s a small collection of tips to remember that might help you hold onto your student loan for as long as possible.

expenditure.

3. Lists are fun!
Well, maybe not that fun, but that doesn’t change how helpful they can be! Though this may seem incredibly obvious, and maybe a little patronising, making a list before you go food or even clothes shopping can end up saving a lot of money, as you’ll only be getting what you planned, instead of returning with something random, like a blender – regardless of whether it was half price or not.

1. Get strict
The impulse to give yourself a little treat after receiving some money is incredibly common: ever noticed how many mini-sales and store promotions start at the end or the beginning of the month? It’s no coincidence that it’s so close to payday. I’m particularly partial to something I don’t exactly need, but want – and then that spills over into having two drinks with dinner, instead of the usual half pint of coke (with no ice, thank you). And then, maybe a dessert? Oh, what the hell – two desserts! No. Stop. Set a limit, be that number of days or an amount of money, for a treat allowance...and then stop. By being greedy with self-gifting ourselves, we end up living like royalty for two weeks maximum, before spending the rest of the term literally counting the pennies.

hat makes Britain British? Our national identity is in flux. With a country so racially, culturally, religiously and ideologically diverse, is there any one way to define being British? There are the obvious answers of living here or being born here, but these don’t really define a national identity in any way. The laughable stereotypes still linger of course: the stately home owner dressed entirely in tweed who loves nothing more than chasing foxes and lunching on tea and scones. Or, paradoxically, the binge drinking youth culture, proudly bearing ASBOs like Blue Peter badges, setting a shining example of our brilliant nation. Yet these are two perceptions of Britain which the overwhelming majority do not fit into. But then how do you begin to define it? Perhaps religion is a good starting point, although Christianity doesn’t unite the country like it used to, with atheism and other religions dramatically affecting the statistics. The monarchy: just a tourist gimmick in some people’s eyes. The thing is, it’s much more complicated than where you were born or currently live. In fact the things this country used to cherish now mean nothing to

the next generation. Patriotism doesn’t really seem to be this country’s thing, especially when compared to the adoring masses of America, eagerly pledging allegiance. Maybe we think we’re a bit too cool for that. But I do think there are so many things to be proud of in this country, contrary to the gratifying grumbling of no jobs and rainy weather. I think everyone will have their own personal spin on what makes them British, but the country itself has the foundations for these ideas to be built upon: the NHS, the BBC, free education for all, regardless of economic background or gender. Without that very education you wouldn’t be able to form an opinion on the issue, let alone read this. Very soon the Olympics will be kicking off, starting a wave of tourism rippling across Great Britain. Although many people remain uninterested, 68.5% in a recent survey, perhaps the events will spark a sense of pride in our country once again, as people celebrate a common interest in backing our Olympians. Well hopefully. But then again, conversations are more likely to be dominated by: ‘these bloody Olympics, can’t go anywhere without being stuck in traffic...’

4. No YOLO
If you’re not aware of this phrase, count yourself lucky. Popularised by Canadian rapper Drake, it stands for ‘You Only Live Once’, a motto that has been adopted by hundreds of thousands of young people around the world, taken to live life as carefree as possible, without regret. It’s an inspiration to spend what we want and think about the consequences later. The major problem with this is that, unlike Drake, many of us aren’t also sitting on ‘twenty-five mill’ – in my case, it’s usually just about twenty-five pounds. The mentality that life is for doing whatever you want despite what Natwest/ Santander/(insert your bank here) tells you just isn’t compatible with the majority of students’ lifestyles, so forget it! Being rigid with money is something that’s drilled into us from a young age, but if there’s ever a time to listen to the logic of our grandparents, it’s right now: the next time student loan comes in isn’t until late September, so it’s either time to tighten the purse strings, or buy a truckload of lottery tickets...

2. Keep it old school
Paying with card is so convenient and easy, it’s no surprise how many of us primarily rely upon this method of payment. However, it also causes us to neglect how much we’re spending until the awkward moment where the cashier hands back your card saying “declined”. A tried and tested way to keep track of your money is by making a habit of physically withdrawing it from a cashpoint – maybe have a set amount for the week, and then stash your card at the back of your wardbrobe. Honestly, actually seeing cash leave your wallet makes you more aware of your

©lisa brewster

©EY

Features Editor: Nicole Vassell | Copy Editor: Michaela Fulton

The Stag |

8th May 2012

FEATURES

13

Life behind the hidden harm of parental addiction
Sarah shares her story of how her childhood and adulthood has been deeply affected by drug addiction...

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would like to share my story to give hope to those who are hopeless. I am in my 30’s. I have 5 brothers and I am the only girl. I found out when I was 15 that my dad was on heroin. It was a massive shock at the time and it really upset me. I am an emotional person anyway. My dad carried on injecting heroin and also started smoking crack cocaine. My mum and dad split up. I went to live with my mum and younger brothers. My mum at this time had started going out partying on the Madchester music scene taking ectasy. I would be left babysitting for my younger brothers a lot. My mum then met a new man who was heavily into selling and taking drugs. After about 3 months of seeing her new man she too started smoking crack cocaine. My mum would spend a lot of the time at her new man’s house and I would run the family home taking my younger brothers to and from school. Life went from bad to worse. My dad kept on getting ill with his weight affecting his heart and breathing as a result of the drugs. He died of a heart attack when I was 20. After a while she got caught

and was expecting to go to jail. My mum’s brothers and sisters had temporarily taken on looking after my younger brothers. I then agreed that I would look after my younger brothers temporarily whilst my mum went to jail. I ended up getting a house of the council for us all to live in. We have remained a tight unit even though we have had our tough times and I think this is how we have managed to get through it all as we have each other. At times I don’t know how I have managed to cope with everything life has thrown at me. I recently suffered with depression…I think a build up of all the years of stress!! I have this determination in me not to be like my mum or dad and make something of myself and my life! At the time I was constantly asking questions like why me? You feel unworthy like you are almost the drug addict. You have to remember that it isn’t you who is addicted to drugs and you too can have a successful life and deserve it as much as the next person. This is only a summary of my story. There are many stories within my story.

Sarah is a volunteer mentor for Children of Addicted Parents and People (COAP), a website for young people affected by a family member’s addiction to drugs, alcohol or some form of addictive behaviour such as gambling. We plan to hold a talk at Surrey University. Check out our website to get involved: www.coap.org.uk.

©news1

©Grumpy-Puddin

HEARTSOULSURREY

HEART+SOUL

14 FEATURES

The Stag |

8th May 2012

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Games
Answers in the next edition of The Stag. Send correct answers to [email protected] to get a mention in the paper.

Sudoku
2 3 8 1 9 1 4 5 7 2 7 8 4 7 5 8 8 3 5 1 2 3 7 3 1 4 7 5 2 4 9

Wordsearch
D L H O A T H E K K O J D L Y L R A C Q I S A O O U E H V T A V I Y B R U N G D I X S I B N O H I T B O X L G D A D S R O H I E N N A E T Z E A R A H Z F S R T J
The words to find are: • THE • ZOO • ADIDAS • DNA • fESTIVAl • JAIlBREAK • HUNGER • YOlO • RUBIX

Issue 42’s answers:
Sudoku
1 3 5 6 8 7 4 2 9 2 7 9 3 1 4 8 6 5 4 8 6 9 2 5 3 7 1 7 9 8 5 3 6 1 4 2 5 6 1 2 4 8 7 9 3 3 4 2 7 9 1 6 5 8 6 2 3 8 7 9 5 1 4 8 5 4 1 6 2 9 3 7 9 1 7 4 5 3 2 8 6

Wordsearch
S S F U R L P E I A S T E P P U M Z E L H A N N A H G L E N I L K C A B F O B G A I A T Y A I O A V I N S K H R S L A P U O O A A N A G B A M N K M A L A R I A Y
The words to find are: • IGAlA • MAlARIA • BACKlINE • MUPPETS • STAlIN • MARIO • BUS • KONY • flEAS

Sci/Tech Editor: Nathanael Roome | Copy Editor: Louisa White

The Stag |

8th May 2012

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

15

Wireless charging
By Alex Smith, Science & Tech Team

Science & Technology
Holograms!
By Nathanael Roome, Science & Tech Editor devices like Smartphones, Sat-Navs, and handheld games consoles just by placing them on-top. Now in 2012 there will be an agreement in place for household appliances, potentially eliminating the need to plug in your kettle every time you want a ‘cuppa’ – although it seems already they are thinking a little bigger. Qualcomm, a leading firm in wireless power, has already created Wireless Electric Vehicle Charging and has managed to achieve a 90% transmission efficiency (not far off mains power). The charging unit can be buried under the ground or simply mounted to the floor and the car only needs to park generally above it for charging to begin. Qualcomm have teamed up with TFL, the Government, and the Mayor of London and are

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n September 1882, Thomas Edison turned on his first power station, supplying 110 volts of direct current to 59 customers in Manhattan. Jump forward 130 years and we now see humanity approaching the advent of a new way of powering our technology. Wireless power has been around for a few years, however it hasn’t been given much of a domestic life, having instead been confined to research labs and left to the (affectionately named) boffins to tweak with. In 2010 a common standard between manufacturers was agreed for wireless charging in mobile devices and is slowly becoming more commonplace. ‘Powermats’ are already being sold in the UK and are able to charge

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launching a pre–commercial trial for up to 50 vehicles and 13 wireless charging points around the capital in 2012, and already companies are looking into embedding this technology in the roads and powering your car as you drive.

here is no doubt that the hologram of the late Tupac was very emotive and has clearly captured the imaginations of attending fans. It is tempting to “get my geek on” and explain how the performance works, but in all honesty, it’s not that complicated and other writers have already done an excellent job of this. The perceived success though has been due to the surprise element as opposed to the quality of the performance. What I find most interesting is the response of the public – it was engaging in a way that has lead most conversations to: what next for the technology? The most popular response seems to be that it was a niche performance that was only useful in the time and place it was enacted. But why would we restrict ourselves to this one off spectacle? The technology has been long in the making and waiting for some time to capture

the lime light. Imagine ‘Live Aid’ style simultaneous concerts around the world with artists in one location, smaller venues as well as large arenas could carry the performance to your favoured location. Or a call with loved ones with full body interacts. More than just big projectors and screens, it is the chance to be fully drawn in by the experience. If you believe those who tout this technology then that is where we’re headed, but we’ve heard that before. Send your thoughts into me at [email protected]

Biologically, research says, we are ‘non-monogamous’
By Ellie Brodie, Science & Tech Team

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Europe’s New Flagship
By Alex Smith, Science & Tech Team

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he majority of people, who read this research, will generally dismiss it due to its contradiction to social norms. So while reading, put those pre–judgments aside for a few minutes and think. Even if you may not be one of these people, chances are, some of your friends are… Last term the LGBT society had a guest speaker, Prof. Eric Anderson, whose research primarily surrounds University level students and their relationship preferences. From interviewing participants Anderson found that although the majority of people, as we concur, start with the aim of pursuing loving monogamous relationships, we “cheat”. I used to consider just thinking about kissing someone other than my partner “cheating” and many of my friends, of all genders, would be hurt if they thought that their partners were doing this too. Anderson’s research focused on understanding why people do this. He suggests that it could be due to social acceptance that we, as individuals, enter into monogamous relationships;

whereas in actual fact our biology directs us more towards nonmonogamy. He goes on to say that about 78% of the young men he interviewed had cheated, but still loved their partners. If this is the case, why do we not want to be open with one another about our sexual or loving desires towards other people? Anderson goes on to suggest that monogamy is an irrational ideal because it fails to fulfil a lifetime of sexual desires. Cheating, therefore, becomes the rational response to an irrational situation. Apart from the social pressures around us to be monogamous, with all films promoting love-triangles where one main character should decide between person A or B; one reason we don’t have non-monogamous

relationships is probably, jealousy. We may be happy to have other partners ourselves or tantalize ourselves by thinking about sleeping with someone else, but we wouldn’t be happy about our partner having or thinking about ‘hot sex’ with another person. However, if our partner is happy with someone else as well as us, why shouldn’t we be happy for them, if we love them? Polyamorous (multiple deep meaningful loving – not purely sexual – relationships) and nonmonogamous relationships are becoming more accepted culturally, one of the places this area is becoming more dominant is in psychology, anthropology and sociology research literature.

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t’s not every day that you get to sit down and decide how to spend just short of a billion Euros. However, in early May, member states of the European Space Agency (ESA) will vote on which of the proposed missions ESA will implement. Expect it to be Juice–y. After feasibility studies, internal reviews, and now recommendation from the agency’s executive, Juice is now the leader of the three-horse race for the first large launch slot for the Cosmic Vision Program – setting out ESA’s goals for the decade commencing 2015. Juice (the Jupiter Icy Moon Explorer) is a decade long mission which will help describe the conditions necessary for the creation of habitable environments, by studying three icy, ocean–bearing moons of Jupiter: Ganymede, Europa and Castello. The solar powered spacecraft will travel until 2030, when it will arrive at the Jovian system and perform a dozen flybys of the moons, sending data back to earth at a minimum rate of 1.4 Gbit/day, before finally putting itself in orbit around Ganymede

until 2033 for the remainder of the mission. The other projects, expected to be dropped, are Athena (the would–have–been largest X–ray observatory, designed to map black holes and other large stellar structures) and NGO (a trio of spacecrafts designed to observe gravitational waves) – despite being described as having a “high potential for ground-breaking new science” by ESA’s Astronomy Working Group. After analysis it was deemed that Juice was the best value for money, has a good operational lifespan, uses technology which is already available and is a project which can be delivered earliest; making it the most reliable and desirable mission of the three. The biggest challenge would be overcoming the radiation experienced around Jupiter (which is still no more than a communications satellite would receive – hence why this is a minimal risk investment for the agency). If the Space Policy Committee follows advice and votes for Juice, we can expect Europe’s newest flagship space mission to realistically launch as early as June 2022.

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Whoever said DNA was an exclusive?
By Lawrence Finn, Science & Tech Team

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f you thought that DNA or its sister molecule, RNA, were the only means of storing genetic information-think again! A team of researchers at Cambridge University have successfully created synthetic alternatives called xeno-nucleic acids (XNAs) which can not only store genetic information- but are almost as capable of evolving. Picture it: a spiralling ladder-with each step a sugar bound to a molecule in the middle called a base (one to each sugar) and you have envisaged the very basic structure of DNA. The base can be one of four different molecules, represented by the letters A, C, T and G. RNA is similar but bears some important differences, being single as opposed to double stranded and having

U instead of T as a base. However, it was not so much the bases that the researchers were interested in -but the sugar element. By replacing the sugar with other alternatives, they managed to produce six different XNAs. To test whether or not XNAs were capable of evolving, the team presented various XNAs with a ‘survival challenge:’ they were to bind to one of two target molecules (a protein and a molecule RNA) – or be washed away. Those that stuck were replicated and given the same treatment again. With each test, variations in the genetic code led to XNAs that were increasingly adept at binding the targets. They displayed a capacity for change, such as we might see with DNA or RNA. There is much to be done before it is possible to create the first XNAbased synthetic life form. So far, the

team have managed to replicate XNA by converting it back to DNA for use as a template, but have not yet found a way of doing so without using DNA as an intermediate. Nonetheless, the implications are vast. The sugars seen in RNA or DNA are both relatively complex, so it is quite possible that simpler alternatives like certain XNAs came first in the evolution of life on Earth, some scientists believe. Crucially though, as Dr. Phillip Holliger of the UK Medical Research Council’s Molecular Biology Laboratory explains; the research shows that “heredityinformation storage and propagationand evolution…two hallmarks of life… can be reproduced and implemented in alternative polymers other than DNA and RNA.” If there is life beyond Earth, who knows what it might use instead!

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Musical Theatre Society’s Guys and Dolls: 20th March 2012
© Daniel Friar

Dance & Theatre

The explosive cast in one of their musical dance numbers By Emily Bourne, Dance & Theatre Team Benny Southstreet were really funny as a duo, which was highlighted all the more by the height difference between the two actors. However, it was unfortunate that the audience took some time to warm up to the comedy at the beginning of the show, which could perhaps have been improved upon by speeding up the dialogue. I particularly enjoyed the dancing throughout the show, especially the choreography for the famous number Luck be a Lady, while the dancing in Havana was key to setting the scene of a light-hearted and sexy atmosphere. My only criticism would be that it was a shame that the script did not allow for a wider range of main parts in order to show off the talent of the cast more fully! Alongside the performance of the actors, the set looked fantastic and really enhanced the atmosphere of each scene, while the costume and make-up looked authentic, all of which added the final touches to a very professional production. Guys and Dolls acted as a great contrast to last year’s production of the more contemporary Rent, both of which have really highlighted the wide variety of talent that the members possess as a society. Although currently a young society within the university, they continue to grow in both size and ambition every year, and it seems to be paying off as they’re making a firm footprint on Guildford’s amateur dramatic scene.

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pon walking into the main hall I was not at all surprised to see the room near-bursting at the seams with friends and family waiting to catch the final performance of this year’s production by Musical Theatre Society, Guys and Dolls. Directed by second-year theatre studies student Lauren Walsh, Guys and Dolls follows the story of Nathan Detroit, a New York gambler under pressure to organise a crap game while being watched by the cops. By chance he meets acquaintance Sky Masterson, with whom he places a bet of one thousand dollars that he cannot take Sergeant Sarah Brown on a date with him to Havana. Meanwhile back in New York, Nathan’s own girlfriend Miss Adelaide is trying to persuade him to marry her after a fourteen-year-long engagement, but he is more concerned with finding a location for the evening’s gambling to take place. The cast succeeded in giving a really strong performance, and all of the solo singers were incredibly talented, particularly the four main characters who led the performance. The relationships between the two couples were well developed and emotion was clearly portrayed through the vocals and expression during each number. In addition, Nicely-Nicely Johnson and

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Stephen Sondheim’s Company
By Dan Davison, Dance & Theatre Team

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ast Sunday 18th March at the Guildford Odeon, I found myself in a curious position indeed. There I was, expectantly sitting in a cinema seat to view a stage play. More specifically, I had attended to see a special screening of the New York Philharmonic’s concert production of Stephen Sondheim’s Company from April of last year. First produced in 1970 on Broadway, this musical comedy centres on the protagonist, a New Yorker called Robert who has just turned thirty-five, and his experiences with his friends in a series of vignettes exploring the nature of relationships. Although hardly a new concept, with the economic

climate of recent years considered, the notion of being able to view stage productions by paying only the standard fare for a cinema ticket has become particularly attractive. Despite understanding the logic, I could not help but wonder whether a cinema screen could adequately convey that special atmosphere one associates with physical presence. As it happens, my concerns were swiftly put to rest. Through the speakers I could feel the orchestra and actors come to life, to the point that I found it difficult to restrain my clapping between numbers. The production stars Neil Patrick Harris of How I Met Your Mother fame in the lead role, whilst the rest of the cast is bolstered by such figures as stage legend Patti luPone and

political satirist Stephen Colbert. Despite the high bar set by the original production, the cast were able to prove their worth. Standout performances include Anika Noni Rose’s Another Hundred People as the eccentric, New York-loving Marta and Patti LuPone bringing her grit to the wonderfully biting The Ladies Who Lunch. Whilst he lacks the vocal gravity of such previous Roberts as Dean Jones, Larry Kert and Raul Esparza, Harris’ comedic style is unsurprisingly a perfect fit and it is difficult to not be touched as he comes to the tearful climax of Being Alive. All in all, the screening provided an appreciable means of seeing a beloved show. For all those interested in theatre, I would certainly recommend this alternative means of experiencing the stage.

Dance/Theatre Editor: Hannah Jelliman | Copy Editor: Candice Ritchie

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BalletBoyz: The Talent
By Julie Foord, Dance & Theatre Team

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alletBoyz latest work is full of their usual muscular, athletic dancing and skilled technique. However, The Talent does not contain much of the original and exciting choreography I have come to associate with the company. Consisting of three separate works, one could argue it has something for everyone, but at times it seemed somewhat bland and lacking in action. The first work involves little connection between the dancers and uses simple movement and lighting to highlight the dancers as they slide, roll and jump across the floor. The choreography is performed with unfaltering technique; however, it is based around fairly standard ‘contemporary’ dance movements and does not show much innovation. Section two on the other hand is a beautiful entanglement of soft, smoky lighting, delicate costumes and sensitive, powerful dance. Set to a slightly melancholic acoustic accompaniment by talented musician Keaton Henson, the movements gracefully flow from one into the next with

gentle ease. The dancers support and lift each other; a stand out jump involves the whole group throwing one dancer high into the air where he spins several times before falling gently downwards into their bed of arms. After the interval, a rather long video projection of the rough streets of London is shown to the audience; it continues to run as the dancers enter the stage, creating an effective backdrop consisting of a dark street with the occasional bus driving past. The thuggish dancers impressively throw themselves across the floor and aggressively jump on each other’s shoulders. This street leitmotif usually reserved for hip-hop pieces is reworked by BalletBoyz to some extent, but unfortunately the theme is too familiar for it to be really exciting. Ex Royal Ballet dancers Michael Nunn and William Trevitt have created an accessible work with spectacular jumps and at times wonderful imagery. It’s obvious why the work is called The Talent, but unfortunately it lacks the inspired choreography needed to make it a truly stand-out production.

Your fortnightly guide to the Arts at Surrey

Fame or Finesse?
By Tiffany Stoneman, Dance & Theatre Team

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raduating students from the Musical Theatre degree course perform an entertaining selection of scenes and songs. These shows are also performed in London to members of the profession. GSA Musical Theatre 2012 Showcase Directed by: Michael Vivian When: Wednesday 9th May, 17.00 & 20.00 Where: Ivy Arts Centre, University of Surrey, Guildford, GU2 7XH How much? £10, £9 concessions www.surrey.ac.uk/arts/theatre

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raduating students from the Acting degree course perform an entertaining selection of scenes and songs. These shows are also performed in London to members of the profession. GSA Acting 2012 Showcase Directed by: Dan Coleman When: Monday 14 May, 17.00 & 20.00 Where: Ivy Arts Centre, University of Surrey, Guildford, GU2 7XH How much? £10, £9 concessions www.surrey.ac.uk/arts/theatre

few weeks ago, I went to see Edward Bond’s Bingo at the Young Vic theatre, starring Sir Patrick Stewart as Shakespeare himself in this tale of the bard’s last few years back in his home. It goes without saying that watching Stewart from the front row was mesmerising. A phenomenal actor, he delivered a ten-minute monologue lying down whilst keeping his audience enthralled - a force to be reckoned with. Returning to his native accent too, Stewart was comfortable in the part, not overplaying Shakespeare as a bitter and tired old man. However, I found Bond’s play to be somewhat dry. The language, though true to the time as Shakespeare himself wrote, was nothing extraordinary, and the plot itself seemed to amble along like so many others. Similar to Lark Rise to Candleford (Richmond

T h e a t r e 2010), it had a sense of nostalgia that didn’t give the audience any particular energy. Of the cast who stood out, Ellie Haddington played the simple, kind-hearted maid and I’ve no qualms in saying that she

“...had Patrick Stewart not been starring, would I have gone to see it?”
occasionally outshone Stewart. Comical but deeply sensitive, Haddington’s final scene was the most moving moment of the play. Yet others seem to ride on the audience response to Stewart, muddling accents and delivering lines to show him off rather than live in the words. This made me think – had Patrick Stewart not been starring, would I have gone to see it? I’m ashamed to answer ‘No’ – the story wasn’t interesting,

and nothing drew me to such a play aside from its famous face. Could it be said, therefore, that the play was only produced with a ‘celebrity’ in mind for the lead character? This method has been used since Shakespeare’s day – plays featuring ‘hot’ actors of the time such as Richard Burbage sold better than those with only unknowns on stage. I wonder if this is a good strategy – it is true that because of their leading man, the audience was diverse and contained more Trekkies and X-Men than most, but I am not sure that theatre should ride on the name of an actor in this way. Bond’s plays should be produced so they bring his writing to life regardless of the actors. It’s something to take into consideration next time you head to the theatre – are you going for the playwright and the imagined world, or the star in the limelight?

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Hit play Matilda among the big winners at The Olivier Awards
By Hannah Jelliman, Dance & Theatre Editor

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his Easter, the world famous Olivier Awards highlighted some of the fantastic talent currently in the Dance, Theatre and Musical Theatre worlds. Britain’s answer to the renowned Tony Awards of America, the Olivier Awards celebrates everything that is great about the current Professional Arts scene. By far the highest achiever this year is the newly opened Matilda the Musical, snapping up a staggering seven awards including Best Set Design, Best Theatre Choreographer and Best New Musical. The musical is a recreation of the much-loved Roald Dahl classic, reworked for the stage by Dennis Kelly and comedian Tim Minchin. The four young girls, who share the role of Matilda, won a joint award of Best Actress in a Musical, breaking the Olivier record for the youngest person ever to win an award. Other Musical Theatre wins include Crazy for You with Best Musical Revival, Les Miserable winning the BBC Radio 2 Olivier Audience Award and Nigel Harman, achieving the Best Performance in a Supporting Role in a Musical for his display as Lord Farquaad in Shrek the Musical. Winners of theatre-based awards were far more varied; Collaborators

at the Cottlesloe Theatre winning MasterCard Best New Play and Sheridan Smith winning Best Performance in a Supporting Role for her performance in Flare Path to name a few. Benedict Cumberbatch, winner of a Critics Choice Award earlier this year, won a joint Best Actor award with Jonny Lee Miller for Frankenstein at the Olivier Theatre. English National Opera also won a high-class award: Outstanding Achievement in Opera for the ‘breadth and diversity of its artistic programme’. Although there are only two Dance-centred awards available, both are highly commendable. Akram Khan continues his winning streak with Best New Dance Production for his latest solo work Desh, and Edward Watson receives the Outstanding Achievement in Dance for his performance in The Metamorphosis at the Linbury Studio. From a more commercial stance, the Best Entertainment and Family award was presented to famous mind-tricker, magician and deceptionist Derren Brown for his latest show Svengali at the Shaftsbury Theatre. Special awards were presented to lyricist Tim Rice and Royal Ballet star Dame Monica Mason for their outstanding careers to date.

For full details and lists of this year’s winners visit http://www.olivierawards.com/
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Protein Dance – LOL
By Hannah Jelliman, Dance & Theatre Editor

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Jelliman’s Gems
“Choreography is simpler than you think. Just go and do, and don’t think so much about it. Just make something interesting.” - George Balanchine

acebook, Twitter, dating sites, personalised avatars… we barely even need a physical personality these days with all of the socially– focused websites available. LOL (Lots of Love) by Luca Silvestrini’s Protein Dance, performed at the Ivy Arts Centre, Guildford on 14th March 2012, seeks to explore how these online social networks are affecting our behaviour and ability to socialise, as well as how they are helping (or hindering) many people’s search for love. Through both Dance and Drama, the six dancers (three male, three female) adopt various characters to portray a series of different scenarios one might find themselves in when on a social networking website. Speech is used throughout to aid the mini-stories, which the dancers employ with ease amongst the often frantic movement. Kip Johnson particularly stands out, with his ability to carry on speaking seamlessly about an unfortunate online incident, being mistaken as homosexual, whilst Stuart Waters throws himself from all angles and violently manipulates Johnson around the stage. Issues of sexuality and sexual desire are prominent throughout, with an emphasis

on how people can sell themselves as something completely different to their actual personality through dating websites, particularly with females exploiting themselves for male desire. Sally Marie gives a hilarious performance as an incredibly desperate woman, who develops an online obsession with a man named Jeff after he replies to her message on a dating site. She sends constant emails, asking if he’s there, assuming he must be on holiday due to his lack of reply and eventually breaking down when he has not replied for a while. Marie’s character emphasises the scarily fanatical behaviour that social media often provokes. Due to its immediate nature and the ability of access almost everywhere we go, over-thinking is terrifyingly common, with many thinking the absolute worst if a reply is not received in a matter of seconds. Overall, despite several somewhat sexist themes, LOL is an entertaining depiction of the realities of the internet and social networks, highlighting the unnatural behaviour forced upon us. The many scenarios are meritoriously performed, providing a comical, yet scarily truthful insight into the actualities of this ever-growing technological side of twenty-first century lifestyles.

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Film Editor: Tiffany Tucker | Copy Editor: Candice Ritchie

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8th May 2012

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We Bought a Zoo review (2012)
By Louisa White, Film Team

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The Hunger Games review (2012)
By Tiffany Tucker, Film Editor

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ased on a true story, this film brings to life a memoir by Benjamin Mee that will appeal to a whole range of audiences, from animal-lovers to drama fans. Benjamin Mee (played by Matt Damon) is a young widowed father whose 14-year-old son, Dylan (Colin Ford) in particular, is finding it very difficult to come to terms with the recent death of his mother. Dylan’s poor behaviour results in him being expelled from school and Benjamin then decides that the whole family are in need of a fresh start. The estate agent shows the young father and his 7-year-old daughter, Rosie (Maggie Elizabeth Jones), a property that they both immediately fall in love with, but there’s a catch which the estate agent is rather reluctant to reveal – the property is part of a zoo! Despite knowing nothing about animal care, Benjamin steps up to the challenge, much to Rosie’s delight but to Dylan’s horror. The zoo has been closed for many

months but with the help of head zookeeper, Kelly (Scarlett Johansson), and her hardworking team, the zoo finally passes the inspection and is deemed fit to be reopened. At times it seems that the grand reopening will never materialise; when Benjamin finds himself in financial difficulties the future looks bleak, but they are fortunately remedied by his discovering of an investment account that his late wife had set up prior to her death. To make matters worse, the night before there is a huge rainstorm which causes a tree to fall, blocking the zoo’s entrance, but that still does not prevent the day from being a great success. The scene where the employees help all the visitors over the fallen tree is a particularly memorable moment. This heart-warming story eventually brings together a shattered family who have had to deal which something no family should ever have to experience. The ending suggests that there is still hope for them and a happier future lies ahead.

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know that seemingly every person who has seen The Hunger Games absolutely loved it. I will say from now that I was not one of those people. I certainly didn’t hate it, and it didn’t bore me to death, but all the while I was waiting for that special moment, that key scene, to make me just as excited as everyone else seemed to be. Facebook status after Facebook status read ‘The Hunger Games is amazing!’ or ‘Just watched the Hunger Games and it was the best film I have watched in a long time! Everyone should go and watch it now!’ You can imagine my excitement, right? The film failed to live up to these amazing reviews, and in my opinion, 142 minutes just isn’t enough to fully capture the drama and excitement of Suzanne Collins’ book series, The Hunger Games. The film is set in a dystopian future, where the nation of Panem is divided into different districts. Two young representatives are selected each year to participate in The Hunger Games, a deadly competition to survive, whilst eliminating other competitors from other districts. Meanwhile, the citizens of Panem watch the dramatic events unfold from their homes. The main

character Katniss is strong, independent and volunteers to participate to potentially save the life of her younger timid sister. Along with Peeta, her male partner, they partake in the traitorous journey for survival and each participant has their loyalty and strength put to the test. I hate to give away the ending by revealing what happens, but in order for me to explain my core conflict with the film it is necessary. Throughout, there is such a big build-up of tension surrounding who will survive, and it all seems to draw to a climax which, in my opinion, seems rather flat. In the ending scene, the remaining hopefuls are being chased by giant, mutated dogs. There is then an announcement which

tells Katniss and Peeta that there can no longer be two winners, followed by Katniss’ honourable decision that they should die together rather than having to battle against each other. It happens all too quickly! I also believe that the idea of all these young teenagers running around killing each other is in reality a much more horrifying concept than the film lets on. Yes, it is emotional and sad when Rue from district 11 is killed, but other than that instance, the murders and fight scenes were all too glamourized and sugar–coated to be convincing. Director Gary Ross does do a good job, but I believe the film had much more potential.

Kamikaze Girls review (2012)
By Caroline James, Film Team

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f you’re a lover of all things Japanese, have visited Japan, or even had the luck of going to the annual ‘Hyper Japan’ convention in Earls Court, then you may have heard of the wonderfully eccentric street fashion: Lolita. To keep those of you who haven’t heard of this fashion up to speed, Lolita has no connotations with Vladimir Nabokov’s novel Lolita, which concerns a paedophilic relationship. Instead, the word Lolita is used in this sense to refer to the child–like nature of the clothing, as this style is heavily influenced by clothing worn by young girls in the Victorian and Rococo periods (unsurprisingly, Alice in

Wonderland is considered a key fashion influence for lolita’s). Although Lolita has become relatively popular internationally, very few films have been made that focus on the fashion rather than the periods that influenced it. However, in 2004, it all changed when Tetsuya Nakashima adapted Nobara Takemoto’s light novel Kamikaze Girls into a film. The plot focuses around Momoko (Kyôko Fukada), a 17-year old Lolita who wishes she was living in the Rococo period of 18th Century France rather than modern day Japan. Desperate to make some money to pay for her purchases from ‘Baby, The Stars Shine Bright’, a Lolita clothes shop she visits on a regular basis, Momoko

tries selling bootleg “Ver*ace” and “Uni*ersal Studios” clothes left over from her Dad’s yakuza (gangster) days. However, when punk girl Ichiko comes calling, her fantasy life is quickly brought to a halt – particularly when the unlikely pair become friends. Although the plot is very similar to other unlikely bond stories, I think what makes Kamikaze Girls stand out is the film’s style. With its use of animated sequences, zany high-speed editing and its eccentric sense of humour, the film encapsulates a small slice of the crazy, cutesy, colourfulness of Japanese pop-culture; not to mention being the first film to take a look at modern day Lolita.

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The Cabin in the Woods Review (2012)
By Tiffany Tucker, Film Editor fter exhausting every excuse not to read or begin my coursework, I was elated for a distraction when my best friend suggested we go to the cinema to watch The Cabin in the Woods. However, I wasn’t too excited at the prospect of watching what I thought was another cliché horror film: those ones where the bad guys die first and the girl-next-door manages to, somewhat unrealistically, remain the lone survivor and single– handedly fight off the villain. After I You–Tubed the trailer, however, my view changed completely. To my surprise, The Cabin in the Woods was not my average horror film. If you’re looking to be scared, jump, and have an excuse to cuddle up to your date then this is definitely the wrong film for those jobs. The Cabin in the Woods is a clever parody of the classic horror

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conventions; it takes the bare elements which make up a fright flick and turns them on their heads to create a film of entertainment and plenty of laugh-outloud moments. The characters are cleverly ‘chosen’ to fit the ultimate horror film stereotype, and we all know the categories by now! There’s the oversexual whore, the handsome jock, clever but sensitive nerdy guy and the innocent virgin. All of the characters set off to have a jolly good time of flirting and frolicking in a relative’s cabin, in a wood which is conveniently miles away from civilisation. We all know what happens next, but rather than a boring killingspree, the classic conventions of horror films are used cleverly to make this film something entirely different and original. The Cabin in the Woods breaks all the rules, and that’s what makes it so refreshing! Director Drew Goddard has

certainly had plenty of experience: with Buffy, Angel and Lost all under his belt, as well as writing Cloverfield, we shouldn’t have expected anything other than brilliance. It’s difficult to write a convincing review without giving away the fundamental storyline. This is where I believe the trailer failed. In showing glimpses of the institution which seeks to strategically eliminate each character one after the other, viewers already know that something is up. After watching the trailer, I knew what to expect. Perhaps a little more secrecy from the trailer would have made the film more unexpected and hilarious. Aside from this, I would highly recommend watching this on the big screen. The Cabin in the Woods is well worth the money and a satisfying 95 minute escape from reality.

A Little Princess Review (1995)
By Caroline James, Film Team

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ver the course of the Easter holidays, whilst taking “breaks” from my hefty load of coursework, I took the opportunity to delve into different treasures from my nostalgic film collection; ones I adored so much from childhood that I find myself feeling as curious and willing to suspend disbelief as much as I did back then. Although I find it difficult to pin–point my favourite children’s film as my favourite film of all time, there was one in particular that felt like a hidden gem to me. That is undoubtedly Alfonso Cuarón’s A Little Princess (1995). Loosely based upon the 1905 novel of the same name by Frances Hodgson Burnett, the film centres around Sara

(portrayed by the beautiful Liesel Matthews), a young girl brought up in exotic India with her father (Liam Cunningham). However, after being enlisted to fight for the British in World War I, he enrols her at a seminary for girls in New York, the same one Sara’s late mother attended. Sara instantly becomes a favourite amongst the seminary girls due to her love for make-believe and storytelling. However, this does not bode well with their strict headmistress, Miss Minchin (Eleanor Bron), who disapproves of Sara’s uncontrollable creativity and sense of selfworth. When word comes that her father was killed in battle, Sara’s life takes an abrupt, dramatic turn for the worst. Due to poor promotion by Warner Bros, the film was a box– office failure and hardly made

back half of its $17 million budget. However, despite not receiving the exhibitory attention it deserved, the film was critically acclaimed and still maintains a 97% ‘Fresh’ rating on Rotten Tomatoes, with the consensus, “Alfonso Cuarón adapts Frances Hodgson Burnett’s novel with a keen sense of magic realism, vividly recreating the world of childhood as seen through the characters.” Therefore, regardless of your age, I highly recommend watching Alfonso Cuarón’s adaptation of this classic novel. It serves, just like any film you’d consider a childhood favourite, as a beautiful audio-visual portal back into the joyous, whimsical world of childhood, which is never as far away as we imagine it to be.

Lit Editor: Alexandra Wilks | Copy Editor: Candice Ritchie

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8th May 2012

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Illiteracy said to be costing the UK economy £81 billion
By Emily Smart, Literature Team

Literature

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ecent reports have stated that hundreds of primary schools are failing to achieve the expected level needed in the end of year SATS exams, with the total of 100,000 pupils to attain at least a level-four grade. With one in five adults lacking the necessary ability to read and write, surely schools should be pushing their students to achieve above and beyond the benchmark grade of level-four. The head of Ofsted, Sir Michael Wilshaw, believes this is essential for he stated “last year 45% of those pupils who reached level 4c ... did not achieve a grade C in their GCSE English exams” which for an ever-expanding nation can lead to great problems. The World Literacy Foundation states that “an estimated total of £81.312 billion is lost to the UK economy each year” due to the vast amount of adults who are functionally illiterate. Functionally illiterate meaning that many people cannot accomplish basic but essential tasks such as filling out a job application, working out the correct change at a supermarket or

even reading a medicine label. Therefore, this could ultimately lead to an increase in crime, poverty and bad health. In order to make a change, a head-teacher from a successful school in London believes that “high expectations” are what is needed. The school concentrates on encouraging their pupils to take a greater interest in reading and enjoying books which has been seen to be working and making a difference. It seems that other schools are now following suit, seen from the activity that took place on the 26th of March. At 10 am on this day, two-thousand children broke records by taking part in the world’s biggest reading lesson. Schools from all across London took part and were taught the same half-hour lesson, using children’s author Michael Morpurgo’s book Born to Run. This event, held by the Evening Standard’s “Get London Reading” campaign, is a huge step forward into helping to decrease the number of illiterate adults in the future, and will hopefully increase the amount of young people who have a love for reading great books.

So It Is – Novel by Surrey’s own Liam Murray Bell
By Tessa Heenan, Literature Team

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or many writers, particular time periods or ethno-political events in history hold a certain point of interest. For Liam Murray Bell, a much loved PhD student at the University of Surrey, the interest lies in the Troubles of Northern Ireland. Though he was born in Orkney, Bell grew up in Glasgow, returning to Ireland to study his degree in English Literature with Creative Writing in Belfast, where the seed for his fascination with the region’s more recent past was perhaps planted. His debut novel, So It Is, out in June, looks at the events of the period with fresh eyes. Having spent the past three years researching the role of women in the conflict, Bell incorporates this into his writing, namely via the female perspective. Described as a ‘literary thriller’ as well as a ‘coming of age’ tale, the fictitious account of two females through a time of violence and conflict will no doubt appeal to many readers.

I Am Legend: Vampire Novel of the Century
By Becky Worley, Literature Team

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To celebrate the launch of So It Is, Appleseed is hosting an evening featuring readings from English Literature/ Creative Writing students and Liam Murray Bell himself. Taking place on Thursday 24th May from 6pm-8pm, the event is open to all. See you there!

he 1954 novel I Am Legend by Richard Matheson has recently bested all other competition to win the one-off Bram Stoker prize to become named as the vampire novel of the century. The Horror Writers Association, along with the Stoker family themselves, awarded this prize to mark the centenary of Bram Stoker’s death: author of Dracula, the original vampire thriller. fans of modern vampire fiction may well be in disagreement, as both the Twilight series by Stephenie Meyer and Interview with a Vampire by Anne Rice were in the running but to no avail. The novel, on which the 2007 film was loosely based, features a dystopian Los

Angeles in which vampires haunt the streets. The narrative follows one man in his lonely desperation, trying to survive on his own. This novel lacks the teenage romance and pent-up sexuality of many vampiric novels, old and new, and brings to life a psychological thriller with a more serious edge. Although recent vampire novels have been extremely popular, it can definitely be argued that they lack the intensity to actually incite a sense of horror within a reader. By achieving this it would seem that I Am Legend certainly stands above other vampire novels and deserves admiration from a modern audience. And anyway, a film so accomplished could only have been inspired by brilliant prose.

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Why Be Happy When You Can Be Normal? by Jeanette Winterson
By Alexandra Wilks, Literature Editor eanette Winterson, author of Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit and other popular novels, occupies a somewhat paradoxical position in most people’s hearts. She is the literary equivalent of Marmite, and just like Marmite, I cannot decide whether I love or hate her. Winterson famously said she had ‘no interest in

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genres’ and that she would create ‘the best work in whatever medium.’ It’s this sort of attitude that makes her difficult to like, but one has to admire her bravery. Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit was brave in terms of its boldness. Weaving fact (the protagonist takes the name of Jeanette), fiction and fairy tale it is, as Winterson (not known for her modesty) describes it ‘not like any other novel.’ The content

is fairly shocking: the narrative follows Jeanette’s realisation that she is a lesbian and her zealously religious adopted mother’s intolerance towards this. Perhaps the greatest shock of all, however, is that Oranges works so well. It comes at you sideways, abandoning the linear narrative in favour of a freer structure. The power of Winterson’s writing is in her boldness, her unflinching creativity.

A creative process in retrospect
By Christina Maria Webb, Literature Team

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“Winterson doesn’t make me like her very much, she’s arrogant, completely aware of her talents and admits to hitting her girlfriends.”
Why Be Happy When You Can Be Normal? is Oranges: the follow up, or the truth behind Oranges. Whilst Oranges was staunchly still fiction, Why Be Happy When You Can Be Normal? sits in the slightly murkier genre of creative non-fiction (or memoir if you want to use a blanket term), leading me back to whether I love or hate Winterson. Why Be Happy When You Could Be Normal? is undeniably brilliant. It is exquisitely well written and brutally – sometimes heartbreakingly – honest. This is creative non-fiction at its best: fearless and unguarded. Winterson doesn’t make me like her very much, she’s arrogant, completely aware of her talents and admits to hitting her girlfriends. However, that’s the real success of the book. It’s courageous enough not to care what you think of the author. In short, if you hate Winterson, reading Why Be Happy When You Could Be Normal? probably won’t change your mind (although you’ll surely have to admire the tenacity of her writing) and if you love her, you’ll love this too because it’s oh so very good. As for me? I’m still not sure. I don’t like Jeanette Winterson, but, my God, I admire her writing. And, to be honest, I think she’d agree that’s a pretty fair statement to make.

y Creative Writing Dissertation piece, Isen & Eldar, was finally completed, printed and bound just over a month ago now. Though it was the most stressful project I’ve worked on, I have, admittedly, missed it. The research was time consuming as I’d barely even looked at some of the topics beforehand. But my interest in Isen & Eldar stayed to the end. At no point did I change my mind. As soon as I had all these different ideas to either work from or discard, I was fine. One of the reasons for this is that unintentionally, I didn’t treat it as a dissertation. I’m hoping to develop the piece in the near future. I think I gained a lot from seeing the process as long-term, apart from the overbearing extended word count part. I got slightly carried away there. One of the hardest things I found was creating characters. My character voices and character attributes seemed to lack dimensions. Being a fan of storytelling - fairy tales, myths and so on, I think I focus so much so on the actual narrative, that characters are lost. So one of the things I started with was my twins, Isen and Eldar, Ice and Fire, their personalities, interests and habits linked to the meanings of their names. I abandoned characters that did not further the narrative or express something specific. As a final thought, at first, I was too concerned with audience expectations. After interviewing Marcus Sedgwick, author of The Dark Horse, I began to write more freely. CMW: With young adult fantasy fiction, do you believe it is easier to get away with darker themes because of the fantasy genre, or did you have to be particularly careful, considering the age group the book aims towards? MS: I don’t steer my books one way - I don’t consider much who will read them, I just hope someone does. If my publishers have any concerns about material then I listen to that, but I try not to second guess how people will react to my book.

Interpretation vs. Intention
By Rachel Thomason, Literature Team

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problem that one often comes up against when reading or studying great works of literature is the classic argument: maybe the author just used that word because they felt like it. Well guess what? You might be right. Here we stumble upon the interpretation/ intention debate. We are all aware of the tension between the reader’s interpretation

of a text and how the author intended it to be received. Cast your minds back to English Literature GCSE: teachers tend to drum it into our heads that ‘the author chose to do this because it has this effect’. And yet now I wonder if perhaps the focus should be on the way readers interpret what the author has written rather than what they ‘intended’ to suggest with their words.

This would mean that you don’t need to be able to make elaborate meanings out of the words on the page but instead enjoy them for what they mean to you, for what they really are: a way to transport you to amazing places. And for lit-fanatics out there, when you read about white flowers or golden hair or any words from which you can create a meaning- do it. Your own interpretation of

a text is just as valuable as what the author intended you to get from it, however complex and exaggerated it may seem. So, next time you pick up a book or a newspaper or even a magazine think about how you are personally affected by them and their words. The beauty of reading is what you make of it.

Lit Editor: Alexandra Wilks | Copy Editor: Candice Ritchie

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By Rachel Thomason, Literature Team

Hungry for The Hunger Games Turning
18 are picked from each of the 12 remaining districts to fight to the death. The last one to remain is the victor. In the 74th annual Games, Katniss Everdeen prepares to fight for District 12.

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f you haven’t heard of The Hunger Games yet, where have you been? Even before the film’s release on 23rd March, the novel had maintained a spot on USA Today’s bestselling books list for 135 weeks. With Collins also joining just five other authors who have sold over one million Amazon Kindle eBooks, The Hunger Games trilogy is undoubtedly a phenomenon as big as Harry Potter and Twilight. Unfortunately, it is certainly difficult to avoid comparing Collins’ novel to Harry Potter and Twilight, but if you’re a fan of either you will love this book. Within a couple of chapters, I was completely gripped. In the country of Panem, controlled by the Capitol after a failed rebellion, the Capitol hosts televised Games to warn against another uprising. Each year there is a draw from which one girl and one boy between the ages of 12 and

“...it is not only an exhilarating ride on the constantly wavering edge between life and death but also calls into question the very nature of being human.”
Forget Bella; Katniss embodies all the strength, wittiness and intelligence of the ultimate heroine. She completely defies all stereotypes and you cannot help but fall for her tough, independent exterior which hides her almost soft and sometimes naïve nature. Whilst I’ll avoid as many spoilers as

possible, the sincerity of Peeta is one of the most moving things about this novel. As the reader is dragged through turmoil and struggle, he is what grounds this novel with his simple determination to remain true to himself. There is also a wonderfully satiric element to this post-apocalyptic world Collins has created. From the themes of poverty to the Games themselves, it’s almost impossible to ignore the underlying parallels with reality. Indeed, this dystopian novel has been praised as “outstanding” by The Times. Yet it is not only an exhilarating ride on the constantly wavering edge between life and death but also calls into question the very nature of being human. So I challenge you to read The Hunger Games and not find yourself drawn into the suspense, the terror and the passion which Collins so excellently weaves between its pages. I promise that you will be hungry for more.

to horror

We can corrupt you too...
By Rachel Thomason, Literature Team

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Book Review – Poison Study by Maria V. Snyder
By Rachel Burgess, Literature Team

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ou’re faced with one simple choice: a quick death by hanging or a slow death by poison. You have minutes to decide before you are either sentenced to the gallows, or taking up your new position as food taster to the Commander. Which would you choose? For Yelena Zaltana in Maria V. Snyder’s exciting debut novel, Poison Study, this is the choice she faces. from the very first page the novel presents itself as a thrilling adventure story whose pace never slows. Set in the imaginary realm of Ixia, Snyder introduces the reader to her world of magic, temptation and danger. The novel opens in a dirty, infested prison where Yelena awaits execution for her role in the murder of a man whom she feels no guilt about killing. However, faced with an irresistible opportunity to live, Yelena accepts the responsibility of becoming Commander Ambrose’s official food taster,

regardless of the risks involved in testing for poison. In order to secure her full co-operation and quench any plans for escape, Valek, the Chief of Security, poisons Yelena with Butterfly Dust and provides her with the antidote every morning; without which she would die a slow and painful death. What ensues is a tale of determination, romance and power, without once losing its gripping quality. Yelena, the female protagonist, is easy to empathize with. She has an absorbing background story which adds layers to her character. It is exciting to see how she grows as a woman without losing her likeability. Poison Study is an easy read; the language is straight-forward but undeniably absorbing, whilst the plot is rife with shocking twists, trying decisions, and exciting developments. If you’re looking for an enlivening adventure story with a unique interpretation of the fantasy genre, then this is the novel to really get your teeth into…

f you type ‘top ten horror writers’ into Google, it is almost guaranteed that it will bring up lists which are primarily, if not completely, dominated by male authors. From Edgar Allen Poe to Stephen King, women’s absence when it comes to the horror genre is increasingly apparent. But 2012 has brought with it a new wave of female-written horror stories sure to keep you up all night. A new novel by Jeanette Winterson and the rise of such writers as children’s author Helen Dunmore and TV presenter Judy Finnigan sees women taking a far more assertive role within horror fiction. Nevertheless, are women writing horror stories and corrupting people’s innocence? There is something which just doesn’t seem quite ‘conventional’ about that. Ladies, once again, we are the minority in a sea of male horror writers. Terrance Rafferty offers controversial but unfortunately realistic reasoning behind this in his article ‘Shelley’s Daughters’ for The New York Times. He suggests that “for the most part, a woman’s place in horror has been pretty well defined: she’s the victim, seen occasionally and heard only when she screams”. So because women are traditionally seen as weak, we can’t write a good horror story because we should be hiding under the covers instead? Meanwhile, of course, the strong, brave men protect and save us from the evil that we could be subjected to. And because they are just so amazingly courageous, they can obviously write better horror stories too. Well, I’m sure Mary Shelley would have something to say about that. Indeed, perhaps one is forgetting the other type of woman in horror: the femme fatale. If the female victim is typically weak, cowardly and scared, then the femme fatale is the complete opposite. Influential, defiant and fierce: this is the kind of woman who writes horror stories. But the fact that society still jumps to the image of the cowardly woman when relating women to horror is sadly just a reflection of our on-going struggle to gain equality with men. Whilst legally we are far better off, literature clearly still sees women in a pitiable way. So go on girls, pick up a piece by Winterson, a novel by Dunmore or even have a go at a horror story yourself and prove to everyone that us women can be just as bad as we are innocent.

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Music Twin Atlantic – Live at KOKO
By Sophia Field – Music Editor

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fter an incredible year in 2011, Scottish rock band Twin Atlantic, have proved that there is no slowing down for them any time soon. After selling out Camden’s KOKO on their tour last month, it became obvious as to why the band have made such sudden impact and gained the support of the likes of BBC Radio 1 and Kerrang. They are just that good. The show was a sweaty success with fans really showing their dedication to the band in the form of mosh pits and crowd surfing. If you’re a fan of rock music and haven’t already heard of this band then definitely check them out. The album ‘free’ is an extremely passionate debut and a truly unique listening experience. Give it a listen, I dare you to try and sing along without donning a terrible fake Scottish accent. The Stag was lucky enough to have a quick chat with lovely lead guitarist, Barry McKenna before the show. The Stag: How’s the tour been going so far? Barry (Twin Atlantic): It’s been going very well thank you, yeah it’s nice to be back on home soil because we were in America for eleven and a half weeks or something so it’s nice to be with the home crowd who are amazing. TS: Have you been missing home comforts? B: Yeah, well it’s more the people you miss rather than the place. I mean I spent the first twenty years of my life in Glasgow, so I’ve kind of had enough of it in a way. But yeah people like your family and friends. There are little things you miss….

TS: Like your bed? B: No no not so much. I’m so used to sleeping in different beds so being home now is almost like being on holiday. It’s more little cuisine things and past times we have.

TS: Past times? B: Honestly, just normal stuff like going out with friends. I’m a film buff so I love going to movies and I play a lot of football and golf… which is very rock and roll I know! Bit of hill walking sometimes. That makes me sound like a seventy year old man doesn’t it? But in Scotland we have very nice nature, it’s a good way to get out and clear your head. TS: Where has been the most amazing place for you to gig? B: Oh, tricky question. There are loads. I’m biased towards Scotland because the people from Scotland are often underdogs. There is a sense of underachievement, so when anyone does anything good. Like Andy Murray when he plays at Wimbledon … people who hate tennis are like ‘Come on Andy’. So when we go and play shows people are always very up for it. Germany is also awesome; they love rock music out there. TS: When you started out you were supporting a lot. Who has been your favourite act to support? B: Erm, there have been a lot of bands. The first tour we ever did was supporting a band called Circa Survive and we became really good friends with them. They taught us a lot, we didn’t really know how to survive on the road until then. I loved touring with the Subways too, again they became really goods friends of ours. It was really cool to tour with Blink and Biffy and Smashing Pumpkins. We’ve just been really fortunate.

TS: What is the most mental thing that has happened at one of your gigs? B: Ross once lost half a tooth. He got too close to Craig’s drum kit and he hit the cymbal and it flicked up into his face and took half his tooth out. Must have bloody hurt. One time a guy crowd surfed wearing a full chicken suit, so we thought that guy is too cool not to invite up on stage. So we just had this human sized chicken dancing around on stage with us. TS: What is the first thing you do when you get off stage? B: I dry myself off and get my breath back. I sweat a horrible amount on stage. With the heat of the lights on stage and the atmosphere. Then have a wee chat about the show see if we all thought it was a good one. TS: You released your debut album last year, how did that feel? B: To be honest, it was a shock to see our record of HMV or whatever. We’ve been in this band for a few years now, and worked really really hard so to finally get this break was amazing.

A quickie with Barry…

TS: Favourite alcoholic beverage? B: Well, I don’t actually drink. I used to drink too much so I’ve not drank for about a year and a half now. When you’re a Scottish guy and you go on the road and get free booze every night you just lose your sh*t a wee bit. My favourite alcoholic drink used to be whiskey or maybe a pint of Guinness actually. Love a good pint of Guinness. Who is your favourite band? Erm, probably between Pink Floyd and Radiohead. Celebrity crush? An actress called Rachel McAdams. She’s a babe. Who is the most athletic? We’re all quite sporty. Craig runs a lot though so probably him. Who is the worst at getting up? It’s between me and Sam but he just gets it. Lazy singer syndrome! Who is the biggest flirt? Probably Craig. People think it would be Sam but he’s really awkward. Craig is a total lady killer. It’s always the quiet ones!

What song on the album means the most to you? Well, different songs for different reasons. I would say I love the song ‘Yes, I Was Drunk’ and ‘Serious Underground Dance Vibes’ just because they are different kinds of tracks. ‘Free’ means a lot to us now because it’s kind of taken us from playing small venues to places like KOKO tonight. It seems to have struck a chord with people which is really cool.

Music Editor: Sophia Field | Copy Editor: Megan Barnacle

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By James Campbell, Music Team

REVIEW: Jack White - ‘Blunderbuss’
echoing Rage Against the Machines’ axman Tom Morello’s manipulation of a whammy pedal; sadly, it’s just not that exciting, with a slight anticlimax which turns out to be about as effective as a one legged man in an asskicking contest. Title track ‘Blunderbuss’ is a free-flowing country ditty, echoing Zepplinesque vocal lines, with harmonies courtesy of soaring strings and pendulating piano chords; but again, there’s no variety. Nevertheless, ‘I’m Shakin’ is a sassy, reincarnated version of Little Willie John 60’s bop classic, which breathes some life into the album; a definite hit with shameless booty shakers. ‘Trash Tongue talker’ is a valiant effort of White’s to create an authentic, hummable honky tonk number, which features some rhythmic twists and turns. More disappointment to come however, as White offers a bottled cure for insomnia with his somnolent lullaby ‘I Guess I Should Go to Sleep’ and ‘On and On and On’ definitely goes on, and on, and on; our diplodocus does seem certainly seem to be on a mission alright. To the contrary, ‘Take Me With You When You Go’ musters up some spirit, and is fortunately unleashed right at the album’s denouement; paced staccato piano chords, and a growling Jimmy Page inspired guitar riff accompanied by a fluttering frenzy of majestic sounding strings and a funky breakdown leading to another squealer of a guitar solo gives an insight into why this mysterious songwriter is revered as a shining talent. There is no doubt that ‘Blunderbuss’ is a heartfelt album, and its commendable that White’s idiosyncratic passions for revitalising dwindling musical genres have not been left to simmer but have instead surfaced, highlighting his aptitude for song writing. A price has to be paid however, and

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aunching a solo career can be a daunting undertaking, especially if you have the kind of musical reputation that precedes Jack White. At the sprightly age of 36, with a vast repertoire of hits under his belt, as a prolific songwriter for The Raconteurs, The Dead Weather and the esteemed The White Stripes and considered by some as a warlock shrouded in mystery and others as a swashbuckling buccaneer of the musical world, Jack White has a lot to live up to. So, is this solo venture and consequent solo album merely an ephemeral blunder or a wonder? Well, it’s a lot of both; White’s self – referential lyrics expose some tormented views on love, loss and life, and an evident instrumental prowess, enriching an album that yields a countrified twang, smuggled straight out of Nashville. Although it’s evident that Jack White’s musicality radiates throughout the album, the problem is that your eardrums are constantly grappling with an array of songs that are as dull as dishwater in places. A lot of the album, including the initial track ‘Missing Pieces’ resembles a lumbering dinosaur, with non-varying yet melodic piano chords that shuffle along, dragging our tympanum along with them; White’s rasping and spluttering vocals and a caterwaul of a guitar solo gives the album’s kickoff some attitude though. In the same vein, ‘Sixteen Saltines’ proves itself to be quite a raw and rebellious rock stomper, encapsulating the energy that The White Stripes were renowned for, with a riff driven by raunchy power chords. Fists in the air at the ready as ‘Freedom at 21’ boasts plenty of vocal warbling, and yet another impressive and bombastic guitar solo,

regrettably ‘Blunderbuss’ has been starved off the energy and vigour which was indicative of Jack White as the musical driving force in his former groups.

Blunderbuss is available via ITunes, at £7.99; check out ‘Sixteen Saltines’ and ‘I’m Shakin’ for a cheeky taster.

Introducing... Five Chambers Full
By Tanya Noronha, Music Team

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Did you know . . .
...that ‘Vienna’ (1981) by Ultravox was prevented from reaching No. 1 on the UK singles chart for three consecutive weeks by Joe Dolce’s novelty song ‘Shaddap You Face’?

y first question to five Chambers full was direct. I wanted to know what they were about. “Other people” was the prompt reply. Then, “We hear what we like, and try to imitate it, to the best of our ability. We’ve taken it from the bedroom to the stage.” Cue a lot of laughter, and vocalist Michael quickly cut in, “You might want to emphasise that that’s about the music.” Five Chambers Full are a Guildford-based band consisting of lead singer Michael Roke, guitarists Kieran Lallbeeharry and Paul Hart, bassist Morgan Gooch and drummer Damo Crouch, formed in late 2009. They cover a wide range of rock bands, from Muse and Red Hot Chilli Peppers all the way to Killswitch Engage and Papa Roach, although when I asked about major influences, Kieran admitted “When I was young, I heard this song... it was called What I Go To School For...” The rest of the band dissolved in gales of laughter. Once this had subsided, he continued, “I picked up the guitar at thirteen and started playing pop punk, but then I worked my way up to metal. It won’t stop there through. I’ve listened to extreme drum and bass, blues and classical. It’s pretty eclectic, but I think you can learn from anything.”

As we discussed music, it became clear that their priority is enjoying their music and wanting to share that enjoyment. As Kieran pointed out, if the fun is gone from playing, what is the point? I asked about live experiences, guessing that this band had some stories. They did not disappoint. “Yeah, Mike was drunk. That was funny.” Apparently, to entertain a restless crowd, the band then started playing country. Another experience was apparently when Morgan attempted to start a moshpit on stage and caused havoc with guitar rigs. Macarena while playing Lamb of God? I was informed this video was on Youtube. “The first mosh pit we ever saw was at No Wave United...I looked up, and there was just chaos in front of me. Some guy actually broke his wrist!” One or two memorable performances then? I think so. My final question, before five Chambers Full took to the stage at No Wave United 3, was where they were heading as a band in the future. What did they hope for? “More gigs, really...I think if we play live more, we will be able to play live better.” As their Facebook page states, they are all about ‘playing hard, playing loud.’ And enjoying themselves. Which they clearly do.

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Old Dogs, New Tricks: Bruce Springsteen – ‘Wrecking Ball’
By Dan Davison, Music Team Considering the theme of this series, eventually touching upon Bruce Springsteen was somewhat unavoidable. Having already released five studio albums over the past decade, this year the 70s veteran has added yet another LP to his vast discography. As is immediately apparent from the album's title, Springsteen seeks to prove with Wrecking Ball (2012) that he still has a defiant message to convey. In certain respects, the album serves as a reminder of Springsteen's classic years. Driving anthems like the title song and 'We Take Care of Our Own', combining eclectic instrumentation with blue collar themes, could fit quite comfortably in spirit alongside Born to Run (1975). Yet in spite of turning 62 last year, Springsteen displays a commendable willingness to embrace modern conventions. For example, the gospel-infused 'Rocky Ground' features a rap solo from backing vocalist Michelle Moore. Although generally more in line with such enduring yet more commercially accessible albums of his as Born in the USA (1984), Springsteen remains mindful to retain the sonic atmosphere of heartland America that made him an icon. This is most striking from the simple touches of folk music on even the grandest tracks, such as the prevalent violins on 'Easy Money'. Additionally, pieces like 'We Are Alive' provide touching lyrical tributes to working class survival in the face of adversity. Nevertheless, there are several manners in which Wrecking Ball does not quite achieve the spirit of its title. Although the political and social diatribes one expects from Springsteen keep the album thematically relevant, very little of Wrecking Ball is particularly innovative. Whilst it would be unreasonable to demand all artistic veterans to break the mould with every release, much of Springsteen's impact on popular culture stems from his sense of ambition. This is why a track like the ten minute epic 'Jungleland' (1975) can still capture the public consciousness with its tragic urban narrative told to a varied musical backdrop. for this reason, a finer balance between protest songs and conceptual pieces on Wrecking Ball could have proven more appreciable. Another problem the album suffers is that whilst it commendably attempts to root itself in Springsteen's more folkorientated sound, Wrecking Ball's lavish and at times bombastic production can run contrary to its lyrical expressions of working class heroism. With this considered, a few more tracks of a 'strippeddown' nature, in the same vein as Nebraska (1982), could have better conveyed the album's proletarian themes. That said, Wrecking Ball is still an addition to Springsteen's body of work that ought to be welcomed. Although it does not meet the creative high-water mark that gave 'The Boss' his world-acclaimed status, the album still proves one important respect in which Springsteen has remained true to form: he is still a man with a message deserving of attention. If he can continue to maintain such a drive and work ethic into his old age, then I for one look forward to whatever else the New Jersey legend has in store for his listeners.

COMPETITION

Fancy a chance of bagging two tickets to Bloc 2012?
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Music Editor: Sophia Field | Copy Editor: Megan Barnacle

The Stag |

8th May 2012

MUSIC

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Was it best to cancel Sonisphere 2012?

REVIEW: Daughn Gibson – ‘All Hell’

By Elliot Tyers, Music Team By Tanya Noronha, Music Team the atmosphere differed between the two festivals – where Download, now in its 10th year, is about the overall experience as much as the bands, Sonisphere, being relatively new and the lesser known of the two, can be seen to be for those who are there first and foremost for the music. Also, the variation of having 2 rock/metal festivals in the country did make a difference in terms of Download being during exam times for students. Therefore, the absence of Sonisphere this year is pretty significant. Now Download has lost its main rival, the point was raised that if Sonisphere doesn’t come back for 2013, then it could potentially have one of its strongest line-ups. However, festivals are a great way for bands to make a breakthrough so if a Europe-wide major festival like Sonisphere can be entirely cancelled, rock and metal music fans lose out on a great way to discover new bands and new bands lose an important platform from which to promote their music. So can Sonisphere bounce back next year? I got a mixed response. “Unless they can grab themselves 3 major headliners very early on, I can't see a recovery for them, as much as I want them to” one stated. However, given the success of previous years and the loyal fan base the festival has accumulated, another couldn’t see why they couldn’t come back. The conclusion could be that it all hinges on how the organisers approach this year’s setback – if they get discouraged by the blow, Sonisphere’s future is in jeopardy. However if they take the time to regroup and come back strong with an excellent lineup, they may give Download a run for their money. Only time will tell.

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onisphere is a touring music festival which has been held in an increasing number of countries across Europe over the past 3 years. Although Reading, Leeds and Glastonbury tend to spring to mind first when the word “festival” is mentioned, for anyone who is a fan of heavier music, Download Festival now flies the flag alone. Although Sonisphere is not a mainstream festival, it is a popular one, and it caters for a large section of music fans. So when the line-up announcements were late, the line-up itself was controversial (Queen performing with Adam Lambert raised a few eyebrows) and tickets sold slowly, the decision was made that it would be best to cancel all the planned dates. But what do those in the know think? Was its cancellation for the best? I asked a couple of friends who have attended each year since Sonisphere made its 2009 UK debut for their input. I wanted to know firstly if they thought it was a good thing that the festival had been cancelled entirely. Opinions varied. One thought that the fact they had won the award for the best line-up last year was a poisoned chalice, as this meant expectations were obviously pretty high for the line-up announcements. He thought it was a good idea they decided to cancel the festival as the last 3 years had provided some of the best live performances he’d ever witnessed, stating that seeing a half empty Sonisphere would be worse than seeing it cancelled all together. However, another raised the point that the experience of seeing Queen live – despite being led by Adam Lambert instead of Freddie Mercury – could still have been well worth it. He also mentioned that he felt

“Pop is actually my least favourite kind of music, because it lacks real depth.” – Christina Aguilera

think that there’s a pretty general consensus regarding dubstep as a genre – loud noises, people sweatily crashing into one another in some dark club and repeated insistent instances of bass being dropped. At its best you wouldn’t dance to it sober and at its worst it’s as if somebody took the sound of a chainsaw being run down a blackboard and threw it into a cement mixer. But if you move away from the kind of Skrillex-y material that dominates the mainstream, dubstep comes off as a much more nuanced genre. ‘Post-dubstep’ is the moniker that encompasses the more ambient and UKbased sound. If they were paintings the Skrillex and Flux Pavilion’s of the dubstep world would be a Jackson Pollock, all stabbing synths and pounding bass of vivid colour and madness whereas the relaxed, garage influenced likes of Burial and Matthew Dear would be much more Hans Hoffman, much more subtle strokes and minimalism. Daughn Gibson’s first solo album All Hell walks more in this relaxed form of Dubstep, a strange angle maybe for a former drummer in a stoner-rock band, and a current truck driver – but he brings that rugged honesty to the album and just as James Blake samples R’n’B across his tracks, Daughn does the same by utilising nourish country ballads. For example opener In The Beginning begins with a gentle looping piano and Daughn allows the trapped loop to slowly encompass gently building beats, and then his own rough croon – which then gives way to a lone female voice. The track does its job of pulling you into the album, as well as getting you used to the totally unique style of Gibson. Tiffany Lou is probably the best track in All Hell, Daughn’s voice is pitched down over a low hum and drowns you with stories of washed up men while a slow country guitar thuds out chords that every now and then loop and glitch as if to remind you of how alien a sound the album produces. By the time you listen to A Young Girl’s World, you know whether you’ll like Daughn’s style or

not – I certainly did although his cowboy drawl sometimes comes off as too rough and masculine, he sometimes sounds like Johhny Cash gargling whiskey on the rocks, with actual rocks – and lines like “I saw him/Underneath the neon lights of a corner bar/ Crying like a child” are hard to take straight faced but Daughn’s dedication to a true Country vibe helps you ignore these moments where the album seems too over the top. The other stand out track is Lookin’ Back On ’99 where it opens to lurching guitars and pounds forwards ceaselessly on a minimal drum beat – the real strength is little lyrical images like “Don’t we love the love we knew?” That gives a strange sense of the profound regarding Daughn’s gritty style. All the way through the album Daughn seems to be conjuring up the imagery of a broken Americana, perhaps taking a hint from UK-producer Burial whose tracks use ambient pulsations and solemn beats to evoke the image of a night-time London, flickering lights of distant tower blocks catching lonely drops of rain on empty streets – whereas Daughn uses the juxtaposition of guitars and his own baritone drawl against pulsing bass lines and electronic buzzes to paint us a dusty world of small towns and broken, washed up men in bars, all linked by one empty road in the rolling desert. It’s the way that he really engages with this story that makes the album so strong – and although the genre seems so alien to deepest American, you can imagine All Hell rattling into life on some old jukebox while old drinkers lean against barstools. The other major success is that it’s a perfect endorsement of how full and aesthetically interesting a genre dubstep can be. I think that all those people who think that tracks like “Bass Cannon” represent all that dubstep has to offer should look at All Hell, regardless of whether they enjoy it or not, but just as a demonstration dubstep can be as diverse and varied as any other form of music.

32 SOCIETIES

The Stag |

8th May 2012

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Surrey RAG in Jailbreak 2012
or those of you wondering what Jailbreak is exactly, every year Surrey students use their initiative and powers of persuasion to blag and beg their away around the globe in order to raise money for charity. The basic premise being, teams have to get as far as possible from the University of Surrey’s Student’s Union in 36 hours without spending any money! At 10am on Saturday 3rd March, twenty two people eagerly set off from Chancellors undeterred by the pouring rain. After 36 hours, teams had managed to get as far afield as Milan, Orly and Glasgow. The winning Team Jazzhands, which consisted of Sophie Perry, Samantha Thomas and Shaun Millis, had worked their way to Kaunas in Lithuania – a phenomenal 1042 miles away from campus! In second place were last year’s winners, the Jelly Tots, who travelled 763 miles to Madrid. The Jelly Tots aka Zoe Phillips, Emily Underhill and Myles Inglis also raised an incredible £753.88 for Save the Children which brought the grand total for Jailbreak 2012 to £2200.68! For those of you who missed out on all the exciting action of Jailbreak 2012, don’t fear! Surrey’s Raising and Giving Society will soon be announcing details of their next hitchhiking event ‘LOST’ which will be taking place in May. Check out www.surreyrag.co.uk/lost for more details and a final thank you to all the teams who got involved in Jailbreak this year.

Societies

London 2012? Err…surely you mean Surrey 2012! W
ith deadlines looming, and exams slowly but surely creeping their way in, it’s very easy to forget what the summer season is actually about. However! Help is at hand with the very first ‘Social Sports Month’, which will be kicking off this May with a variety of different events, not least of all ‘Society Sport’s Day’ which will see societies across campus going head to head in a series of events on the 16th of this month. From anime to water-sports all societies are invited to take part in what promises to be a very fun and informal day of games and excitement with the events themselves (which are currently set to include a sack race, egg and spoon race as well as many more!) looking set to put those of the Olympics to shame. All societies are eligible to submit names, with the overall aim being to

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University of Surrey Culinary Society
major benefit of being able to bake your own bread at home is it’s more healthy as there is less chemical and salt than a normal shop-bought loaf. Crust me, on the wholemeal, it is a lot cheaper, tastier, messier and therefore, a lot more fun! Plus, if your housemates are really nice and loaf you more than the whole wheat world, they may let you have some when its straight out of the oven and may even cover it in Nutella... and if not you’ll start to notice a roll lot of fat pigeons flapping about... Either way, nothing is more welcoming and satisfying than the taste of fresh bread. So if you are feeling crumby, unable to find loaf in a loafless place, then rye oh rye would there be any butter reason than to email us: uosculinarysociety@ gmail.com or join our facebook group by searching for ‘University of Surrey Culinary Society’ to keep up to date with our up and coming events! Things are hotting up in the Culinary Society kitchen, with naan a chance of going stale.

make the event as diverse and exciting as possible. So if you think your society has got what it takes be sure to keep an eye out for the event on Facebook, which will provide you with all the information you need with regards to signing up and getting started. Keen to take part but not a member of any society? Not a problem! Just follow the instructions above and get your friends to join in too or arrangements will be made for you to become part of another team on the day - who knows? You might even find yourself signing up for a society you never even considered/ knew existed before! Whether you choose to participate or just come along to cheer on your favourite society, ‘Society Sports Day’ looks set to be an exciting fun-filled event, as well as great excuse to get out of the library and into the sunshine…go on! You know you want to!

magine its Sunday. You’re loafing about the house, cup of tea in one hand, digestives in the other. All of a sudden, a familiar, warm, comforting smell fills up the house, making you knead a bacon buttie; the smell of freshly baked hot bread fresh out of the oven. Perfect! This week, culinary society has been on the rise, in more ways than one! Some may say it’s perhaps even the best thing since sliced bread. This week we held a bread making session, led by our very own, KangShen Ooi, where he taught a fantastic crowd of baguette loving, bagel munching, barmbrack adoring fans how to mix, raise and bake their way to panettone paradise. One loaf-lover commented: ‘I like the improvisational feel to the class - quick demo and then straight in getting messy! Love it :)’. Another said: ‘I like this! Very enjoyable session, hope to attend more exciting events like this! X’ Now, why go to all the hassle of being able to make your own bread at home when you can just pop down to Tesco, pick up a hunk of value white loaf and bumble back to your flat-bread? Well, something you probably dough-n’t know is that a

Over the Easter break, Surrey Video Gaming Society (SVGS) hosted the biggest LAN Party at this university so far, in University Hall. A huge mix of games were played, including Counter Strike: Source, Battlefield 2, Starcraft 2, Team Fortress 2 and Command and Conquer Generals. The event ran from Friday evening, right through to Sunday morning, with food, entertainment and transport being provided. Some people came for a day, others for the whole weekend. Some people brought their own crazy machines, others rented one of the many owned by SVGS. Some people owned the battlefields, whilst others....didn’t do so great. But regardless, everyone enjoyed it and can’t wait for the next one. If you’re feeling down about missing it, don’t be! SVGS are planning one more LAN Party this year, after the summer exams are over. If you don’t want to miss it, you should definitely keep an eye and an ear open over the next few weeks, details will come soon!

At 7.30pm on May 14th, 15th and 16th the curtains will rise once again for MADSoc performing their third musical to date; How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying. Award winning and hot off Broadway, How to Succeed tells the tale of a New York window cleaner who has high aspirations. He reads a book entitled “How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying” and, following the books advice, slowly and surely progresses within a company. Focusing on the protagonist’s relationships with love interest Rosemary and his rival Bud, and other company members, hilarity ensues as Finch is taken from the bottom rung to the top of the Worldwide Wicket Company in a remarkably short space of time. From an inside point of view the rehearsals are now in full flow. Following a four day stint and a full run through of the first act everything looks fantastic. Without costumes, without stage and without props as of yet, Joshua Howell and Katherine Pacey embody both leading roles with a superb supporting cast. The production team have been fantastic with some enchanting, and often humorous, dances from the artistic mind of Sophie Dean and beautiful, often haunting, vocals under the responsibility of Musical Director Jerome Van Den Burghe. Last, but by no means least is the Director himself; kind hearted, enthusiastic and highly driven, Andrew Phipps leads this multitalented and exceptional cast constantly driving them forward through rehearsals. His ability to maintain a relaxed feel, whilst also achieving ridiculous amounts of progression in each rehearsal is awe inspiring and has certainly taught me a thing or two. How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying promises to be one of a kind. Performances are 14th, 15th and 16th of May with doors opening at 7.00pm. If you want to be part of this experience then tickets are available now from the Union Shop or online at www.eventelephant.co.uk/madsoc. Matthew Wyard, Assistant Director.

34 SPORT

The Stag |

8th May 2012

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Champagne showers for Surrey; Kingston sorry for party blocking
When we step on the pitch, This is what we see; Everybody jealous - wanting to be Surrey. We got an awesome Sports Park, and we aint afraid to show it, show it, show it, show it... We’re Surrey and we know it.
By Douglas Elder, Sports Team difference, the tension was still palpable. One match which summed up the close competition and the pride at stake was the Rugby Union match between Surrey’s and Kingston’s 1st XV’s. Surrey have gone through the whole year unbeaten, topping their league in style to secure promotion, before winning the Cup to take the Double. But, for all their confidence and form, the home side found the going difficult against Kingston, who led by twelve points with not long to go. Despite narrowing the deficit to just five points, time was running out for Surrey and try as they might, they could not force a decisive score. However, with seconds remaining, Surrey scrambled over the line for a try which levelled the scores. Cue ecstatic celebrations on the touchline, cue hands on hips from Kingston, cue me nearly getting set upon by fifteen huge blokes for being a bit too exuberant in my celebrations. Due to the try, Surrey had a difficult kick to win the match. A collective intake of breath was taken by all around the pitch, this was it. For all the world the kick looked in, but at the last minute, the angle and the wind forced it wider, onto the inside of the post and – for Kingston – away to safety. As the dust settled, everyone reflected upon what was a tremendous match, which I found synonymous of the occasion, but even more synonymous was the mutual applause and handshakes given out by the competitors at the end. The result coincided with a news update on the balcony. For those of you who know the Sports Park, I had to run from the furthest Rugby pitch to the Starbucks balcony in about thirty seconds. I made it - due to my sheer tenacity - but I am still knackered – due to my shocking lack of fitness. Sweating (did I mention how hot it was?) and gasping for breath, I informed those on the balcony of the cracker they had just missed. Which didn’t really help anyone. Least of all me. Stupid black jeans. Anyway, 6 o’clock finally came. Results time. Taking to the main hall, myself and Sam Limbert stood in front of baying Surrey and Kingston supports. But I wasn’t scared, I’m professional. Before the results, there was the cheerleading head-to-head, followed by the tug-of-war, both of which were won by Kingston. At this point, the atmosphere in the arena was electric, as the away supporters sensed their team could claim glory at our own Sports Park. Imagine that. However, as the results were read out (wonderfully well in my opinion) one-by-one, Surrey began increasing their lead, so much so that – even with a few results to go – there was a party atmosphere in the arena and an optimism I could almost smell…or maybe that was sweat. Eventually, the final score (amended since) was read out, confirming Surrey as victors, and the celebrations began. LMFAO’s song rang out loud for everyone to sing to and as Surrey’s winners began parading the trophy, all with huge smiles, Kingston had to quietly make for the exits. So, what a day! To all those who took part, well done, you did your University very proud! My closing thought though is a big congratulations to all those who organised the event. Well done to the Students Union, well done to the Surrey Sports Park, well done to the organisers, to the barbecue providers and everyone else. Their unseen work made the whole event possible and should not be forgotten. However, last but not least is my admiration for my colleagues at GU2 Radio, with James Bale, James Hall, Mehdy Vaezi, the girls from Three’s a Crowd, Abdulrahman and Sam Limbert working their collective socks off (what an image that is). We worked very hard throughout the day but it was more than worth it to maybe, just maybe, be a contributor to Team Surrey’s success.

Varsity – Surrey vs Kingston

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orry about the tenuous LMFAO link to start this article, I won’t do it again. The point is, last month Team Surrey took on the Kingston Cougars on a beautiful day at the Surrey Sports Park. Once again, as a vital cog in Surrey University’s sports media machine, I took it upon myself to cover the event, first for GU2 Radio and now for The Stag. As temperatures soared above twenty degrees (any international students reading this, that is definite short shorts weather for us Brits…although I chose black jeans), a summer feel was in the air as Surrey and Kingston prepared to do battle. Perhaps symbolically, the high temperatures were synonymous of Team Surrey’s form on the day. Ultimately, they were far too hot to handle for Kingston, with Surrey running out 55-28 winners. The day started with a sense of nervous anticipation, not just because I was on the Starbucks balcony, in dangerous proximity to both a beer stand and valuable radio equipment, but because the day was about to begin. For weeks, both the competitors and spectators had been geared up for the event, and the atmosphere continued to build until Varsity 2012 kicked off. As the barbecues

continued to fire and the beer continued to flow, one couldn’t escape both the feeling of summer and also the sense of fun involved in what was, despite the competition, a day filled with banter and light-heartedness. For us at GU2 Radio covering the event, we were given instructions not to give out the scores, so that we could continue the feeling of tension and an almost dictatorlike implementation of censorship. Not that anyone was complaining, right up until 6 o’clock, events were well attended as people scurried around for information, desperate to see their friends, to support their teams and to dish out the odd bit of abuse to Kingston. Given the shackles of neutrality due to my broadcasting position (and Kingston’s admirably large support), I was unable to be too vociferous in my support of Surrey. Anyone who was at Varsity will know that this is a huge lie, as I took any opportunity to roar encouragement/sabotage Kingston’s hopes wherever possible. Even approaching early evening, no-one seemed to know how the day was shaping up, but it seemed like it was going to be a close finish, as crowds flocked from one match to the next, told that their support could make the difference where the games were tight. The fact it wasn’t tight didn’t make much

Surrey Taekwondo Club
Surrey Success at Taekwondo Nationals

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n Sunday 11th March the University of Surrey Taekwondo club travelled to Nottingham to take part in the 26th edition of the Student Nationals. 29 university teams took part in the competition in both Kyorugi (Sparring) and Poomsae (Patterns) categories, hoping to win many medals and battle it out for the top three team trophies. Despite having to overcome injuries, university workload and exams, the team trained very hard and saw their efforts rewarded with 7 gold medals, 4 silver medals and 10 bronze medals! All in all, 20 out of 28 competitors won a medal. Half of our team had no previous sparring experience yet managed to excel at the competition, bringing back medals, great experience and the will to compete and win again. Surrey Taekwondo also won a team trophy for the first time, coming 2nd (joint with UWE Taekwondo) out of 29, only losing to Southampton, who won the 1st place trophy for the third consecutive year.

The names of the competitors who took part in the Student Nationals are: Gold medallists: Andrea Natoli, Andrew Soteriou, Artemis Nika, Flora Da, Maz Islam, Hei Man Cheng, Nina Katerina Bafouni Silver medallists: Andreas Giannakas, Duncan Ross, Julie Renard, Spencer Boxer Bronze medallists: Mohamed Abdisalam , Naren Murali, Bhav Malhi, Stephanie Gooch, Rachel Hales, Craig Ferns, Mustafa Alsoodany, Amy Yuejia Ming, Amir Jalali, Nasser Al-Harthy No medals: Mike Przemyslaw Czernecki, Craig Rosser, Niraja Ward, Mustafa Hassan, Tomas Triantafilidis, Celia Rougis, Cindy Minghui Yuan
Everyone is still training hard to win future competitions and aim for the 1st place trophy at the BSTF competition that will take place next year. A smaller selection of fighters will take part in the Chung Do Kwan competition on 1st April.

36 SPORT

The Stag |

8th May 2012

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Boat Club continues record breaking year
By Johnathan Raines, Sports Team

Sport

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emester One was one of the most successful starts to an academic season in USBC history, and Semester Two did not disappoint with even more records being set for the club. The first race for the club was the 4.5km BUCS Head in Peterborough on the 19th February. The club entered in its top senior boats with the aim to win as many BUCS points as possible. At the end of the day, the club came away with 12 BUCS points thanks to the championship men’s lightweight coxless four and quad, extending our BUCS points total for the year to a record 18 points. The intermediate men’s heavyweight coxed four came an excellent 4th place out of thirty crews, narrowly missing out on 3rd with less than 3 seconds between them, meaning that the boat pre-qualifies for the BUCS Regatta in May. The following week the seniors were in action again in the 4.6km Reading University Head on 25th February. This time the seniors were out in an IM2 eight and came 20th in the afternoon division out of over 100 other eights, and came 10th out of 27 in their category. Next was the 5.2km Kingston Head on 10th March, a perfect opportunity to practise for the upcoming Eights Head of the River Race. The senior eight entered in both the morning in IM1 and came 23rd out of 187, as well as in the afternoon in IM2 and came 15th out of 143. As well as the seniors, the clubs beginner boats were also out to compete at the head. The beginner men entered into both divisions with a composite IM3 and novice eight with Saint Mary’s University. In the morning they came 78th out of 187 boats and in the afternoon came 39th out of 143 boats ( 6th out of 20 in their category) - great results considering they had only been rowing as a crew for a couple of weeks beforehand.

Finally, the clubs women’s beginner squad racing for the first time entered a novice coxed four and came 5th in their category. Finally, the day arrived for the 7km Eights Head of the River Race on 17th March on the tideway. This is the biggest eights race in the world with crews from across the globe entering in order to compete in the prestigious event. Entering both the senior and composite beginner eights, more record breaking results were expected after the season’s results so far. Out of the 400 boats that entered, the senior eight finished an incredible 93rd place. This is the highest place that the University of Surrey had ever come in the race and the first time that it had ever broken the 200th place mark, let alone 100th . This result means that Surrey was the 13th fastest BUCS eligible crew on the day and the 68th fastest UK crew, all new records for the club and university. The beginner crew came a respectable 306th place overall and having never rowed on the tideway before, this too was a great result. A special mention needs to be made to Anna Stedman who took part in the annual 31 mile Boston Marathon in a single scull. Rowing in aid of Parkinson’s UK, she helped to raise over £670 and completed the course in just 4 hours and 20 minutes - just 10 minutes short of the course record, and won her category with ease. Also a big thank you to Ben Johnson and Red Bull for providing the club with some energy at times of need. With the rowing head season now over, the boat club is now gearing up for the regatta season and the BUCS Regatta in May. Expectations for the regatta season are high, especially after a successful start for Surrey after beating Kingston at Varsity. Possible medal positions at BUCS and the club aiming to qualify for the Henley Royal Regatta for the first time, mean the stage is set for this academic year to be one of the greatest in Boat Club history.

The Senior 8+ at Kingston Head consisting of Ashley Epps, Phil Elton, Nick Bright, Joe Davis, Rupert Graham, Jon Rains, Rob Sillitoe, Darryl Kelly and cox Ellie Willetts.

The composite beginner 8+ at Head of the River consisting of Surrey boys Nathan O’Reilly, Rob Nicholson, Andrew Lane, Charles Watson and cox Bethan Morris.

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Surrey Boxing Club launches ‘Ultimate University Contender’
Wright Phillips. If you’ve read any of my previous articles then this will all sound very familiar to you, but it’s time to go into more detail. The ‘Ultimate University Contender’ will follow the same format as the School Contender, in that the winner will be decided based upon their academic and sporting achievements. On May 23rd the club shall be putting on a showcase of boxing in the studios with an authentic ring set up for contact sparring, pad work and skipping. Following this, there will be an awards ceremony where members of the club shall be rewarded for their efforts and the final winner will be named the Ultimate University Contender and receive a belt and £250 sponsorship. We’re looking to include as many aspects of University clubs and societies as we can and we want as much support there as possible before we start training boxers to take on (and beat) other University boxing clubs. In attendance there will be representatives from the ABAE (Amateur Boxing Association of England), local and national media, a Master of Ceremonies and of course you guys, because we want as many of you to come and support us in our first event that is set to be the first of many more to come that will feature competitive boxing between members of our club and other Universities. Plus it’s free! It’s open to the public with no charge, so what reason do you really have to not come? The event begins at 14.00 and is scheduled to end around 16.00, with a few surprises along the way. Look out for details around campus, or Like us on Facebook (facebook.com/ ussuboxing), follow us on Twitter (@ SurreyUniBoxing) or visit our website (surreyuniboxing.webs.com). Feel free to get in touch if you’ve got any questions, or if you want to get involved. One thing’s for sure, it’s going to be a big event and the first of a series that’s going to cause some serious movements in University sport.

Surrey Boxing Club

n May 23rd in Studios A&B of Surrey Sports Park, the University of Surrey Boxing Club shall be holding the first ever ‘Ultimate University Contender’. The aim of this event is to combine and promote academic and sporting achievement at University level and it is to be the first of many of its kind. The idea behind this series stems from our trainer, Ollie Wilson’s ‘Ultimate School Contender’, in which he went into primary schools and set up a competition which took into account both pupils’ academic, and sporting efforts and achievements. The winner was awarded a championship belt and a sponsorship of £250, donated by professional footballer Shaun