Bangor University Students’ Union August 2013 English Language Issue No. 233 Newspaper FREE @SerenBangor Seren.Bangor.ac.uk - COMMUNITY EDITION - BOYCOTT OLYMPICS? INTERVIEW: NOODLE ONE FEELING THE HEAT Cymraeg at Pontio’s heart Main: e Pontio Centre is starting to come together Inset: Artistic Director, Elan ap Robert, at the Eisteddfod First Welsh language production announced By LJ TAYLOR the opening in September next year. ber of 2012, has nally started to take Deiniol Road in Lower Bangor, was said Ms ap Robert. ‘Chwalfa’ was published in 1946 shape in the last six months. home to the University’s Students’ Running up to the opening of the angor’s Pontio project will team and is now considered a Welsh liter- “ e cinema has a roof on it and the Union and eatr Gwynedd before building the Pontio Project will con- up with eatr Cymru to stage ary classic. Whilst set in the ctional metal frame of the building is clear. being knocked down to make way for tinue to organise a number of events the rst Welsh language perfor- quarry town Llechfaen, the story is e size and extent of it is also becom- the state-of-the-art building. Pontio, in Bangor for students and the local Bmance in the upcoming centre. actually based on the ‘Great Strike’ ing apparent” said Elen ap Robert, the when nished, will house a new Stu- community alike. e production, which was an- of Penrhyn Quarry in Bethesda some Artistic Director, at the Eisteddfod’s dents’ Union as well as lecture thea- eir next event, Grand Convert - nounced at this year’s Eisteddfod, forty years earlier, between 1900 and announcement. tres and other facilities designed for Reaching for the Stars, will take place will be an adaptation of T Rowland 1903. Once the £44 million complex is n- students. on 1st September and will feature Hughes’ ‘Chwalfa’. eatr Cymru is just one of the ex- ished it will o er a 450 capacity thea- “Pontio aims to bridge the gap be- West End and Broadway star John It will be the rst time the Welsh isting arts organisations that Pontio tre as well as a smaller theatre. ere tween the University and the com- Owen Jones. novel has been performed on stage have and will team up with. will also be a an outdoor ampitheatre, munity. We will be reaching out into and is scheduled to take place around e building, which was originally a cinema, bars and dining facilities. the community on a whole range of scheduled for completion in Septem- e site of the construction on projects of great bene t to both sides” August , 2013 | Seren 3 CONTENTS e T e a m LJ, BECKI AND BECCI [email protected] Once upon a time Bangor was full of students and we were up to our eyeballs in dedicated Seren members. Then it was Summer. 6 27 However, a select few of us (just 9 the three then) now call Bangor Pages our home and have no reason News 4-7 to leave when term ends and so Comment 8-9 we thought why not do a special edition of everyone’s favourite Volunteer Feature 10-11 student newspaper for you guys; the local community! Business 12-13 It’s been a tough week, as we’re Music 14-15 used to a much bigger team, but luckily we’ve had the support of Film 16-17 the guys at home. TV 18-19 We really hope that you enjoy this special Seren and that we can Games 20 justify doing more of them. Gadgets 21 As we write this we can con rm we have just been joined in the Arts and Culture 22-23 o ce (at 3am), which is encom- Books 24 passed in 90s music, by a wasp. He subsequently fried himself on Local Events 25 the lightbulb. Awkward. The issue has all the usual that Creative 26 you can expect from Seren; Food 27 local news, lm and tv re- views, cool artwork and Breaktime 28 photography and even an inter- 5 view. We’ve also tried to focus on the Travel 29 community a little more with our Sport 30-32 upcoming events page and our feature which tells you about all the fantastic volunteering Bangor students do out in the 26 community. STOP PRESS: 10-11 The wasp is back, somehow he survived. Then ew himself into the bin. Which to be honest was pretty thoughtful of him. Things are getting intense in the o ce. Working on Seren can be a little crazy at times but it’s great fun, why else would we do it? Did you know that you don’t have to be a student to become a member of Seren (though we’ll take students too!). So if you fancy getting involved just get in touch. 19 You never know, the Editor The views presented hereinafter do position may be up for grabs if not represent the views of Seren Becki doesn’t return from her Bangor, Bangor Students’ Union or ght with the back from the dead 14 Bangor University. (again) wasp! 20 32 4 Seren | Community Issue NEWS In Brief Dolphin swims up River Dee A DOLPHIN that has swum miles up the River Dee is being monitored by a marine rescue charity. e mammal was rst spotted by Connah’s Quay docks on Monday before it swam upstream. Volunteer animal medics say that the dolphin, which is now heading back downstream, is continuing its progress towards the sea, but that it still has miles le . “Sometimes it goes back up stream and then turns around, but it seems to be okay,” said veterinary surgeon Phillipa Mahon, Whitch- urch. Internet trolls face jail over April Jones messages INTERNET trolls who sent abu- sive messages on Facebook mock- Main: Waterloo Street ing the search for murdered April Inset: Ei an Wyn Davies Hughes Jones are facing jail. Liam Young, 25, from Ayrshire, posted o ensive remarks online two days a er the 5-year old went missing from near her home in Machynlleth in October 2012. Tributes paid to former He admitted disorderly conduct by sending indecent and o ensive comments, and has been freed on bail for sentencing at a later date. college lecturer Co-accused Gordon Mullen, 24, denies a similar charge but a war- rant was issued for his arrest a er 84 year old man killed a er a van rolled down Waterloo Street he failed to appear at Kilmarnock Sheri Court. Normal College. thought not to have been in the vehi- his family and friends in North and Mr. Hughes was hit and injured cle at the time of the accident, and has South Wales” when a van rolled down Waterloo been questioned by the police. Mr. Hughes worked at Bangor Nor- Raider caught Street near the Deiniol Shopping Born in Wrexham, Mr. Hughes was mal College between 1963 and 1989, Centre and crashed into the window an active man despite his age, who by which time he was Head of Sci- on CCTV of Britannia Building Society. He was o en went on walks and was also de- ence. by EMMA ASBERG rushed to Ysbyty Gwynedd by para- scribed by his wife Caryl as a talented An ex-student, who does not wish putting mask on [email protected] medics, but passed away six days later. watercolour artist whose works could to be named, said “He was lovely man. North Wales senior coroner Dewi be seen at various galleries, including He was so ly spoken but knew his outside shop n 84-year-old man killed in Pritchard Jones, based in Caer- Royal Cambrian and Oriel Mon. He stu . He encouraged us to teach sci- a car accident in Bangor was narfon, said an investigation has was also one of the organists at Penuel ence to children in primary schools A COURT heard earlier this week formally named on 16th Au- been launched into the accident that Chapel. and to do it through the medium of how an internet conman tricked Agust as Ei on Wyn Davies Hughes, occurred prior to Hughes’ death on Having been happily married for 54 Welsh at a time when it wasn’t fash- fans desperate for Olympic open- a former college teacher at Bangor Stryd Waterloo in Bangor. e own- years, Mrs. Hughes said that her hus- ionable to do either.” ing ceremony tickets out of more er of the Volkswagen panel van was band “will be very much missed by all than £5,000. Conman Daniel Jones, 28, from Abergele, was jailed for two years a er admitting six fraud charges and twenty o ences. Jones had told Cannabis factory police his intention was to fund his gambling addiction. Judge John Rogers QC at Caer- narfon Crown Court described Jones as having a “formidable re- discovered in Rhyl cord for committing similar of- ered a cannabis factory. Six hundred those wanting to take advantage of Nguyen had “no place in the chain of fences”, telling him, “ e upset you cannabis plants were discovered with people less fortunate than themselves. command” and perhaps would not re- must have caused to those people a street value of around £200,000. Mr. Nguyen admitted to being in- ceive a share of the pro ts. you defrauded is incalculable.” Extra o cers were brought in to volved in the production of the class B e prosecution spoke of how out of assist at 4.15pm on 12th April and a drug and was jailed for een months.