Issue1326.02.16 thegryphon.co.uk

Views p.11 TheBig Debate:Should LUU Societies be allowedtoendorse Lead LUUcandidates? Science Science explore the importance of

y p.15 le funding, and whyit’ssomething we ad ro too easily take for granted

[Image: Teri Pengilley]mB [Image: Warner Bros Pictures] Sa Sport TheGryphon Meet JooilKim :The man In theMiddle explorewhy Howto p.19 Allthe latest news and resultsfrom •defying Pyongyang p.8 •be Single is more than just another this weeksBUCSfixtures ‘chick-flick’ITM p.15

[Image: NickRaikes] Israeli Spokesperson Sparks Protests onCampus

Benjamin Cook committeestated: “Our University should obviouslybeenaheatedtopic forusall Editor-in-Chief notbeendorsing or givingaplatformtoa in thecommittee butwejustwanttosay representativeofanoccupying force. that it wasashame that POLISmembers MembersofLeeds University Union’s ‘How canwesit back andallow this to were denied thechance of listeningto PalestineSolidarityGroupstageda be representedoncampus,inour lecture Mr Curiel speak, even from astrictly silent protestonWednesday to show theatres, in what isportrayed as asafe educationalbasis.Webelieve politicsat theiroppositiontoYiftahCuriel, a spacefor learning.” Leedsshouldbeabout open andhonest spokesperson forthe Israeliembassy in Earlierinthe day, POLIS, the debate, andtherefore this cancelation has London,speakingatanevent organised departmental societyfor Politicsand reallydisappointedus.” by LUU’sJ-Soc andPOLIS. InternationalStudies announcedthey ALeeds University Unionspokesperson PSGmembers staged asit-inprotest at were cancelling an eventfeaturing Yiftah said:“YiftahCurielvisited campus on theevent,‘Yiftah Curiel-The Pathways Curiel in discussionwithDrJames Worrell Wednesdaytoaddress an open student to Peaceinthe Middle East’, gagging on theIranian nucleardeal. In astatement meeting, co hosted by J-Soc&POLIS.A themselveswithIsraeliflagswhich posted from thesociety’s Facebook secondevent involvingthe same speaker accordingtoPSG,‘[depicted] thesilencing page,the society’s committeeclaimed wasunfortunately cancelled duetoalate of opposition’. they believed an open letter published changeinthe speakerline-up.The Union Onememberofthe protest speaking by thePalestinianSolidarityCampaign, will continue to work in partnershipwith on behalf of PSGtold TheGryphon,“We with signatoriesincluding academicsin both societies to ensurethat theirfuture felt that giventhatheisarepresentative theSchoolofPoliticsand International events andactivitiesare able to go ahead of theIsraelistate -astate whichracially Studies, hadforcedLeeds University as planned.” discriminates,which is an illegal occupier, Unionintocancelling theevent,despite J-Sochavebeeninvited to commentby andwhich commitscrimesonthe people beingtold acancellationwas only advised TheGryphon butatthe timeofprinting it occupies -itwasn’tappropriate to by theUnion duetoachangetothe areyet to reply.Any response will be welcomehim on campus.” event’sformat. addedtothe online editionofthisarticle. Postingonthe society’sofficialFacebook Speaking to TheGryphon a page earlierinthe day, amemberofPSG’s spokespersonfrom POLISsaid: “Thishas 2 News Editor’sLetter: As someone whospends alot of time Brussels. It wasbeing decided some- lowing century,The Channel kept him on the East Coast mainline Ifind my- where else. This shouldn’tbythe way away. Europe’sproblems have always self reflecting on ‘Englishness’ pretty be taken as the sort of UKIP-esque rant been at once our problems and not our 26.02.16 often. It must be something about be- about howthe European Court of Hu- problems. ing forced into an enclosed space with man Rights is undermining the sover- Englishness is anational identity Weather packs of middle-aged men drinking eignty of our proud nation. It’smerely formed in spite of Europe. Aturning up

HI LO tins of lager in the middle of the day an observation about what it means to of the nose at the ideals of the French Fridayy cloudy 50 whilst gazing at twohundred miles of be ‘English’. and the Germans. Be it liberte, egalitie,

Saturday cloudy 61 flat fields that are for some reason in It strikes me that in fact the whole de- fraternetie, or ever closer union. Sunday cloudy 6-1 places perpetually flooded in places, bate about the European Union brings But we can’tgoonlikethis surely? Eng- that brings it out in me. During these up another crucial element in defin- lishness can’tbeMcCoy’sonaVirgin Quoteofthe Week “ travels I’ve come to the conclusion that ing ‘Englishness’. Iwas consulted this train that will no doubt be late because ‘Englishness’ (not ‘Britishness’) is the afternoon by aBelgian student news- we’re too stubborn to renationalise the We have to keep theballbetterand feeling that everything of importance is paper as to whyIthought the British railwaysbecause the Europeans did it. we have to move theballquicker – that’s always what we have to do. alwayshappening somewhere else. misturst the EU. Idon’tthink the British It can’tbeaploughman’sbecause who Desire... it is agreat word.Ioften usethe word “horny” withmy Over the last few weeks this must do. Ibelievethe English do. Ibelieve wants frenchbrie in asandwich. For players. “ be howmost of the country has felt. this comes from adeep historical de- god’ssake let’sfind something to be Manchester United manager We’vebeen sitting around twiddling sire to define ourselves as ‘everything proud of in English culture other than Louis vanGaal issues a bizarre rallying call ahead of his side’sEuropaLeague our thumbs and endlessly speculating France and Germanyaren’t’. not being the French. clash with Midtjylland on what deal David Cameron would We’vealwaysdefined ourselves strike with European leaders on our against Europe. TheChannel has en- Contents renegotiaiton of membership of the sured that we’ve alwaysbeen ‘part of Benjamin Cook European Union. Here it was, the deal Europe...but not really part of Europe’. Editor-in-Chief 3-7 News that would redefine our national char- When Napoleon swept across Europe acter.Only it wasn’tbeing hammered in theearly 19th century,the Chan- 8-10 Features out in Whitehall, or London, or even nel kept him at bay. When Hitler blitz- Runnymede. It wasbeing decided in krieged his wayacross Europe the fol- 12 Society

14-15 Views 16-17 Science PhotoofThe Week: Second year Cinema and Photographystudent Tammi Nowell caputured this beautiful sunset overHyde Park earlier this month. 19-24 Sport

Credits

Editor-In-Chief ~Benjamin Cook Associate Editor ~Greg Whitaker

News ~ElliPugh, Jess Murray,ShamimaNoor, SamRobinson

Society -Avigail Kohn

Features ~Stephanie Uwalaka,Molly Walker- Sharp

Views -RachelKing, Freya Parr,Dom Johnson

Science ~Sam McMaster, Dougie Phillips

Sport ~AlexBowmer, JamesCandler,Nancy Gillen,Fiona Tomas Head of Photography ~Jack Roberts

Image: Tammi Nowell

thegryphon.co.uk News 3 Junior Doctors Announce Further NHS Strike Action

[image: Jason Lau]

ish Medical Association on Tuesday, terms of the contract but not the imposi- working hours. JonnyChard also stressed an intention to seek a ju- tion of it. David Cameron’s official spokeswom- Junior doctors have defied the Health dicial review as the government appears Ministers are said to be convinced an said: “It’s regrettable if they are going Secretary, Jeremy Hunt, by declaring a to have failed to carry out an equality that the opposition of junior doctors to strike again. I’m sure discussions will further three 48-hour strikes following impact assessment, as required under will start to ebb away once the contract continue.” the government’s plan to impose new the Equality Act of 2010, before impos- comes into force, but don’t deny that The dates planned for the industrial ac- contracts on them. The decision repre- ing the contract. there is a lot of anger among junior doc- tion are 9 March, 6 April and 26 April. sents an intensification of the already It is understood that the Department of tors. There is a belief in Whitehall that All are scheduled to begin at 8am, but long-running dispute over pay, working Health are prepared for alengthystand- this will calm down once doctors have will not affect emergencycare. hours and patient safety. off with the BMA, after NHS employers started working under the new arrange- The announcement, made by the Brit- distanced themselves from the Health ments, arguing that most will see a small Secretary, saying they supported the rise in pay and an improvement in their

Police Investigate Sexual ForumTo Assault In Pryzm Debate: “Should Equality Mean Equality?”

Elli Pugh because, in campaigns of equality and diversity,“the Aproposalhas been made majority are looked upon to LUU’s‘Better Union’ fo- as the enemywhose issues rum that the Union should are minuscule by compari- [image: pryzm.co.uk] “give avoice to those who son and have life almost too are being silenced by those easy.” He specified his further whoclaim their voices are belief that Union campaigns Detective Sergeant Rob Stabler,ofLeeds District too loud”. should “[also] help everyone Katy Frodsham Safeguarding Unit told the Yorkshire Evening Post Gary Heyes, aLeeds Uni- by asking the Union to focus “The victim had become separated from her friends versity student, has submit- on issues that attain solely to Police are hunting aman after a18year old girl was shortly after midnight and the incident occurred ted aproposal titled ‘Should men.” allegedly sexually assaulted in aLeeds nightclub in sometime between then and when we were con- equality mean equality?’, de- Themotion will be pro- the early hours of Tuesdaymorning. tacted. We would like to hear from anyone whosaw tailing aview that “all people posed at the next Student Thevictim has told police that she wasassaulted in anything or whohas anyinformation that could as- should be heard and taken Forum, whichwill take place Pryzm nightclub, on Woodhouse Lane, near aphoto sist the investigation.” seriously,whether aminority on Monday29th February booth on the second floor before 3am. Anywitnesses or anyone whohas information or not.” from 17:30-19:30 in LUU Police are urging anyone whosaw anything suspi- whichcould aid the investigation are urged to get in Mr Heyes explained that Room 6. All students are wel- cious to come forward. Theattacker is described as contact with the police through either Detective Ser- he proposed the motion come to attend. white, in his early twenties with dark hair styled in geant Stabler at Elland Road on 101, or Crimestop- aquiff. pers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

thegryphon.co.uk 4 News

Campus 1 University of Brighton Lecturer HelpsToEstablish SyrianRefugeeSchool Julie Pratten, avisiting lecturer in English at the University of Brighton has helped to set up aschool for Syrian refugees after participating in an online course. Pratten, whohas has spoken of howchildren have been “queuing up outside” Watch her new school to learn, established the centre for learning in acamp near Dohuk, Iraqi Kurdistan, along with three 3 2 other online students from Canada, Morocco and Iraq. Greg Whitaker

2 NorthWestUniversity 3 University of Texas 4 CambridgeUniversity Mafikeng UniTemporarily Evacuated UniofTexasAllow EyeonCambridge’s Bronze AfterProtestersSet Fire To Handguns On Campus Cock Buildings NorthWestUniversityMafikeng, in Students at theUniversityofTexas Students at JesusCollege, SouthAfrica, hasbeentemporarily will soon be allowed to carryhandguns Cambridge, havevotedunanimously evacuated afterstudent protesters set oncampus. PresidentGregory Fenves that abronzecockerelberepatriated firetobuildings. Koos Degenaar,a hasapprovedthe 2015 Republican- to Nigeria, from where it was spokespersonfor theadministrative ledTexasLegislature to allow guns on looted in the19thcentury. The faculty, said an administration blockwas publiccollege campuses throughout cockerel,which features threetimes 4 burneddownonWednesday night. The thestate.Althoughthe University has on thecollegecrest,was among protesters also set firetoaresidence endorsed this controversialruling, the hundredsofartworkstaken from the belongingtoadormitorysupervisor. The law states that apersonhas to be 21 Benin Empire afteraBritish naval violence allegedly began afterthe student before applyingfor aconcealedcarry expedition in 1897. 1 representatives meetingwas “disrupted” license. by protesters. JonnyChard ShamimaNoor Mike Johansson TheDigest

[Image: AFP] [Image: Reuters] [Image: PA] [Image: BBC Parliament ] EU Referendum Set For OwnerofAlton Towers BBCStaff ‘Knew of the Cameron Criticised After June as Cameron Lands To Be Prosecuted Savile Complaints’ Corbyn ‘Jibe’ EU deal

UK Prime Minister David Cameron an- Theowner of Alton Towers is to be pros- Recent reports colluded about the on- David Cameron insulted JeremyCor- nounced the date of the in-out referendum ecuted overthe Smiler rollercoaster crash going investigation into the sex abuse byn’sdress sense during achaotic PMQs of the UK’sEuropean Union membership in June last year,inwhichacarriage filled complaints against JimmySavile have on Wednesday. After Angela Eagle men- for June of this year.The announcement with riders collided with astationary car- concluded that ‘BBC staff knew of the tioned David Cameron’smother’soppo- comes after Mr Cameron struckadeal riage. Twowomen, Leah Washington and complaints’. sition to his welfare cuts, Cameron re- with the other leaders of the EU and he Vicky Balch, eachlost aleg in the inci- TheDame Janet Smith review into sex- torted: “I knowwhat my mother would will be hoping the terms negotiated will dent and three other people were seri- ual abuse by Savile identified 72 victims, say. Ithink she’dlook across the dispatch be enough for the British public to choose ously injured. Neil Craig, head of opera- including eight whowere raped. box and she’dsay:‘Put on aproper suit, to stayinthe Union. Although similar to tions for the Health Survey for England in Thereport also says there were 21 vic- do up your tie and sing the national an- the original draft Eurosceptics have argued the Midlands, said: “Wehavetodayin- tims of ex-broadcaster Stuart Hall and them’”. Theremark prompted jeering that the deal Mr Cameron has negotiated formed Merlin Attractions Operations Ltd BBC management in Manchester were from the Tory benches. JeremyCorbyn falls well short of his original proposed that it will be prosecuted for breaching aware of his conduct. said in response that “if we are talking of deal. Compromises have been made health and safety law. […] We have con- BBC Trust Chairman Rona Fairhead said motherly advice, my late mother would on the sending of migrant child benefits ducted avery thorough investigation and the BBC ‘failed victims’. In response to have said, ‘stand up for the principle of abroad and the four-year curb on in-work consider that there is sufficient evidence this, Tony Hall, aspokesperson on the is- ahealth service free at the point of use migrant benefits allowed for only seven and that it is in the public interest to bring sue, said it wasa‘management issue’ and for everybody’, because that’swhat she years opposed to the original thirteen pro- aprosecution.” argued that without astrong manage- dedicated her life to”. posed. Campaigning is nowunder way ment structure issues like this are ignored with London MayorBoris Johnson one of instead of being addressed. Shamima Noor the first major Conservativesfigures sup- Shamima Noor porting the ‘out’ campaign. Zoe Bancroft

Mike Johansson News 5 WhoGetsYourVote? This week we interview Greg Whitaker and Jess Murray,who are both running to be your next Gryphon editor.Interviews with every Lead LUU candidate will appear online throughout next week. ing them the coverage they both want and deserveis had JeremyCorbyn, we’ve had Natalie Bennett. For abig priority for me. Ialso want to provide, in terms me personally,Icouldn’tlook past the big politicians; Greg Whitaker of news, amore international and more current events the David Camerons, the JeremyCorbyns. Ialso think sort of section. we need to branchout to other sections. Ithink fea- tures is amain one. Howwill youget students involved in the newspa- per? Youmentioned looking to forge stronger links with the societies. What would be your first step towards This year we’ve had alot of people saying “I pay£10 achieving this? to write for the newspaper and Iget the impression I’m paying for youguys to make it, what do iget out It’snot really asecret that we haven’talwaysbeen the of it?” Ithink youshould get more for your member- most lovedsociety on campus this year.First and fore- ship, so there should be better training and social most, I’dlike to have regular meetings with committee activities for writers. members of anyLUU society that wants to have some coverage in the paper. Do youthink it is important for students to get involved in political discussions through the Your background is primarily in the news department newspaper? but do youhaveany ideas for the In TheMiddle sec- tion? There’stwo separate parts to this question. As an editor,ifyou’re elected, youhaveamandate to take In terms of design, Idothink it’sstarting to become a Whydoyou want to be editor? the paper in anypolitical direction youwant. Saying bit stale. Thecontent is alwaysfantastic. Idowant to that, Ithink the Views section is vital to promote free consult design students, get them involved, and give a I’m sort of Ben’snumber twoasaNewspaper as- speech, in terms of anyone on campus being able to sort of fresh new design to In TheMiddle. sociate this year.Ithink that, as I’ve progressed, I’ve come to the paper saying “I feel passionately about enjoyedthe challenge more and more. Ithink, genu- this political view.” As Gryphon editor,what is the first thing youwould inely,I’m the best person to do the job next year. do on dayone? Youmention in your manifesto, acommitment to big What would the content of the paper be like under name interviews. Anyspecific examples? Iwould like to concentrate on making sure that all my your editorship? editors will knowexactly what they are doing. Train- Interviews with politicians, especially,Ithink we’ve ing, definitely,would be my first priority. We need to forge better links with LUU societies. Giv- excelled at this year; we’ve had Hillary Benn, we’ve

to stuff as it happens. We have agood online pres- Youmention about waning to push for more big ence. Ireally want to push for getting articles up there name interviews. Anyspecific examples? Jess Murray as soon as they happen. Iwant interviews, whichis something Ithink we have slacked on this year.Push- You’ve put me on the spot there! I’m trying to think ing for big name interviews; we can do it, we have in of examples that are more, kind of, student relevant. the past. Owen Jones is agood one. Upcoming artists like Jack Garret and actor John Boyega, comedians like Jack Howwill youget students involved in the newspa- Whitehall. Generally,big names that students would per? be interested in that would make them pickupthe paper. So Ithink one of the main problems that we’ve had is that we’re perceivedasabeing too Union-centric. What will youdotoensure awide readership of the Iwant to take the Gryphon out on campus, to the Gryphon? students. One example wasthe junior doctors’ strike, whichwould have been areally good opportunity to Well, Ithink online is where we need to focus our go to the Worsley building and talk to medical stu- attention on getting wider readership. We could dents about their opinions. Iwant to take the Gryphon introduce anew app whichwould mean people have out to students rather than just expecting them to TheGryphon on their phones to access news when it come to us. happens. We need to get out there online; increasing our followers on Twitter and our likes on Facebook. Whydoyou want to be editor? Do youthink it is important for students to get involved in political discussions through the newspa- As Gryphon editor,what is the first thing youwould It’snot been something that I’ve planned. Ijust per? do on dayone? thought, I’ve got lots of ideas. Ithink I’ve got the necessary skills and experience. Ithought, “you know Well, Ithink, being astudent is areally good time Look at the website and plan out; howitcan change, what? I’m gonna go for it, I’m gonna run.” to get involved in political discussions. University is howitcan be promoted, howitcan be more user when youstart to realise howpolitical matters actu- friendly,more eyecatching. That’sthe waytopush the What would the content of the paper be like under ally affect youand howyou can actually have an im- Gryphon forward. your editorship? pact on it, youcan change things. University,aswell, is about developing your ownopinions and learning Ithink news is one section whichIreally want to what youstand for. improve.Iwant the Gryphon to be more responsive 6 Features Cruel Britannia: Remembering Oluwale An artistic insight into racism, police brutality and mental health, ‘Oluwale Now’ is adaylong event celebrating the life and death of David Oluwale, avictim of terror at the hands of Leeds City Police. TheGryphon explores the life and death of David Oluwale.

Jodie Yates February 2016 to celebrate his life through music, art, digging groundnuts’, an unsettling outline of common, and poetry.Asmuchasthis event is acelebration, it is contemporary perspectivesamongst the authorities to-

His bodyfound lying face down in the RiverAire also areminder of the resonance Oluwale’sstory has in wards migrants as asubhuman “other”.

close to the sewage works. Old telephone directories today’ssociety,shining alight on police brutality and Over 29 years in Britain, Oluwale became more fa- used to fill his coffin. Buried in amass paupers’ grave the failings of mental health services in reaching out to miliar with the walls of Armley prison and what was with nine others, the David Oluwale Memorial Asso- black, asian and minority ethnic (BAME) communities. then known as the Pauper Lunatic Asylum in Menston ciation is committed to dignifying the life and death of near Otley,being tossed between these and the streets “ “ “ “ David Oluwale. As asociety,Britain believes itself to “ of Leeds. Diagnosed as aschizophrenic, 10 of his 16 have come along wayinits treatment of ethnic minor- years between 1953 and 1969 were spent in Menston ities. However it is easy for Britain to celebrate its pro- and it washere that Oluwale wassubjected to various gressive future whilst forgetting its shameful past. The If Oluwale’stragedyshould bring a treatments that would eventually become detrimental memory of David Oluwale’slife reminds the public that single message of positivity,itisone to his mental health. ‘Liquid cosh’ largactil, aheavy the treatment of ethnic minorities in the UK is not so of resistance and empowermentmen tranquiliser,and electric shocktherapywere used on blackand white, and Leeds is shaping up to be the city Oluwale, often leaving him disorientated, twitching, at the centre of this campaign. and laughing for no apparent reason. David Oluwale’sstory is aharrowing account of utter “ Yetitwas more than the treatments he receivedinhos- disregard for human life that is ingrained into Leeds’s pital that affected Oluwale’sstate of mind. TwoLeeds past and the history of the city’spolice. Thedeath of Oluwale wasaNigerian migrant whocame to Brit- City Police officers, Inspector Geoffrey Ellerker and Ser- Oluwale in 1969 wasthe first known incident of ara- ain, aged just nineteen, in 1949, then aformer Brit- geant Kenneth Kitching made it their mission to humil- cially charged attackleading to the death of ablack ish colonyrife with poverty and unemployment. His iate, belittle and subjugate Oluwale. Routinely beaten, man at the hands of British police. This incident is also aim? to secure abetter future in the ‘Mother Country’. battered, and verbally abused, what is striking is Olu- one of the only times an officer has receivedasen- Astowawayonaship carrying groundnuts, Oluwale ar- wale’sdetermination to remain in the country.The only tence for being in some wayrelated to the death of a rivedatHull and wasimmediately arrested and sent to black, homeless person in Leeds at this time, Oluwale suspect through police brutality.Nearly fifty years af- Leeds’snotorious Armley prison. Upon sentencing Olu- indented himself into the heart of Leeds City Centre, ter his death, the University of Leeds will be partnering wale, the magistrate at Hull police court declared that something that various artistic movements would echo with the David Oluwale Memorial Association on 26th ‘[Oluwale] would have been better off staying at home years after his death. Themental and physical torture thegryphon.co.uk Features 7

tional and diurnal racism. Dr Andrew Warnes, reader of American Studies in the School of English and one of the organisers of Friday’sevent with Max Farrar,says that he wants this daytoarticulate and showcase the ‘eloquence of the cultural response’ to Oluwale’sdeath. Dr Warnes affirms that ‘[Oluwale Now] is not just about Leeds, but the wayinwhichstereotypes circulate with- in police forces and culture in general and the extreme overreactions against individual vulnerable blackmen and women’. Welcoming journalist Gary Younge to talk of his experience of the BlackLives Matter campaign in the USA, Warnes hopes the event will underline the resonance of Oluwale’sstory and its ‘horrible echoes’ in the treatment of young, blackmen in America today, in ‘an attempt to try and ask whythis is happening’. Nearly fifty years after his death, though it cannot be said that nothing has changed for the treatment of ethnic minorities in Britain, the memory of David Oluwale calls into question the resonance of similar issues affecting the BAME community in Britain and worldwide today. In the UK, blackpeople are still overrepresented in pris- ons and, although not on as wide ascale as America, it is not unheard of for ablackman to be shot dead by po- lice in the street. High-profile cases of the shootings of young blackmen suchasStephen Lawrence and Mark Duggan by police force us to question to what extent [Image: Nao Takahashi] ethnic minorities are valued and respected members of society.These concerns are echoed by the treatment of migrants and the increase in race-related crimes, largely inflicted upon him, as well as the tiresome effects of John McLeod, professor of Postcolonial and Diaspo- targeted at the Muslim community.The suicides of Sarah being ablackman in an unrelentingly racist Britain, ra literatures in the School of English at Leeds, will be Reed and Faiza Ahmed, twoyoung blackwomen with fuelled Oluwale’slonging to return to Nigeria, seeking hosting aconversation with Guardian journalist Gary mental health problems, further indicate the failings of sanctuary from the Cruel Britannia that enticed and then Younge at ‘Oluwale Now’. McLeod outlined that, ‘if we the state. BlackBritons todayare struggling to have faith rejected him. want to change the world youhavetothink and write in their country when it betraysthem by accommodat-

On 18 April 1969, Oluwale wassavagely beaten with about the world differently,and literature is where we

ing institutional racism and afacilitating aseemingly truncheons by Ellerker and Kitching in ashop doorway go to think and write about life differently’. This is ex- never-ending waronblackbodies. near TheHeadrowfor one final time. David Oluwale actly where the people of Leeds went to celebrate Olu- If Oluwale’stragedyshould bring asingle message fled from his attackers, screaming and clutching the wale, refusing to let him be forgotten. of positivity,itisone of resistance and empowerment. backofhis head, to Leeds Bridge. Eyewitnesses on that Struckbydisappointment and guilt, art became the fa-

Despite being viewed as ‘human rubbish’, black, and night said that they sawtwo police officers chasing and cilitator for the city’sreaction. Oluwale’sstory caused a homeless, Oluwale upheld himself as acitizen, reclaim- then beating a‘small, dark man’ unconscious, before national scandal, prompted by aradio playwritten by ing Leeds as his city as muchasit wasKitching and kicking him into the riverwhere he wasfound dead Ellerker’s. Oluwale is asignifier of all that we must em- twoweeks later.Itwas not until another officer in Leeds “ “ “ “ “ “ bodytofight against figures of violence and oppression City Police brought into question the actions of Ellerker worldwide. Professor McLeod argues that though ‘it is and Kitching that Oluwale’sbodywas exhumed and his tempting to build alegacyaround [Oluwale’s] death’, it death investigated twoyears later. IfIf we want to change the world is the fact that, according to Dr Warnes, Oluwale ‘acted In the Scotland Yard investigation, the trial judge de- youhavetothink and write about in the wayhehad every right to act, as amember of scribed Oluwale as a‘dirty,filthyvagrant’, with several this community’ that should remain prominent. McLe- trial witnesses affirming him to be a‘dangerous man’. the world differently,and literature od and Warnes echo eachother’sstatements, agreeing Kitching openly denied Oluwale’shumanity,declaring is where we go to think and wiwritee “ that Oluwale was‘arepresentative of changes, pointing that he was‘awild animal, not ahuman being’, though about life differently towards the Leeds of now’ and ‘reminding us of what these statements were not used in the trial. At the oth- we are’. er end of the spectrum, to friends of Oluwale, he was Though Oluwale’smemory lingers in the shadowof gregarious and fun loving, known ‘Yankee’ due to his Leeds’spast, manyare acting to place it at the city’sheart. swagger and passion for westerns, until the humour and JeremySandford called Smiling David,though this story TheDavid Oluwale Memorial Association are currently liveliness were knocked out of him by various figures of of terror and abuse had almost been forgotten about un- planning to build amemorial garden in Leeds City Cen- authority.Asablackman, although only 5’5, Oluwale til police paperwork on the case wasdeclassified under tre, atype of ‘horti-counter-culture’, directly confronting waspainted as the violent attacker to be feared. Through the 30-year rule. This moment inspired Kester Aspden’s diurnal and institutional racism, and asserting Oluwale’s the lens of blackhyper-masculinity,Kitching and Ellerk- book Nationality: Wog, TheHounding of David Olu- presence, just as he did, at the centre of acivic public er defended their actions as protecting Leeds from the wale,published in 2007. Aspden took inspiration for the space. Appropriately,‘Oluwale Now’ takes place dur- dangerous threat of the violent and savage blackman, book title from Oluwale’ssuspect form, where his na- ing BlackFuture’sMonth, ‘a deliberate reinterpretation rhetoric we still see in today’streatment of young, black tionality wasdenoted as ‘wog’. Literature and art allow of the resistance and resilience of Blackpeople as illus- men. Oluwale to be the protagonist in Leeds’shistorical narra- trated through art’. TheDavid Oluwale Association and Ellerker and Kitching were jailed merely for aseries tive,refusing to let him be lost into the city’smurkypast. numerous poets, writers, and artists will continue to use of assaults against Oluwale and spent three years and Prolific writers suchasCaryl Phillips in his 2007 book the remarkable past of Oluwale and manyothers like twenty-seven months respectively in prison. Thecity Foreigners and Linton Kwesi Johnson’spoems Night of him to shape blackfutures: celebrating, liberating, and then found itself in adebate of conscience; ignore this the Head and Time Come,aswell as manyother poets empowering the oppressed and forgotten. shameful mark on Leeds’spast or react to the abhorrent and filmmakers, have put Oluwale at the centre of their behaviour committed by authorities on the city’sstreets. art as afigure resistant to oppression. These are all works ‘Oluwale Now’ takes place today(Friday26th Feb- Deep embarrassment and shame towards the police that commemorate Oluwale’sstruggle whilst reasserting ruary) with events running in various locations from struckthe population of Leeds and swiftly the treatment Leeds as apolycultural city built on migration and made 14.30-19.30. More information can be found here: of Oluwale in their home environment made distant, greater by its diversity,defying Kitching and Ellerker’s https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/oluwale-now-tick- contemporary stories of violence and oppression more vision of an oppressive,white-washed city. ets-20892190103 pertinent. At Leeds United’sfootball ground, Elland TheDavid Oluwale Memorial Association strivesto Road, Oluwale’sflame burned bright, with players and keep Oluwale’sstory at the heart of discourse on police spectators chanting ‘The RiverAire is chilly and deep, brutality and mental health in the BAME community, Ol-u-wale. Never trust the Leeds police. Ol-u-wale’. using Oluwale as areminder of the effects of institu-

thegryphon.co.uk 8 Features Meet Joo-il Kim: TheMan Defying Pyongyang

TheGryphon speaks to Joo-il Kim, aprominent member of the North Korean community in New Malden, about the challenges he has faced under the North Korean regime and as arefugee here in England and what is still to come.

Naomi de Souza

“Refugee is abetter term, the word defector just doesn’taccount for what we have been through,”saysJoo-il Kim softly.Kim is one of nearly seven hundred North Korean refugees living in New Malden. An innocuous London suburb, the only indication of there being asizeable Korean population are their supermarkets and travel agents, nestled within the seemingly hum drum high street. Thelevel of support offered to refugees is what makes New Malden an attractive home for the North Korean diaspora. Most North Koreans living here have quietly blended into the community,understandably preferring to tackle the daily struggles of adjusting to anew society.Yet Joo-il Kim, whohas livedhere for nearly ten years, felt compelled to directly challenge the regime that sawhis family starved and per- secuted at the height of the famine in the 1990s. Kim has experienced unthinkable trauma after suffering tragedyboth personally and professionally,hecrossed the Tu- men RivertoChina. It took twoyears to cross Vietnam, Cambodia, and Thailand to eventually reachBritain. He has since set up ‘Free NK’, apublication based in New Malden, whichaims to ‘liberate the North Korean people’ through its scholarship, revealing the manyhuman rights abuses that occur. We meet in the North Korean information centre, run by his South Korean friend, Bona Shin. Thecentre is avital lifeline for North Koreans and is working hard to introduce them to an independent wayoflife and integrate and unite them with South Koreans. Before Japanese occupation of the North from 1910 until 1945, all Koreans were ‘developing together on the peninsula as ahomogenous people, protecting the same language and culture for thousands of years’. But nowadays tensions between North and South Koreans are not uncommon, with the Database Centre for North Korean human rights attributing this division to ‘anti communist sentiments they were taught in South Korea’. With the formal division of the country in 1953, the cultures and languages of North and South developed independently of eachother.And so, when North Koreans started arriving in Britain, South Korea, and Thailand, they were viewed by their Southern counterparts as suspicious and even troublesome. Despite this, the fervent hope that both sides hold for reunifica- tion is quite moving and something that JooilKim is keen to discuss. [Image: Naomi de Souza] Aformer North Korean armyofficer,Joo-il Kim’srole wasprestigious. However, his living conditions were far from this and his role became centred on catching not achoice, the British Government thinks we choose to go to South Korea. If they the manysoldiers that fled from their dire surroundings, rather than training them. make South Korea afirst port of call, then North Koreans will have the information This wasinthe 1990s, atime of acute economic turmoil, when the country reluc- available to decide where to go, and better navigate the asylum system”. tantly relied on food and humanitarian support from the World Health Organisa- Speaking to staff at the Korean information centre, it is clear that by helping North tion. Movement within North Korea is limited but, due to the nature of his role, Koreans settle they are leading the wayincommunity integration. By putting astop Kim had the rare chance of travelling across the provinces, causing him to see how to the misconceptions some of the South Korean community mayhave, the Centre widespread the crisis was. After alife of adulating his nation and leader,hefound is empowering North Koreans, encouraging them to thrive.Their current resettle- himself asking, “is this the best that the North Korean leader can do?”. ment programme, and various events they have hosted, are all helping remedythe It is important to look beyond the myths widely propagated by the media; North psychological and physical consequences that come with escaping. Whilst the term Korea is so muchmore than amilitary state led by the crazed ‘fat boyKim’. Films ‘defector’ is often used to refer to displaced North Koreans, this term implies that like ‘The Interview’ with its lazy racial stereotypes and the constant media scrum the decision to escape is light-hearted, and taken for political or passionate reasons. ridiculing Kim Jong-un diminish what adangerous and gravesituation North Korea Yetthe subsequent psychological breakdown they face, and, as reported by the Da- is in –adanger that lies in Kim Jong-un’srefusal to denounce his toxic self-styled tabase Centre for North Korean Human Rights, the reality that most female North Communist ideology.Inthe last ten years especially,the West has obsessed overthis Korean refugees will be sexually exploited, shows the decision is far from frivolous. apparently ‘hermitic’ nation and looked on incredulously at its insidious hold on Joo-il Kim agrees stating “refugee is the right term for us, defector just shows you its people. YetNew Malden symbolises the regime’sbiggest fear: aloss of control. have escaped. It doesn’tdojustice to what we have been through”. Theflawsofthe British asylum system further hinder the settling of aNorth Korean It is remarkable, but humbling, howJoo-il Kim is able to articulate the horrors he refugee. With both North and South Korea claiming sovereignty overthe whole pen- has faced. Like other prominent North Korean refugees, Kim is working tirelessly to insula, the British Government officially recognises them as South Korean. However bring awareness to the human rights abuses that his friends and family are suffering. this is only because manyfirst escape to Seoul to access the information needed In preparing for this interview what wasstriking washow eager the Korean commu- to decide howtocontinue. Indeed, among the array of injustices North Koreans nity were to help with my research.Oversixty years after its formal division, their face, they are the only nationality to have their fingerprints taken in South Korea, unquestionable hope for the future of the peninsula is quite moving. With increas- whichKim describes as “a breachofhuman rights”. As aresult of this process, they ing international scrutinypiling the pressure ontoNorth Korea’scapital,Pyongyang, then become tied to aSouth Korean nationality and are consequently deprivedof it is their hope that the regime will soon be forced to acknowledge crimes it has the resources and support needed to settle into Britain. On this, Kim states “the UK committed. should accept us as North Korean, we have no freedom of obtaining information and if we are moving through China we make an emergencydecision to enter South Thank youtoBona Shin for kindly hosting, and Yung Shin for translating. Korea”. Owing to its brotherly bond with North Korea, the Chinese Government is renowned for repatriating North Korean defectors, knowingly sending them back To find out more about the work of the Korean information centre please visit their to certain imprisonment in its labour camps. Therefore, “moving to South Korea is Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/koreaninformationcentre/?fref=ts thegryphon.co.uk

10 Society In TheSpotlight: LUU Women’sHockey

This week, TheGryphon talked to Kitty Pandya,asecond year PPE student and social secretary for the Women’sHockey Club. LUU’sWomen’sHockey Club is the largest university hockey club in the country,with eight teams playing in both the BUCS and Yorkshire Leagues. As well as possessing sporting skill that wonthe club the title of LUU Sports Society in 2015, LUUWHC is very active in the local and international community,and has raised over£30,000 for charities overthe last three years.

Avigail Kohn experience of playing the sport. If youwant to be more excellent food. casually involved, that’sfine too. Ihad genuinely never Another great part of being on committee is that you Could youplease tell me abit about your role in the playedamatchbefore and there were so manyoppor- become responsible for the club…and for your time society and what that entails? tunities to get involved, not only in the matches but also management! Knowing that Ihavealot of commitments in charity events, socials and even umpiring. has actually made me alot more organized. I’m one of four Social Secretaries on the University’sfe- male hockey club committee. We’reessentially the ones Is the club just for girls? Do youhaveany big events coming up? whoorganize all the fun stuff. We have weekly Wednes- daysocials, team bonding nights (like team meals and There’saboyshockey club as well whowework re- Our annual tour to Spain is coming up overthe Easter laser quest), our Christmas meal, atour overEaster and ally closely with (although obviously,the girls club is holidays, and that’salwaysabig one: I’m planning on the hockey ball, whichisthe last big event of the year. better). Thesocials, our tour and the hockey ball are all getting my to get my tan on while I’m there. with them. We’realso holding a‘Zimfare’ social in acouple of Howdid youget involved with the Hockey society? weeks time, where we will raise money and awareness What has been your best experience on the team/com- of the living conditions in Zimbabwe through the Pro- Ijoined the team last year.Ihad never playedbefore mittee so far? gresio charity.Eachcaptain is hosting ameal, whichwill but wanted to playasport and I’dheard about them be- be atraditional Zimbabwean dish. People contribute ing amassive club: they have over200 members. When My best experience on the team this year has been to anything they can towards the meal and there will be a Iwent round the Fresher’sFair,their stand attracted me. see girls whojoin the club whohavenever playedbe- team quiz at the end of the night! Forthe moment, you Thegirls whowere on the team seemed really friendly fore end up growing in confidence. It happens around can only come if you’re amember of the club, but it’s and fun, so Idecided to just go for it. this time in the semester when they’ve had some prac- the first time we’ve done it so younever know, it might tice and they’ve playedtogether for awhile. It’sreally growoverthe next few years! Who can join the Hockey Club? funnyfor me to see because that wasmelast year –it shows howfast time flies. If youhad to use one song to describe your society, Anybodyreally,it’sgenuinely avery good club to join. Thebest parts of being on the committee are the perks what would it be? Lots of the girls are really dedicated to playing the sport youget! We had acommittee bonding dayatthe start of and commit training-wise and for matches, but because the year,whichwas at Go Ape and so muchfun, and a FancybyIggy Azalea, because youcan’thelp but love there are 8teams youdon’tneed to have anyprevious committee Christmas meal at RoundhayPub, whichhas it. Aikido: More Than Just aMartial Art This week, Sam Robinson, asecond year PPE student and the Treasurer of Aikido society,gives us acomprehensive view of what being in the society is like.

Sam Robinson Usually in classes we begin with warming up by some background to Aikido’shistory and cultural im- stretching, practicing some basic foot and/or hand portance. Aikido is aJapanese martial art, whichtakes some movements and working on basic exercises that im- TheStudent Nationals are also coming up, so we’ll be inspiration from jujitsu. It focuses on using your op- prove distance and timing. We tend to build up gradu- sending ateam there, and hopefully we’ll be having a ponent’sattackagainst them, so there’snopunching, ally to techniques, so it’spretty accessible to beginners. few more socials this semester.Infact, we’re even plan- kicking or striking -it’smore about using momentum What we do after depends on the session. Usually, ning atrip to Japan, to experience Aikido at its source to break your opponent’sbalance to throwthem or put we’ll learn aset of techniques, and practice for upcom- (as well as to fill up on awesome Japanese food). them on the floor.Because of that, Aikido isn’treally ing gradings. Sometimes, Justin (the instructor) likes to Being apart of Aikido society has been an amazing about muscle: it’smore about the technique than how mix things up and have us practicing randori, i.e. free- experience for me. I’dsay it’sgreat to join if you’re hard youcan push someone. You’dbesurprised at how form bouts, to really help solidify the techniques in our considering starting amartial art, if you’re looking for little strength youneed if youdoatechnique just right. heads. Occasionally,wealso do some weapons train- something that doesn’tneed strength for youtodowell Ijoined Aikido in my first year,when Iwas looking ing (with wooden swords and spears), and some more in and whichdoesn’tinvolvehurting people. We’ve for something new to try out. When Icame to univer- advanced techniques. So it’snicely structured, but with had quite afew new members come in this year,which sity,Iwas inspired to have alook into martial arts as alittle variety thrown in. wasawelcome boost, but we’re alwayshappytoget away to get myself out of my comfort zone. It just so Trainings aren’tthe only thing we do in the soci- more. It’sareally friendly,laid-backgroup, so don’t happened Aikido wasdoing aGiveItAGo session that ety.Recently,we’ve had afew laid-backsocials, like worry about not fitting in –wemake sure Aikido is week. Iwent along, hoping it wouldn’tbetoo awk- anight out bowling and Sundaylunchafter sessions. open to everyone. ward, but everyone wasreally friendly and it wasn’t We also had more “Aikido” focused events, suchasa awkward at all, so Istayed. seminar in York and our World Unite session that gave thegryphon.co.uk In TheMiddle

Issue12 19.02.16

Music•Clubs •Fashion •Arts•Lifestyle andCulture •Columns 2

Credits

Editor-in-Chief In TheMiddle Music Clubs Fashion Benjamin Cook Associate Editor Alex Fowler Chris Caden Emma McCormack Beth Galey Charlotte Bickley FloraTiley Faye Buckland editor@ inthemiddle@ Stasi Roe Molly Shanahan thegryphon.co.uk thegryphon.co.uk Catherine Dowie Rukaiyah Dadhiwala Sarah Hamond

Arts Lifestyle and Blogs Head of Creatives Cameron Tallant Culture Amelia Chloe Photography Megan Chown Hannah Tomes Emma Bowden Dunton Jack Roberts ZaraPeterson Mark McDougall Hannah Holmes Hannah Lewis Paul Turner Zoe Delahunty-Light Front Cover Jack Roberts 3

Contents

4 15

Is it ok forartists to useghost writersfor What didyou thinkwhen yousaw the theiralbums? We present both sidesofthe trailerfor HowToBeSingle?Justanother argument -who do youagree with? rom-com? Thinkagain -thisRebel Wilson filmisfar more progressivethanitfirst appears. 7 19 Kanyenever seemstobeshortof controversialideas,and hisdecisionto We review both Dickensian and The release TheLifeofPablo only on Tidalhas People v. OJ Simpson,two very different createdanair of exclusivitytohis music. whodunits.

10-12 21

Alongwithour usualweeklychart,we Have youtried Turtle BayinThe Light review Subdub’s first ventureintoHifi and yet? It’s spicybut delicious, andthe Butter SideUptrading Berghain for Wire. cocktailsare really cheapifyou catch them in happyhour.

13 22-23

We take alookatFastForward Fashion, In columnsthisweekEmmalaments the theideagrowing in popularitythat lets us lack of diverserepresentationinpopular access thefashion on thecatwalk months culture,and Bradleytalks abouthis before we’d normallybeabletoget our experiencesofpartyingwithanxiety. handsonit. [Image: Ezequiel Becerra]

To Write Or NotToWrite?

In the wake of Elton John announcing he will be shadowwriting The Killers next album, Megan Chown and Fred Savage discuss whether or not artists should be allowedtouse ghost writers

This week in an interview with Shazam, Elton John casually Therelevance of whowrites the songs for aparticular recording Yes mentioned the likelihood of him collaborating with TheKillers No artist depends very muchonthe context of the songs themselves; frontman Brandon Flowers on their forthcoming album. Now, I are the songs reflecting some intense thoughts, feelings and emotions love every single album by TheKillers, but Ican’tdenythat they from the singer? Are there themes and ideas whichare deeply have completely changed their style from the iconic indie rockand roll of Hot Fuss personal to the singer conveyedbythe music? It’scases like these that it is especially and Sam’sTown.The sudden change to modern synth-pop with Dayand Age wasa important that the singer should have had amajor hand in the writing the words for shocktothe system backin2008; it wasn’tbad, it wasjust incredibly different. But the songs, so as to give the listener asatisfaction of finding the music more authentic. then Battle Born followed with adefinitive pop-rockstyle that counteracted all their Aprime example of this is AmyWinehouse: awoman whowas significantly insistent previous albums and critics began to worry they’dlost their roots. Yetlate last year, on using authentic lyrics. They ranged from being entertaining to emotional, from like music to my ears, Flowers spoke of developing a‘powerful rockvibe’ for the fifth personal to pessimistic when portraying interpersonal relationships. She had an album hopefully meaning they’ll return to their signature sound of the golden age of incredible talent vocally,and her ability to playcolourful jazzy chords on aguitar Hot Fuss. accompanent complimented her style brilliantly.Onthe other hand, Miley Cyrus and her infamous ‘Wrecking Ball’ wassuggestively said to have been written in Apartnership with Elton John could actually help drag the band backtotheir response to the breaking of her engagement, yetthe song and lyrics were not actually original rockstyle. In an interview with NME, John mentioned howFlowers has written by her.It’scases like this where asinger gets an external songwriter to write often playedhim both TheKillers and solo albums before release, suggesting that asong involving the singer’sthoughts and feelings whichcan become irritating for they alreadyhaveaclose working relationship. This announcement doesn’tmean the its audience. If youcan’texpress your ownfeelings in asong on your ownthen can band will have nothing to do with writing their songs; Istrongly suspect it will be a youreally call yourself an ‘artist’? mutual collaboration with inputs from both parties, allowing knowledge and insight to change hands. It is well known that John himself works with Bernie Taupin who It is also important to consider howinvolved the artist is with other aspects of has written the lyrics to manyofhis hits including ‘Rocket Man’ and ‘Candle in the their music; manywould consider playing an instrument to be more demanding Wind’. than singing and/or writing lyrics -despite the fact that all of those elements are undoubteldyimportant -and if one has not playedaninstrument or written alyric, To me, agood covercan end up equivalent to the idea of shadowwriting. Every they are standing on thin ice when trying to demonstrate authenticity in their music. single song on JohnnyCash’s American IV:The Man Comes Around is acover, yet Although the musicality of asong is not at first obvious unless the listener actively that doesn’tstop it from being one of my favourite albums. Cash givesnew life to goes to look up the credits of the music, manywould argue that these aspects require the music, suggesting that it doesn’tmatter whowrote it but whosings it that givesit very little practice or talent, particularly production. Some mayevenconsider it the meaning and depth. NowI’m not saying the writer or original artist shouldn’tbe not sufficient to make for authentic music if the singer has not written the words credited (Prince must find it exceptionally annoying that most people think Nothing (although this is usually the case with mainstream or sub-mainstream pop music). Compares 2Uwas an original Sinead O’Connor song), but surely it’sbetter for asong to be sung by the right voice. Forexample, it might have caused alot of controversy It is only when asinger or recording artists has written their ownwords that they but All About that Bass wasinitially suggested for Beyoncé yetwhen sung my Meghan are able to achievesome great historical and critical praise for themselves. Artists like Trainer herself, it became an honest yetplayful track. Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell, Dolly Parton, Lennon &McCartney etc. have all achieved suchlevels of fame mostly because they are known for writing their songs. Certainly Shadowwriting causes quite the debate between music fans as manyfeel it is there are similarly praised artists whoare known for not writing all of their own necessary for an artist to write all of their ownmusic.Yetcollaborations in the creative songs: Elvis, Nina Simone, Frank Sinatraand Michael Jackson all had help with their industry more often than not, create some of the most influential and innovative lyrics, but these artists have earned their praise in other ways suchascultural impact, pieces of work. After all, Elvis and Sinatra, twoofthe most iconic singers of all social/political activism etc. But the nature of this achievement Ifind to be somewhat time, didn’tevenwrite their ownsongs. As aGraphic Designer,collaborations are less intellectually stimulating than that of being agreat songwriter. something Isee daily across the design sector with inspiration being taken from anything from fashion to film. Whyshould it be anydifferent in music? If an artist If asinger has written their ownwords, it simply givesthe listener some peace of simply stays closed and alwaysworks within themselves would their work evolveor mind that they are listening to more authentic music, whether they actually enjoy change? They maynever reachtheir full potential if they do not open themselves up the music or not. to the wealth of knowledge available through other musicians. Elton John is aperfect example of someone with ahistory and influence in the industry whocould provide [Fred Savage] insight and new methods into the bands wayofworking. Surely shadowwriting is analogous to working with different producers –Bowie worked with Iggy Pop, Brian Eno and Nile Rodgers, eachtime reinventing himself yetstill remaining true to his distinctive sound, so is this really anydifferent?

[Megan Chown] 5

PhasebyJackGarratt

JackGarratt hasrecentlycreatedadie-hardfan base him, aguitar, drum padand synth. Butyet he somehow withhis awkwardand energetic bravadoonand off produces tracks as overwhelming andtremendousas stage. Despiteonlyhaving2EPs andacollection of ‘SurpriseYourself’ –the surprise(andaptly named) latest singles under hisbelt, the24yearold one-man-band has single from Jackafter ascorchinghot VEVO LIFT session. amassedahypethathas seen himmakemultipleBBC Personal favourite ‘Weathered’breathesnostalgia and introducingand live lounge appearances. Allthisattention warm summer nights with beautifulmelodiesand atender andexcitement canoften lead to adisappointing debut guitar riffcapable of warmingthe coldestoflisteners. album, butGarratt is aman wholikes to surprise. Winningthe BritsCritics Choice Award, featuringas Aperfectly balancedmix of electronic dance,hip hop AnnieMac’s hottest recordinthe world, andaheadline andindie,tracksfusetogetherinPhase,definingGarratt’s UK tour,2016willeasilybeJackGarratt’syear. If hisjaw unique andundeniablytalentedsound.Singles ‘Fire’ dropping live performance doesn’tdoitfor you, then and‘BreatheLife’ boastthe endless abilitytoproduce hisendearing and sincere personality will.His UKtour amasterpiece,fullofsynth-loaded hooksand ferocious seeshim play asold out show at ourveryown University falsetto vocals.The rawpower of JackGarratt’svoice UniononApril 5th. Phase is aphenomenally impressive shines brightestintrack ‘Worry’–abewildering and debutalbum by JackGarratt,fullofghostly butcaptivating beautifullyrefinedsongabout unhealthylove obsessions. synthhooks,incrediblevocalsand ingeniousguitarriffs.

What is perhaps most amazingabout Garrattisthat [LukeHumphrey] it is himand himalone.His live performance features

BasarbyAfricaine 808

“Worldmusic”and experimental dance have been whichisimmediately followed by thebluesy‘YesWe reachingnew heightsinthe past year or so,withmany Can’,featuring typicallyAfrican instrumentationand a importantcontemporaryartists oftenassociatedwith didgeridoomelody. However, this explorationofcultures IDMfindinginnovativewaystocombinethe two. Be this isn’tsolely reserved forplacesfar flung from Western withIndianragas as in Four Tet’sMorning/Evening, or musicaltraditions; ‘Language of theBass’ is more of a Floating Points’selfconfessed obsession withBrazilian homagetoUK dance andraveculture, withamelody sounds andrhythms,acouplingwhich hadremained reminiscentofNorthern Bassline,apulsating beat made in relative obscurityfor yearsnow seemstomakingits usingthe Roland TR-808 analog drum machine(of which wayintothe mainstream. Africaine 808isthe project they areextremely fond on thewhole album),overlaid of DJsDirkLeyersand DJ Nomad, twoBerlinveterans, by vocals whichserve as alessoninthe historyand invigoratingthe city’s reputation forminimaltechno importance of UK soundsystems. withsoundsfrom around theworld,whilstmaintaininga classicallyGerman feel. This willingness to incorporatesuchavastand diverse number of styles makesthe albumratherdifficulttopin Their first album Basar followsonfrom theirlongstanding down –afascinatinghybrid. Genres andsamples travel VULKANDANCEparties in Berlin,and is ashowcaseof from IndiatoAmerica’s gospel south, viaIsrael,Nigeria howmuchthisgenre hastooffer.Fourtothe floor beats andthe Congo,however,and mostcrucially, thetracks push thetrackson, withaplethoraofdifferentcultures maintain theirhighlydistinctive soundwithhelpfrom the beinggiven thenod,often to devastatinglygroovyeffect. 808. ‘Balla Balla’ sees ashortAsian melody transformed into awonderfullyfunky, tech-house amalgamation, [Harry Stott]

Colour Theory by SubmotionOrchestra

The LeedscollectiveSubmotion Orchestraarrivewith The standout trackonthe albumfor me is ‘Kimono’; fourth studio album ColourTheory andcontinueto showcasing theverycapabilities of each individual in gather admirers.WithvocalistRubyWoodtakingastep theseven-piece collective,likemanyofthe other songs back to enjoybeing anew mum,there is agreaterstress on thealbum itisambient,infectiousand radiates a on thecreative inputand production behindthe tracks. complete alacrity. ‘InGold andNeeds’highlight the Influencedbyand incorporatingtheir unique heavy-bass excess of emotion whichisterrificallytransferredthrough dubwithjazz, soul andclassical ColourTheory takesa thealbum.‘EmptyLove’, featuringthe work of Ed Thomas, more sophisticated stance on theireveryouthful musical transcends anypoint reached on thealbum andthrough blend. The albumaligns itself andbuildsonthe creative itslofty vocals elevates thelistenerintoahighersphere ideasfrom 2014 album Alium whilst retainingasense of of feeling. modesty,never swayingintoarrogance. ColourTheory brandishes an unapologeticreminder ‘Red Dress’ is apoignantbeginning forthe record, as just whysomany criticshavebeenwon over by this perfectlywhettingthe appetite as we sink into alull unique soundchurned out by this eclectic ensemble of whereby we canonlylay back andappreciate what is talented musicians. to come,and we’rekeptconstantly alertwithrecurrent wavesofelectronicpulseswhich permeatestheir music. [Niall Ballinger] 6

DJ-Kicks:Moodymann by Moodymann

The50th DJ-Kicks wasreleased last year,and wasa Leaf Dancers by Flying Lotus, feature vocals from Andreya spell-binding compilation of new discoveries by none Triana –tunes that youmight never put in the company other than DJ Koze. This however,isthe smoothest of eachother,meticulously morphed together.Aswith and sassiest of them all, courtesy of Moodymann, and all the DJ-Kicks series, the albums should be playedas featuring better-known tracks. The DJ-Kicks series prides intended and act as acomplementary soundtrackfor a itself on its collaborations with some of the biggest and fragile mind as minimal concentration for maximum best musicians of the time (previous years feature mixes enjoyment is required. by Seth Troxler,John Talabot and Motor City Drum Ensemble) and this is no different. Theseries givesareal Perhaps aslightly rogue trackonthe compilation is Our insight into the influences and interests of the artists that Darkness by Anne Clark –ajazzy mix of the original, with mix them, and invariably have the slickest transitions of apiano riff and lumbering spoken word, obviously taken some of the biggest tunes. from aliveshow. It just doesn’tquite sit comfortably with the coolness of the remainder of the album. Thefinale Moodymann reinstates ahip-hop vibe to DJ-Kicks, comes in the form of amix agentle techno trackfrom boasting mixes from the likes of JaiPaul, Nightmares on Daniela La Luz. Overall, this is apleasing addition to Waxand Flying Lotus. Cheekysnippets from eachtrack the DJ-Kicks family,with amuchmore diverse displayof (none muchmore than 3minutes in length) maintain the genres, but less masterful mixing. ebb and flowofthe album, though afew corners were cut in some song transitions with asimple fade-in, fade-out. [FloraTiley] Easily the climax is the move from BTSTU by JaiPaul toTea

Life of PausebyWildNothing Pitchfork darling Wild Nothing returns with his third quality,asifhe’sspeaking to youfrom aspace at the back studio album, Life of Pause.However,the title is abit of a of your mind that youwere never quite aware of. misnomer,asonce youpress play, the only thing to do is let it run. Taking inspiration from the likes of BeachHouse Wild Nothing is not afraid to present youwith the and Pains of Being Pure at Heart, this record is yetanother unexpected. ‘Whenever I’ movesfrom what could be an jewel to add to Wild Nothing’salreadyresplendent crown. Easy Listening jazz tracktoaspaceyguitar-and synth- drivenwonder.Eventypical tropes are rendered entirely Thealbum starts with the wonderfully ambient new under his hand; the piano and acoustic guitar ‘Reichpop’; its layered xylophone and heavily filtered combination has been done and done and done amillion guitar sounds come to youfrom afar off distance, getting times, but ‘Adore’ uses it as awonderfully chilled, almost closer and closer until youallowyourself to be carried Temples-esque ode to ‘the one that Iadore’. Thetempo awaywith them. Theuse of distance is particular to this switchinthe middle then feels entirely natural even record, even in songs like ‘LadyBlue’ and ‘ToKnow though it is entirely innovative. You’ whichappear on the surface to merely be good old-fashioned indie bangers. Thevocals are the key to Life of Pause is atriumph of left-field indie vibes at their differentiating them, sounding as though they’ve been best. Let it soothe your troubles totally away. fed through twocans linked by string. It’sthe contrast between the enveloping instrumentals and the far-off [Jemima Skala] vocals that give Wild Nothing’smusic an other-worldly

UMLGig Picksofthe Week

Come Thru #3, Sat 5th March,11pm, CHUNK, £5 Bill Ryder Jones, Tuesday1st March,8pm, BelgraveMusic advance Hall &Canteen, £10

Come Thru number 3! Creative and positive club In light of his 2015 album release, “West KirbyCounty experiences curated by close friends of the UML - Primary”, the English multi-instrumentalist, musician and Nightwave, Lil C,Tayyab Amin, and residents Docterre and film composer is bringing his minimalist, folk-rocksound ThePhysical providing the soundtrack. We recommend to Leeds’ BelgraveMusic Hall. Think Kurt Vile’srambling, buying tickets in advance to avoid being turned awayat mumbling vocals meets Mac Demarco’siconically hazy, the door! guitar twang.

Super Hexagon &Future Daze with DJ Stingray,Sat 5th LIME #8 with Sean Hamilton, Monday29th February, March,11pm, Wire, £6 earlybirds 7pm, Hyde Park Book Club, free entry

This small Leeds-based crew have slowly but surely put Leeds Improvised Music and Experimentation bring themselves on the radar as serious purveyors of all things Sean Hamilton to Hyde Park Book Club. An American electronic, having brought Helena Hauff and Luke Vibert composer,percussionist and educator,Hamilton to the city in the past. Next up they’ve got DJ Stingray, is particularly interested in free improvisation and one of Detroit’soriginal techno players whocut his teeth electroacoustic music. Featuring performances from other playing alongside Moodymann in motorcycle clubs before Leeds-based improvisers this is an excellent opportunity becoming Drexciya’stour DJ. to see overtly experimental music in an intimate venue.

[Leeds Union Music Library] [Image: Peter De Potter] [Image: Andrew Sharp] The Short LifeofPablo

Is Kanye’s Latest Project Masterfully ElusiveOrDangerously Exclusive?

“My album will never never never be on Apple. And it will never be for Thequestion we must ask ourselves nowiswhether this exclusive mode of sale... Youcan only get it on Tidal”. It seems Kanye West has got yetanother release will become the popular trend. If more and more artists adopt Kanye’s bee in his bonnet, not just for Apple, but for the music industry as awhole. The tactics, then music will transcend into previously unparalleled level of exclu- prodigal son’srecent decision to only release TheLife of Pablo on Tidal has sivity.The whole point of streaming services is to make music more accessible created arift within his fan base between those whoare willing and those who to everyone, but if artists continue to restrict their music’sreception then peo- are either unprepared or unable to shell out their life savings to hear Kanye’s ple are going to lose trust with the music industry and music itself. To listen latest genius ramblings. He has created abubble of exclusivity around his al- to music we will have to blindly make substantial investments for unknown bum; he has bestowed only those deserving enough, wealthyenough and daft products. Rather than fall into this trap, we should followthe example of art- enough to buy aTidal subscription with the privilege to access TLOP. ists like Chance TheRapper,who appears on TLOP’sopening track‘Ultralight Beam’, and whoreleases all of his music for free. He has steadily built aloyal This is aremarkable contrast to Alicia Keys’ comments, not even ayear ago, following from this approach, similar to the Arctic Monkeys, whogavetheir at Tidal’slaunchparty,that Tidal would be “a music awaytoform asolid fan base before releas- place for connection between artists and fans… “The question we must ask ing Whatever People SayIAm, That’sWhat I’m deliver[ing] music and experiences in away Not.Exclusive music maybenefit the elite artists, that is best for the consumer”. Either Tidal has ourselves nowiswhether this but it eliminates the unknown musicians from the forgotten its founding ‘principles’, or it never exclusivemode of release equation altogether.Itwill become even harder truly harboured any. Even if Tidal is an artist- for aspiring talent to expand their audiences. To owned streaming service, it is owned by an elite will become the popular make matters worse, if other streaming services group of musicians whose primary concern is trend. If more and more gain exclusive rights to an artist’smusic, then we shovelling money into their ever deepening will see the establishment of separate musical pockets whilst drip-feeding expensive products artists adopt Kanye’s tactics, pockets. We will have to payridiculous amounts into our ears. Vaguely claiming to offer “high to listen to the music that we love,asifwehad fidelity music streaming”, Tidal exhibits an ex- then music will transcend been asked to payfor eachindividual TV channel ploitative faithlessness to the average music into previously unparalleled we watch, reducing our discovery of new artists. consumer.Tidal is essentially acharity service; Theonly feasible result of amovement suchas only the prosperous are at the beneficial end of levelofexclusivity” this is adepressing return to the dark ages of mu- the stream -poor Kanye is $53 million in debt, sic piracy. didn’tyou know? Theevidence confirms this; within aday of its release, TLOP had been pi- And the annoying thing is we buy it again and again. Since TLOP’sdebut, rated over500,000 times. Whilst this shows the consumer’srejection of music the Tidal app has risen to #1 on the app store. Congratulations Kanye,you’ve exclusivity,italso undermines the sanctity of music. If Tidal wants to roll with succeeded at the expense of the consumer.But it’simportant to remember that the big boys of music streaming services then it needs to open its pearly gates TLOP is an anomaly,hyped by Kanye into acrazy level of anticipation. In the to awider audience, rather than simply rely on exclusive material to prop up absence of further material, ahuge percentage of Tidal’snew subscribers will its poor foundations. cancel their free-month subscriptions and return triumphant to the magical world of Spotify and other less costly sources of music. It’sunderstandable Kanye maybelievethat “this album’sjust embracing the music, embracing that Kanye didn’twant Spotify and Apple Music to unfairly profit from his own joy, and being of service to the people”, but Ifor one am unconvinced. The work, but what makes less sense is his refusal to release his latest album in a exaltation of this album as acollector’sedition will mean TheLife of Pablo will physical form. Adele proveditwas possible to ‘beat’ the streaming services be aremarkably short one indeed. What ashame. Pablo’slife story sounded with the unprecedented success of 25, so Kanye’s decision not to followsuit so interesting too. is not just unwise but bizarre. Physical mediums are the best waytolisten to music; they present profits to the right people, whilst offering asound quality [Robert Cairns] fit to matchKanye’s self-professed “best album of all time”. 8

Weekly Chart

Africaine808 –Basar (GolfChannelRecordings)

The German duoAfricaine 808-madeupofDirkLeyersand DJ Nomad -havebeensteadilyreleasing EP’s overthe last fewyears.Thismonth sees theduo releasingtheir first full length albumwhich continuestheir usualdynamic approach of mixing elementsofAfrica’straditional genres with samba, jazz andgospelalong with ahorde of other influences. Agreatexampleofartists whoare keepingcontemporarydance musicfresh andinteresting, andwe’ve reviewed it on p.5.

GoGo Penguin -Man Made Object (BlueNote)

Followingtheir much acclaimed albumv2. 0from 2014 which wasshortlistedfor theMercury Prize, theManchester Jazz trio GoGo penguin release theirnext10-track albumthismonth.Using theirtrademarkmashofminimalist piano, electronica-inspired drumsand emotive bass lineswhich very much formstheir ownuniquesound which drawsonand recreateselectronicmusic withacoustic instruments.

Autechre -Amber (WarpRecords)

An essential listen foranyoneinterestedinthe moreexperimentalsideofelectronicmusic.Along withthe artist AphexTwin, Autechre is acclaimedtobeacentral pillar in theevolution of thegenre “Intelligent Dance Music” whichmovedawayfrom themore dance-floor orientated styles of electronic musicinthe early90’s. This is 75 minutesofpowerful, contemplativeand ambientsound whichwas well aheadofits time beingreleasedin’94.

TheGalleria-Calling Card (Environ Records)

TheGalleriaisanalias of Morgan Geistwithwhich he once againtapsintothe popend of housemusic,however this EP is not to be comparedwiththe usualthrow-awaytracksofits kin. Thetwo impressive tracks on therecord ‘Calling Card’and ‘Mezzanine’ boast excellentproduction creating afunkyvibewithastrong80’sfeel.

Manfredo Fest -JungleKitten(Tabu Records)

AJazz-Funk gemfrom 1979 this EP takesinfluence from Brazilian musiccombiningitwithafast, funky, jazz sound whichisboppish andharmonicallysophisticated.You wouldfind thetitle track‘Jungle Kitten’beput to good useas an instrumental breakinadisco-set,orequally as qualityeasylisteningfor your frontroom.

[Ben Finder] Feature [Image: James Cray]

[Image: Justin Gardner] Butter Side Up:Ostgut Ton-12/02/16

When it comes to solid line ups and spectacular nights out in Leeds, Butter Side Up need no introduction. Höppner,anOstgut Tonfavourite and previous label manager,teased eager crowds with beat after tantalizing beat of only the best selection of house and techno. As Over the years the trusted team behind BSU have produced aparty that combines always, he left no room for messing and performed aserious yetskilful set, with all both quality line ups (Hunee, Gerd Janson, Theo Parrish) with awarm, intimate the fun thrown in for free. atmosphere, drawing in familiar faces every month whoare yettofind amore ap- pealing party to soundtracktheir weekends. This sense of familiarity and community Tama Sumo hit the decks at around 3am, following on with some deep house, ex- is only compounded further by their less frequent ‘Friends &Family’ soirees bringing pertly progressing into the realms of darker techno. One thing is for sure: with over together an amalgamation of some of Leeds’ most consistent and underappreciated twenty years of experience under her belt, she knows howtoplease acrowd. residents. Some of us can’tafford to jet off to Berlin at the drop of apenny, but whoneeds Friday12th February sawyet another solid line up from the experienced curators to anyway when there are nights suchasthis on our doorstep? BSU continues next bringing in arevered duo associated with one of Europe’smost infamous clubs. month with Craig Richards coming to town on 18th March. Ostgut Ton’sNickHöppner and Tama Sumo brought ataste of Berghain’sdelectable house and techno scene to the sweaty yetirresistible underground setting of Wire [Georgia Williams] club. Subdub Presents: Dancehall Science -19/02/16

Shifting from their usual haunt of the West Indian Centre, the latest edition of Leeds’ Once we got inside, the club wasonly half full, whichconsidering the size of Hifi, favourite party for all things bass-heavy,Subdub ventured into the depths of the Hifi wasnot avery impressive turn out. Nonetheless, one guarantee wasthe brilliant basement on the 19th February. music and the promise of rum and ting behind the bar.The select crowd did not impact the vibe of the night, and wasactually abonus, allowing skanks to erupt in Usually accustomed to speakers so loud that feel like the bass amp has replaced their full glory without the threat of elbowing someone’sribcage or catapulting their your heart and all your bodily functions, Subdub parties have atendencytomake drink across the floor. youworry that youmay never be able to hear again. Yet, abizarre sense of epic enjoyment, exhilaration and exhaustion is usually found, despite being crushed by a Another refreshing aspect of Friday’sevent wasthe discovery in the days after that horde of sweating, skanking humans. our hearing wasvery muchintact, with the usual ringing in our ears kept to amini- mum. Despite these welcome variants, Ithink it is safe to saythat Subdub is better in However,when we arrivedatHifi for Dancehall Science the bouncer invited us in its home at the West Indian Centre, rather than the loveable surrogate at Hifi. and said to us, ‘I don’treally understand whyyou want to go in there..’. It’ssafe to say we were alittle disappointed as we walked down the stairs into the familiar setting [Harry Le Grice] of Hifi with incredibly lowexpectations. 10 YeezySeason 3

[Image: Dimitrios Kambouris]

Dubbed “the greatest album of all time” by the man himself, last week sawthe version with awhite and blackupper.These are something to look out for in coming muchanticipated release of Kanye West’sseventh studio album ‘The Life of Pablo’. months, although whether they’re worth queuing for days outside the nearest adidas And in true Kanye style, the release wasn’tasstraight forward as asimple signing store is another question. There wasalso the teasing of the brand-new YEEZY Boost in your local HMV.Rather,20,000 people gathered in the Madison Square Garden 1050 boot, a“duckboot”-style whichappears to be amore evolved form of Kanye’s arena in New York, and countless more tuned in via online streaming for the debut, first boot, the YEEZY 950, whichwill come in at least three colours, but again, don’t an unprecedented audience for suchanevent. However,itwasn’tjust the music that expect anydeviations from the YEEZY colour chart. wasbeing celebrated, in fact it seemed that the attendees, including Jay-Z, Olivier Rousteing, Karlie Kloss, and 50 Cent, were more concerned with the grand unveiling Of course, this is Kanye we’re talking about, and throughout the program, the rap- of the third installation of the YEEZY fashion label. per took to the mic manytimes to voice his thoughts and opinions, thanking adi- das for paying for the event whichwas met with an eruption of jeers and chants Theshowprovided the perfect platform for West to showoff slandering Nike from the crowd. Interestingly,henoted that his new wares as well as aliteral arena for whichtodebut his the YEEZY clothing prices would be lower next season, so latest musical offering. As the final moments of ‘The Life of Pa- “The collection itself fingers crossed we won’thavetodelvetoo muchinto our blo’s’ opening track‘UltraLight Beams’ blared out overthe PA has evolved in nearly overdrafts for apiece of the collection. system via Kanye’s laptop, the sheets were literally lifted uncover- ing YEEZY Season 3. Hundreds of models filled the arena floor everyway,with a As expected, the Kardashian-Jenner clan made no small dressed in the muted, washed-out colours we’ve come to expect entrance either at the presentation. Thewhole family,includ- overthe initial YEEZY seasons. There were, however,afew more more imaginative use ing North West, were decked out in an exclusive coordinat- colourful pieces appearing in yellows, oranges, and reds, match- offabrics, styling and ing Balmain xYeezy set, but it wasKim’slook that wasthe ing model and rapper Lil Yachty’sbraids. Thecollection itself most striking, showing off new platinum blonde locks. The has evolved in nearly every way, with amore imaginative use colours” appearance of Kylie Jenner at the event came just days after of fabrics, styling and colours, while the basic staples –distress- her controversial signing with Pumaagainst West’swishes. ing, oversized silhouettes, and those muted tones –ofthe YEEZY After venting his anger on Twitter however,itseemed that in brand remain intact. Most noticeable is West’suse of colour-blocking and select pat- the MSG anydisagreement had been forgotten and the focus wasplaced solely on terns, largely found throughout the women’spieces. the clothes and the music.

Another highlight wasasneak peak at the latest evolution of the adidas xYEEZY He maystill have his heart set on running for Presidencyin2020 but with clothes program, with the new upgraded version of the popular adidas YEEZY Boost 350 and music like this, at least he has aback-up plan. stealing the showwith its new design. It features anew pattern on the Primeknit upper,and in addition to the bold stripe across the entire shoe there is also another [Grant Wilkinson]

[Image: Kevin Mazur] [Image: Kevin Mazur] [Image: Dimitrios Kambouris] 11

[Image: Vogue] Celebrating 100Years Of Vogue

From the 11th of February to the 22nd May, the National Portrait Gallery is play- TheAudio guide to accompanythe exhibit givesinterviews and accounts of key inhost to ‘Vogue; ACentury of style” exhibition. Curated by Robin Muir,the exhibit fashion eras from industry veterans and professionals, giving social context to the begins in 2016 and is designed to make the visitor feel that they’re flicking through accompanying images on display. the magazine. Theexhibition is set up as aseries of small rooms, isolating the decades as an erainthemselves, and features anumber of iconic images from the Giventhat British Vogue launched in 1916, shortly following the suffragette move- publication whichbest represent the impact and importance of eachdecade. ment, it is of note that women playedkey roles in the publication, for example the first editor wasawoman, DorothyTodd, and the exhibition highlights and praises fe- Heavily emphasising the British Vogue Brand and its publication history,aselec- male photographers while providing adetailed overview of the magazine’sdevelop- tion of 100 key covers of the magazine are on showinchronological order,tracking ment and impact. iconic events in history that impacted fashion suchasthe women’smovement in World War2,atribute to Marilyn Monroe, and the Princess Diana Memorial issue. [Meg Painter]

The Return Of The Tracksuit

Years ago the tracksuit wassome- reinvented as aunisex brand, women are thing only associated with middle-aged also buying their relaxed sporty styles. sports coaches and PE teachers. Well, Forthose that aren’treadytotake their howtimes have changed. Just as we’ve sweats off yet, it looks like the laid-back almost edited JuicyCouture’sdesigner 90’stracksuit trend is here to stayafter tracksuit days from our fashion-disas- making recent appearances at New York ter memories, sportswear has recently Fall 16 Fashion Week by designers such made arevival. Thetracksuit is no long- as Baja East and Rihanna’sline, Fenty x er an item confined to the walls of your Puma. living room on aslobbish Sunday, but has made achic appearance on the cat- Celebrities are leading the waywhen it walks of manydesigner powerhouses. comes to taking the athletic-looking trend into an everydaystylish look. Followin Chloé wasone of the main designers Kylie Jenner’sfootsteps and get one in taking tracksuits from tacky to taste- every colour,socomfy you’ll never want ful for Spring 16, flaunting tracksuit to wear anything else. Vicky Pollard could tops overgirly,floral skirts, cleverly have had apoint with the matching track- fusing the line between womenswear suit; go big or go home. It’sastatement and menswear.However,full-bodied piece. Youcan’twear something as bra- matching tracksuits were also domi- zen as the tracksuit without some confi- nant, finished with striped sides in true dence, it’salook that can go either way [Image: Marcus Tondo] sportswear fashion. If you’re not feeling and maybe that’swhy we love it for it’s [Image:Marcus Tondo] braveenough to dive straight into the tackiness. There’sasense of danger when full on casual look then look to Paco choosing suchacontroversial outfit. Rabanne’sSpring 16 collection for inspiration and try pairing your tracksuit bottoms with asmart top, cashmere chunkyknit and your best designer bag for true sports Love it or hate it, the tracksuit is astyle we can no longer ignore, are youbrave luxe. enough to remove your tracksuit from the guilty secret of your hangoverwardrobe and join the trend? Thereturn of the tracksuit alludes to the idea of the move in womenswear towards gender-free dressing. We’vegender-neutralised and restructured our wardrobes into [Hannah Brown] staple, basic pieces and in doing so blurred the line between smart and casual. Cot- tweiler is one of the main brands doing this, originally amenswear brand but recently 12 Fast Forward Fashion

Fordecades we as consumers have been watching shows, admiring items, but hav- intimate appointments during NYFW and acombined menswear and womenswear ing to endure waiting months until we can make anypurchases. This year however AW16 showwould be held in September with the collection available straight there- sees the beginning of manychanges from some of the industry’sbiggest houses. The after. “see now, wear now” or “readytogo” concept allows buyers to literally watchashow and buy items they like immediately.Asconsumers become more techsavvy and a Fashion brands have argued the advantages, with Coachchief executive Victor Luis more accessible and rapid shopping experience is preferred, the fashion industry is stating howthe new initiative will “help cut down on the number of copies.. and put aiming to keep up with demands. With designers falling the power backinthe hands of the brands”. Theimme- like dominoes at fashion houses, individuals like Raf Si- “There is no more thinking diacyalso means collections are more relevant to the time mons have cited the rapid pace and creative exhaustion they’re being shown; rather than seeing aSpring Summer as reasons for resigning posts. With having to complete six time. And Idon’t want to do 2017 collection in 2016 that wouldn’tbeavailable until fresh and innovative collections annually the work builds, collections where I’m not months later when probably forgotten. In terns of profit, pressure increases and in turn creativity and quality suf- Henry Holland has maintained that he sawa“surge on his fers. Simons stated in an interview with CathyHoran, “The thinking.” -Raf Simons e-commerce platform” as parts of his collection wasin- problem is when youhaveonly one design team and six stantly available. On the other hand, the question remains collections, there is no more thinking time. And Idon’twant to do collections where whether manufacturers will be able to handle the demands of designers and deliver I’m not thinking.”Thus, designers are taking astand and aiming to find aperhaps the high end quality? As well as the possible dangerous impact on smaller brands as more timely and convenient manner to create, showcase and sell collections worth they could struggle to keep up with deadlines and with aconsumer focus what would the price and reputation, whilst giving in to the consumers desire of amore commer- happen to the role of the editors, press, and their exclusivity? cial and attainable method. No matter howyou think of the changes, it’sundeniable the consumer is paramount As part of his recent AW16 showMichael Kors included acapsule whichcould be and effects of amore digital world with social media has massively impacted an often bought instantly on his website. Burberry reported plans to combine menswear and stubborn and resistant fashion industry. womenswear and make collections available immediately after the showfrom Sep- tember 2016, whilst TomFord announced his AW16 collection would be shown in [Rukaiyah Dadhiwala] Fashion Week Highlights:Editors Picks

[Image: JasonLloyd Evans] [Image: InDigital] [Image: Ya nnis Vlamos] [Image: Jonathan Simkhai/Instagram]

Rodarte Holly Fulton Phillip Lim Jonathan Simkhai Agothic romance; stunning tiered lace, Tailoring, bold silhouettes and an array Military hues and amodern take on All about texture, long-line silhouettes gorgeous floral jewellery,and big fur of textures took centre stage. Dusky tweed; zips, folds and knots set the stunning in nude palettes from delicate coats took centre stage. pinks, metallic hues and amodern take tone for structured layering throughout lace and intricate knitwear to extrava- on paisley. gant furs and frills Online Editor -Rukaiyah Style Editor -Faye Style Editor -Emma Print Editor -Molly And the best of the rest...

[Image: InDigital] [Image: Kim WestonArnold] [Image: Monica Feudi] [Image: InDigital]

Mary Katrantzou Alexander McQueen Proenza Schouler Topshop Unique [Images: Jodie Collins] Film

Pride and Prejudice and Zombies: Is Jane Austen Spinning In Her Grave? [Image: Lionsgate]

It seems rather awaste of words to outline the plot of Burr Steers‘ new film Pride and that is conveyedis‘let them rot’, in more ways than one. Prejudice and Zombies,simply because this film is really nothing more or less than what it says on the tin: it is Pride and Prejudice with zombies inserted at opportune On apositive note, Lily James and Sam Riley give strong performances, both phys- moments. Theclimax of the film replaces the elopement of Lydia and Wickham with ically and verbally,asthe sparring Elizabeth and Darcy.Matt Smith is surprisingly kidnap and zombie hordes, but Ifound myself wishing that Steers had treated the funnyasthe bumbling Mr Collins and Sally Philips also brings comedytoher role as original text with far less reverence. Most noticeably though, the primary fault of the Mrs Bennet. Thetransformation of the character LadyCatherine de Bourgh to an eye- film is that it can’tdecide if it wants to be aromantic tale of 18th century courtship patchwearing, sword swinging Lena Hedley makes very little sense however,both in or azombie slasher flick. regards to the original text and to the plot of the film. It wasalso impossible to ignore the fact that Douglas Booth’shair would look more at home in aboyband than in a As someone wholovesboth Jane Austen and zombie films -not aphrase Iget to stately home. write very often -Ihad avague, and probably foolish, hope for Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. Iwanted it to work for the sake of the shear incongruity of the idea. Thequestion Iwas left with when Ileft the cinema was‘why’? Firstly,why did Iwaste Thefilm manages the drawing room scenes and polite conversation adequately,but an hour and ahalf of my life on this? And secondly,why wasthis film made in the first fails with the zombies. Steers does not seem to have grasped the fact that no one likes place? Did we learn nothing from Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter?Sure, it’sfun it when youmess with the established trope of the undead. Zombies shuffle and eat to watchElizabeth Bennet and Mr Darcy work out their sexual tension through hand brains, sometimes they run but they do not talk and they do not plan strategic attacks to hand combat, but Pride and Prejudice and Zombies really brings nothing new to on London. Instead of groaning, flesh eating corpses, the audience is forced to endure Jane Austen or to zombies. All Ican sayisthat Ihope Sense and Sensibility and Sea semi-decayed, yetstill chatty,aristocrats. Thefilm attempts to raise some questions Monsters is the period drama/horror mashup masterpiece we’re all waiting for. about class division; the richhide in their stately homes, while the poor are left to die and rise again. However,asthe protagonist belongs to the upper classes the message [Xa Rodger] TheOscars: Editor’s Predictions

It‘s that time again: Oscars season. Theseason where all the best films of the year are Ronan and Cate Blanchett praised for their acting in BBrooklynrooklyn pitted against one another in the awards ceremonytoend all awards ceremonies, a and Carol, this is acategory saturated with talent. Charlotte gathering set to celebrate the crème de la crème of the film industry and their achiev- Rampling receivedindie kudos for 45 Years,but her inflam- ments overthe past year.Aslong as they‘re white that is. Will Leo be overlooked yet atory comments about #OscarsSoWhite will surely have again? Will Jennifer Lawrence fall over? Will John Travolta tragically mispronounce dented her chances at awin. Jennifer Lawrence has been even more names? largely overlooked at the preceeding awards, so Iddoubt that she‘ll be leaving the Oscars with astatue. All will be revealed on Sunday28th, at the 88th AcademyAwards. But, for now, here Could win -Cate Blanchett are the editor‘s predictions. Winner -Brie Larson

Best Actor: Best Picture: In atough category,itlooks like the battle for the top spot will be between Matt This is acategory that is truly up for grabs, with all 8 films in Damon for TheMartian,and Leonardo DiCaprio for TheRevenant. Eddie Redmayne the running being worthyofrecognition. But one of them has looks unlikely to repeat last year‘s success, when he wonfor TheTheory of Everything, to win, and Ifor one don‘t envy the people having too make and both Brian Cranston and Michael Fassbender have taken abackseat awards-wise the choice in this category.I‘d really like Brooklyn to take so far this year -Leo has been clearing up at eachceremony, with Damon close be- the top spot, but in the end, both TheRevenant and The hind. Martian have been gathering awards left right and ceen- Could win -Matt Damon tre, and probably won‘t stop at the Oscars. Winner -Leonardo DiCaprio (at long last) Could win -The Martian Winner -The Revenant Best Actress: With Brie Larson being lauded the world overfor her role in Room,and both Saoirse [Hannah Tomes] HowToBeSingle: FarMore ProgressiveThanExpected [Image: Warner Bros Pictures] The trailer promiseedasex crazed, girl power, easy-to-watch chick flick. And, to be fair,ittottally was. But it wasanactually good sexcrazed, girl power, easy-to-watchh chickflick.

When Isat down to watch HowtoBeSingle Iwas expecting to be vaguely enter- “The main lesson ings; they are 100%, grade-A bullshit. tained: to laugh abit, ‘aww‘ afew times, leave the cinema chirpyand then promptly I’m tired of them, and after decades of forget everything that happened as it meerged into every other trashyfilm ever in my learnt here really is relentless socialisation Icould probably memory.But Iwas pleasantly surprised; I’m still kind of surprised now. Don’tget me about howtobesin- vom up gender stereotypes and confet- wrong, this is not the cleverest or most arrtsy or deepest film youwill ever see. But it’s ti. If we keep absorbing this crap where definitely above average. gle, howtodepend women are only ever finally happybe- cause they’ve ‘tied down’ aman then We meet whimsical but mildly annoyiing Alice (Dakota Johnson) taking a‘break’ on yourself and how thats what we’ll keep aiming for in life from her also abit dappy, also mildly annnoying boyfriend Josh (Nicholas Braun) be- to develop as an and,surprise surprise, its not actually a cause she wants to learn whoshe is on heerown. Moving to the big city Alice embarks recipe for alife well-lived. on awhirlwind, independent woman fucckfest aided and abetted by new BFF Robin individual.” (Rebel Wilson) and her Doctor sister Megg (Leslie Mann). We’realso swiftly introduced Ideally Iwant to see more films about to Lucy(Alison Brie) who’sclever as fuck but obsessed with finding love,and commit- women pursuing their dreams like Joy or excelling at their careers unapologetically ment-phobic-and-proud Tom(Anders Hoolm). At this point youthink youcan see the like, er maybe Meryl Streep in Devil Wears Prada but even that‘s astretch. Iwant trajectory of the plot; everyone will get some, everyone will have adeep emotional women like Jessica Jones on the big screen as muchastheir male counterparts and moment and then everyone will politely couple off into their relationships and socie- Iwant it to be so commonplace that no-one even notices. But actually,for agener- ty will be returned to blissful normal withh ation raised on disney princesses and Bridget Jones,the importance of afilm where no brash promiscuous women runningg “Wecan’t keep awoman doesn‘t end up with aman, and is stillhappy, cannot be underestimated. around expecting to have it all. absorbing this crap It’snot that this film is flawless -it’spretty whitewashed and completely heteronor- But this is where HowtoBeSingle stops where womenare mative;Johnson is at times quite dull to watch and Rebel Wilson’sRobin is indistin- conforming. It has happyendings that turnn guishable from her FatAmy in PitchPerfect,Janice in What to Expect When You’re out not to be happyendings at all, they’ree only ever finally Expecting or Daphne in AFew Best Men (although Ifind her funnyevery time). The just part of the manyups and downs of happywhen they’ve filming is clearly meant to be more artsy than itmaybe achieves and the characters life. It has women whogenuinely valuee are, as per,unrealistically beautiful and seem tohaveendless supplies of money.It their careers and their independence oveer ‘tied down’ aman. ” is not some giant radical leap for feminism. Butitdoes take female characters who relationships. It has men whoare are prii- should have been standard for years and make them the norm. And, on afinal note, mary care givers and proudly so. One ofthe main love interests is black. Women there’salso something about awoman gyratingonapacked dance floor,wearing do not automatically keel overwhen meendeclare their love.Not once are women adress with an LED arrowpointing at her crotch that is its ownwonderful kind of judged for having sex, or careers, or children, or all of the above.And, crucially,not empowering. everyone ends up in acouple. Themain lesson learnt here really is about howtobe single, howtodepend on yourself and hoowtodevelop as an individual. And its great. [Rachel King] Because although Iamatotal sucker foorcheap crappyromcoms with happyend- Dance Dance Exposé Presents Seven

Theannual Dance Exposé showcase is renowned for its slickand professional finish, and this year’sedition wasnodifferent. With seven distinct acts, eachcovering one of the seven deadly sins, this conceptual piece wasgripping from start to finish.

Theinitial impression waspowerful –with areally effective forest background set, representing the Garden of Eden, the combination of projection and installation was beautiful. Being the first production to be staged in the Refectory,Ihavenodoubt that there were technical difficulties, but none of these were obvious to the audience, and it actually worked incredibly well as avenue. Having the stage at alower level than the Riley Smith Hall meant that those in the front rowdidn’thavetostrain their necks, and the audience were able to get abroader view of all those onstage. Theonly draw- [Image: TyronLouw] backwith this wasthat the dances that included floor work were not as effective as they were in the Riley Smith, because they were slightly too low, so those towards the Phoenix Dance Theatre: backofthe auditorium struggled to see. Theopening of the showfeatured fourth year Grace Baylis as Eve, being taken overby Thrilling Contemporary the sins, symbolised by different coloured handkerchiefs. Thewhole companyjoined the stage in different coloured masks, with different colours for the different sins, and it wasavery strong initial image. Eachsection began with asolo dance backed by a Dance projection of the pre-recorded shadowofthe dancer.Occasionally this fell out of sync, but it wasaninnovative tool nonetheless, and it had agreat overall effect. It showed There aren’tmanycontemporary dance companies outside of London whomake the clear long-standing collaboration between Dance Exposé and Backstage Society, it to thirty-fiveyears. So, it’swith some credibility that Phoenix Dance Theatre can whoworked incredibly well together during this production.One particular solo of claim to be ‘the national contemporary dance companyofthe north’, and celebrate note wasSam Ellis’ solo. Tapdance is alwaysacrowd-pleaser,but no more so than in their thirty-fifth year in style with atriple bill, running for three nights at the West this. It wasunaccompanied, thus very exposed, but her technique wassostrong, that Yorkshire Playhouse. Part of the reason for Phoenix’slongevity is their ability to the rhythm and drive wastherefore created by the dance itself. draw avariety of audiences to aperformance art often found lacking in contempo- rary programmes. As the lights go down in the Playhouse’slargest auditorium, it’s “Seven” featured so muchcontent, and it waswell structured and organised so there clear that people of all ages, genders and backgrounds are eager to see what this wasaclear narrative arcflowing through the production. Our attention wasalso main- exciting, diverse companyhas to offer. tained throughout by the fact that the dances were kept short, so there wasnotime to fade out. Theonly element of the structure that felt alittle stilted wasthe use of Theevening’sopening piece, Melt, is athrilling studyinthe elements of fire and clips of music in between the dances –although this wasobviously necessary for the water and, despite the programme advising the audience not to ‘delvetoo hard outrageous number of quickchanges, it did get alittle repetitive with some songs, so to discoverwhat it’sabout’, there is aclear motif of disintegration throughout. they would have done better using different parts of the same song to not feel so static. Choreographer and Artistic Director Sharon Watson’sdecision to incorporate tra- pezes and ropes into the dance makes for an exciting visual spectacle. Thedanc- But what we all came for wasthe dance, and it did not disappoint. One of the most ers wrap themselves in the dangling ropes and, with effective pace, transfer their memorable pieces wasthe award-winning duet between LivKhan and Lynton Wil- weight to create ahuman pendulum. These scenes are at their most poignant when liams, entitled Ego. At moments they mirrored one another’smovements but in their performed as duets, the intertwining of dancers never seeming clumsy.Infact, slightly differing styles, perfectly reflecting the subject matter.The dynamic between it’sWatson’sskill for cross-choreographing the duets in the air with simultaneous them wasincredible, and all Iregretted wasthat there weren’tmore duets in the show. duets on the ground that creates the piece’sclimax, urging astunned audience to It wasareal shame that their phrases were broken with audience members shouting consider the weight our grounded partnerships can often hold. Melt’seffectiveness out, whichisparticularly difficult in asubtle, intimate dance like this, but Khan and is certainly enhanced by the music, all lifted from Wild Beasts’ debut album ‘Two Williams continued magnificently. Dancers’; it’seasy to see howthe music aids this touching piece. This piece stood out particularly,because generally the contemporary numbers were It’smusic that’satthe heart of the following piece, Undivided Loves, the latest not as hard-hitting as the high-energy hip-hop dances. This mostly wasasaresult of the offering from choreographer Kate Flatt, whichfeatures the jazz-tinged world music blank faces of some of the dancers in these numbers, and sometimes there wasalack of Adriano Adewale, whojoins the dancers onstage to perform additional percus- of consistencyinfacial expressions, so it wasunclear what the mood of the piece was. sion parts. Admittedly,the narrative of Undivided Lovesismore obvious, the piece It wassometimes unclear what the dance symbolised as aresult of this. being directly inspired by fiveShakespearian sonnets, yetFlatt’stranslation of the written word into movement is arefreshing one. We witness the classic themes This wasnever aproblem in the hip-hop numbers, particularly in one of the most of love,duplicity and betrayal through aseries of duets and solos, with astand- well receivedpieces of the night, Royals. It perfectly reflected the theme of “gluttony” out performance from Marie-Astrid Mence. Mence’sdream sequence is the piece’s with fabulously decadent costumes, and unlike some of the other numbers, they used most beautiful scene, with Mence, en-pointe, circling her loverashesleeps, the every corner of the stage in new ways. Thelighting used wasintensely dark purple and repeated patterns lulling the audience into true appreciation. gold, with strobe effects, so only the outlines of the dancers were visible. It all added to the over-the-top image, and the choreographyonly added further to this. Created by Until.With/Out.Enough really is afinale; Israeli choreographer Itzik Galili is Grace Baylis, LivKhan, Elisa Menendez and CiaraTully,itwas obvious to anyone that known for his deft explorations of the mind’sinterior spaces, and ensemble sec- they had had so muchfun choreographing and performing it. However,aslightly dis- tions that see dancers fleeing from the visually jarring huddle at centre stage is a appointing number again followed this, whichwas not together and the choreography moving reminder of the transience of thought. There are moments of confusion – wasuninteresting in comparison to the creativity of Royals. the energy is cut suddenly by the arrivalofasingle white balloon, walked slowly across the stage –but these generally add to the fray whichGalili creates. Energy, Nearly every dance deserves recognition, because there were so manyhard-hitting, intimacyand tension prevail in this compelling conclusion. powerful numbers. Although there were obviously some weaker dances, the overall ef- fect wassostrong that these were forgotten about. Thefourth year dancers deservepar- Phoenix Dance Theatre complete an evening that is, at heart, asuccessful show- ticular recognition, because their contribution wasobvious throughout every dance, case. But it is testament to the company’scommitment to the highest standards of and they really will be aloss to the society.Exposé and Backstage have yetagain dance as well grassroots access to the arts, that tonight’sperformance wasnot just delivered the goods, and it wasagreat evening for all. ashowcase of their ownwork, but of the capabilities of independent arts organisa- tions all overthe North. [FreyaParr] [Will Reece-Arnold] TG Take On Love and Information [Image: Devon Handley]

Theatre Group made abold move in taking on Caryl Churchill’s Love and Informa- sighing that ‘she’sbeautiful… she understands me’, only for his friend to point out that tion.With overahundred characters and reportedly more than sixty individual scenes he’stalking about avirtual character and not an actual woman, the audience laughed and no real discernable narrative,it’snot the most accessible text to put on stage, and –but it hit just the right note between being funnyand also telling of our modern well, it can result in acase of information overload. infatuation with technology,perhaps overreal human connection.

Eachsmall scene or vignette offers asnap shot of human nature and human life, Some slightly awkward slowdancing aside, the cast were all very convincingg in where love and information are constantly merging and clashing. Scenes vary from eachoftheir flash roles, and whilst there wasatendencyfor some of the characteers to acouple struggling to remember the key points and memories of their affair,toone blend together when playedbythe same actor,its fairly understandable in aplaay with woman becoming emotional when witnessing an earthquake in the news while the over100 of them anyway,and some very nifty and quickcostume changess helped man sat next her remains distant and desensitized. Toomuchinformation, too little the audience differentiate. It would be almost pointless to try and isolate any of the love.Churchill spirals through all walks of life and all sorts of bizarre scenarios with a cast to comment on: all of them were very strong and almost every singglemember dizzying speed, but the message from TG is clear; information, often overwhelming, wasatone point alone on stage, holding their own. TheBanham proved to be aper- can only be softened and made bearable by love and support from others. fect venue, the small stage aperfectly neutral, intimate space that theyy transformed with the simple addition of tables and chairs, blankets and sheets whhen the scenes Thedisjointed nature of the playand often-obscure meaning could have presented required that extrabit of fleshing out. Thesound clips playedoversscene transitions, achallenge, but Theatre Group stayatop of all of this in their production. Thequick varying from the sound of human breathing to instantly recognisabblesound bites like fire scenes were smoothly executed and the ensemble cast kept the energy going the Twentieth Century Foxopening theme, helped add to the universal themes of the through all of them, making sure that there wasnever ascene that dropped the pace play. Love and Information wasasmall production, and with onnly ten cast members or turned the audience off. It wasalso frequently funny: ascene where aman impress- could have been achallenge, but director Charlotte Everest andthe rest of the team es his date with the word for ‘table’ in numerous languages elicited alot of laughter delivered aperfectly executed quirkypiece of contemporary theatre. from the audience, and in other places the humour wasdeftly undercut by the more central themes of the play. When aman proclaimed he’dfound the love of his life, [Heather Nash] Success forFirst Open House Exhibitiion

Thebackstreets of the student inhabited Hyde Park provides the ideal setting for the 3D-representations of fantastical approaches to everydaysituations and interactions, first Open House Exhibitions event. Astudent run, hosted and exhibited art showfrom creating asurreal image of normal instances. four artists, three from our very ownLeeds University,Megan Willis, Freddie Hill and Gev Barton and from City and Guild college in London, Annie Fiddian-Green. Forms, Theevent organiser,Robin Brignall, spokkeabout the exhibition and what is coming Figures and Fantasy wasanexciting opening to anew platform for students to show next for Open House Exhibitions: “Primaarily Ijust wanted to offer aspace for people their work in an informal space, breaking the limits of atypical gallery. to showtheir work in an alternative art space where youcan break the rules of normal gallery showing. Even if its just friennds now, aplace where students can approach From 4pm until 10pm, abasement room on Regent Park Terrace wasopen to the me and showmetheir work, and thhen from there Ican formulate acollection. That’s public to view the work of these local, up-and-coming artists. Thesoundtracktothe exactly what Idid for Forms, Figures and Fantasy.Icontacted about ten artists in event wasprovided by DJs from the Leeds-based, student run nights Nørd and Loop Leeds, asked to see examples of their best work or just pieces they would be happyto Hole. Peers and friends came to soak up the artsy vibes, have afew drinks and share exhibit, and from there, came upwith the theme. Theaim is to unite all these artists ideas. together so they themselves can contact other artists and eventually everyone could put on their ownshows -build acommunity where everyone can work together and Freddie Hill (studying graphic design at University of Leeds) displayedhand painted bounce off eachothers creeativity.“ works fed through digital software, creating humorous and characterful images. An- nie Fiddian-Green, whostudies Fine Art at City and Guild in London, wasinspired This exciting student forum is still in its infancy, the anti-institutional attitude pro- by the album covers of Jimi Hendrix and the band Love,depicted figurative work as moted by Brignall leaves muchroom for creativity in the future. If youwould like to she prefers to work from life, using colour and bold lines. This created an explosive get involved, or wouldlike to find out more about what events are on next, contact aesthetic with agraphic element. Work from Fine Art student, Gev Barton, merged Open House Exhibiitions via their Facebook page. people with the subconscious to evoke asense memory and the surreal. Megan Wil- lis, another Fine Art student, displayedher work from aproject in whichshe created [Georgie Parkinsson] VideoGames TV

[Image: HBO] Vinyl: It’s Only

[Image: Firaxis] Rock &Roll

When it wasannounced that HBO would be bringing Vinyl –the brainchild of MickJagger and Martin Scorsese –toour screens this February,the blo- X-COM2:How the gosphere went into meltdown. Vinyl tells the story of Richie Finestra, played by BobbyCannavale, a1970s record executive,struggling to keep his label afloat in the corrupt and competitive world of the New York music industry. As the product of Scorsese, the director of block-busting films suchasThe Warwas Lost Wolf of Wall Street and Taxi Driver,and Jagger,averitable giant of rockand roll and industry legend, it wasset to be asensation.

However,despite the hype, the ratings were considerably underwhelming. In preparationfor XCOM 2,Iwentbackto changethe pace ofcombat;ifanything, the TheIndependent reported that the show“fell flat”, as only 764,000 viewers 2012’s XCOM:Enemy Unknown to trythe tactical combat is nowfasterpaced than tuned in, as opposed to the 2.3 million that were drawntoHBO by True apparentlycanonical ‘Impossible’ difficulty ever,withmanymissionsbeingtimed based Detective.Sowhy were these figures so disappointing? Thesame Independ- onemore time.Unsurprisingly,the first on avarietyofobjectives. This hasbeena ent article suggested that this mayhavebeen due to timing, as Vinyl aired at missionended howitusually does.Byturn divisive move on behalf of developers Firaxis, the same time as the mid-season premiere of TheWalking Dead on AMC. Yet five, RookieHarry Turner, facedwiththe butI’vepersonallybeenenjoyingthe high- the answer maylie elsewhere: the Guardian somewhat critically labelled the deaths of histhree comrades at thehands risk natureofthe timedmissionsinXCOM showas“culture porn”, due to its depiction of the high-octane sex-drugs- of thealiens, panics.The random number 2. Procedurallygeneratedmapsand alarge and-rock-n-roll lifestyle. generatordecrees that this requires himto number of missiontypes meansthat not only runout into theopen, andimmediately get does thegameplaystayfresh,but it prevents Thefirst episode hits hard from the off, encompassing allthe drama that can gunned down by overwatch fire. I’ve lost the theplayerfrom usingthe same old rinse-and- be expected from this setting; private jets, nervous breakdowns, and even mission. Buthey,that’s XCOM. repeat strategies. To balance this, combat has murder.Scorsese and Jagger have made sure to tickevery box in bringing been mademarginallymoreforgiving, with us agritty yetlavish account of the era. However,itseems that this intensity It comesasno surprise that Enemy soldiers beingfar more likely to be injured comes at the expense of subtlety.Inascene where “sandwichgirl” Jaime Unknown’ssequelisbuilt on these failures. rather than killed outright (though thelatteris Vine, playedbyJuno Temple, dishes out drugs from her desk drawer to a XCOM 2 takesplace twenty yearsafter the still very much apossibility). young industry executive playedbyJackQuaid, it is almost painfully obvious wartodefendthe EarthinXCOM:Enemy what kind of industry setting Scorsese and Jagger are trying to depict. Unknown,and yes, it’s aworld in which the The game is farfrom perfect, though. Commander -read: theplayer-lostthe war. Many of thebugsand glitchespresent in the TheGuardian also criticises Vinyl for its “caricatures” of real-life artists such Having won, probably becauseofsoldiers previous game arenot just present in XCOM as Led Zeppelin’sRobert Plant, whoispainted as akind of one-dimensional like Harry Turner,the aliens proceedtoset 2,but have been exacerbated.Bepreparedfor rocker stereotype, as well as the fact that the showseems to have tried to up shop as humanity’s shadowyoverlords, awkwardcamera-hangs, line-of-sight issues, tack-on racial issues through the storyline of “Little” JimmyLittle, ablack andit’suptothe remains of XCOM to stop aliens shooting through walls, andcoverthat blues singer being forced to perform disco in order to become abig industry them andtakebackwhat’s left of theEarth. explodes fornoreason. It will be frustrating artist. Theirfirststep? Risk everythingonrescuing at times, anduntil thegameisbetterpatched, theCommander, when they’rethe reason Irecommend againstplaying on Ironman However,there is no denying that the showbrings an exciting and very they lost thewar in thefirstplace.Whatcould mode,where youcan’t reload earliersave watchable story.The fact that Vinyl wasco-created by one of the Rolling possibly go wrongthistimearound? games. Stones (and incidentally,stars his son, James Jagger) seems to provide an air of authenticity,and with it asense of reliability,since we can assume that Having nowplayedthrough almost allofthe Idorecommend youplayitright now, Jagger’sinsight is as good as, if not better than anyonthe true nature of the game,Ican confirm: lots cangowrong.It’sstill however. Dice will be rolled,soldierswill die, 1970s music scene, even if it has been exaggerated for audience entertain- XCOM,and soldiers dieleftand right to the andattimesyou’llwanttotearyourhairout ment. wide varietyofalien types andabilities you’re alloveragain.But then,asthe oldsayinggoes: up against. Butdamn, if it isn’tenjoyable. that’s XCOM.Sogoodluck, Commander,the Nonetheless, Vinyl provides just what youwould expect of arock-and-roll XCOM 2 delivers aslick,refinedversion of time hascometoreclaim ourworld. drama, catapulting its viewers at high velocity through the extreme highs and thegameplayfrom EnemyUnknown,with spiralling lows of avolatile and corrupt industry; we can only wait and see more options,customisation,strategiesand [JohnCraige] if the quality of the storyline will reflect the intensity with whichitistold. big, badass weaponry.Thisdepth doesn’t [Fiona Willmott] TV

[Image: BBC] Dickensian: TooGreat An Expectation?

Ican’t help butimagine what it must have been like to have satinonthe meeting thethe real killer of Jacob Marleywas in episodeseventeen,ithad lost itssuspense. where it wasdecided to throwalmostall of CharlesDickens’characterstogetherand create an EastEnders whodunit stylesoapopera. This is exactly what has preoccupied With each instalmentsuppliedtwice aweekintwo measlyhalfhourdoses,Icouldn’t BBCOne forthe past fewmonths, with scriptwriter Tony Jordan(oneofthe minds have been theonlyone left thinking please, sir,can we have some more?The twenty behindacertain London basedserialthat mayormay not have been previously chapterscould have easily been condensedintoten weekly episodes;Idoubt many mentioned) ladenwiththe task of bringing iconic Dickenscharactersand storylines of theoriginal viewers from December stayed around to watchthe greatlyanticipated to amodern audience. wedding(or abandoned wedding) this farintoFebruary.

Thefirstepisodeaired on Boxing Day, filledwithgreatpromiseand lashings of We were left hangingonuntilthe finalthrowsofthe last episodetowitness the Christmasun-cheer. The fog-filledstreets of VictorianLondon were theperfect jilted bridewho wouldsoonbecomethe wealthywitchofSatis House.Leftscreaming authentichomefor theprequel to some of Dickens’ best work,withastar studded andsobbing in herwedding dress, youcan almostsee thecobwebs form around her cast to provide some very thoughtfuland wittylineone liners.Creating such ascript at theextravagantdinnertable.It’shardtoimaginethatthe vivacious Amelia will is an endeavourthat shouldn’tbeoverlooked, as Jordan’sscope of theDickensian become theemotionless Miss Havisham, butinescapably shewill; theseriesisset worldwithits intricate detailsisamarvel in itself,and that’s before applauding the nottochangethe fate of thecharacters, buttoseehow they gotthere.And perhaps impressive character development of not only themajor characters,but especially that’s thesourceofenjoyment, to imagine theformer livesofthe namesweknowand thoseinmoreminor roles. PaulineCollins is impressive as MrsGamp, harbouring love so well. some of themorehumorousscenarios,constantlyhunting forher next beverage – preferably onewithwithatippleofgin. As theArtfulDodgerleads away averyfamiliar andunassumingorphan, expertly castasthe adorableLeonardoDickens,wealreadysee thepossibility of asequel, So far, so good.But with each weekintroducingavarietyofnew characters from somethingwhich is yettobeconfirmedordeniedbythe BBC. Although theoutcome allendsofthe Dickensbookshelf,it’seasytoget mixedupinwho’s whoinstead of of thecharactersisinevitablewithin thepages of Dickens, thefinale is just the focusing on theirpartinthe programme. Characters oftendropoff thescene to make beginning to anew worldofliterarypossibility. wayfor thenew,and withoutthe BBCsupplyinga‘handycheatsguide’ofnames and facesitwould havebeeneasytobecompletely lost into confusion. Becauseofthis, [EmmaBowden] plotsoften became undetected anduninteresting. By thetimewediscoveredwho ThePeoplev.OJSimpson:Not Whodunit,but Hedunit

It is apparentafter thefirstepisodeofFox’snew crimedrama American CrimeStory: ingremindedofthe numerous casesofunarmed people of colour killed at thehands ThePeople v. OJ Simpson that theaudienceisdefinitely supposed to be on theside of police officersinthe past fewyears.AsSterlingK.Brown’s character Christopher of The People;Simpson is clearlynot theprotagonist. AfterOJ’sex-wife andher new Darden so eloquentlyputsit: ‘it’sfunny howmanyblack folk getshot in theback partnerare murdered,Simpson becomesthe primesuspect in amurder investigation whilechargingtowards police officers’. This statement brings to mind theshooting of that will eventually lead to arguably themostcontroversial‘not guilty’verdictsofall unarmedblack teenager Mike Brownin2014who wasshot 6times by apoliceofficer time. forthe apparent theftofsomeskittles; theofficerwho killed himwas suspendedwith payand notindicted. Americathe beautiful, eh? Cuba GoodingJr. givesaterrific performance as theeponymous character,leaving theaudience uncomfortable,suspicious andshiftingintheir seats. DavidSchwimmer BecauseGoodingJr. givessuchagood performance,heportraysSimpson as asome- makesafantasticreturntothe limelight as OJ’sdefence attorney andconfidante Rob- what sympatheticman;there aremoments in whichthe question ‘Did he really do it?’ ertKardashian(yes, thesameKardashian),giving astellar performance as aman who comestomind. Of course,Simpson wasaman whohad had thepolicecalled8times refusestobelieve that hisclosestfriendiscapableofsuchanact. AmericanHorror on himbyhis ex-wifeconcerningabusivebehaviour towardsher,and whoiscurrently Story’s SarahPaulson steals theshow, however, as head prosecutionattorneyMarcia servinga33-year sentence for10chargesincluding kidnapping andassault,soit’snot Clark, astrongwoman fixated on delivering thesentence Simpson deserves.Talentis aquestionofdid he do it,it’saquestionofhow didheget away withit? This series is not sparse. notawhodunit, it’s ahedunit.

The first episodeopens withthe infamous footageofthe brutal beatingofRodney ThePeople v. OJ Simpson is certaintodeliver in thecomingepisodes.The fantastic King at thehands of severalLAPDofficers in 1991,followedbyamontage of theLA castissuretobeontop form andthe builduptothe infamous trialissuretobethrill- Riotsthat came about as aresultofthe mistreatmentofthispersonofcolour.From ing, butthe commentary on theflawed American justicesystemthat will come is sure theoffset, youare awarethat this will be aseriesabout much morethanOJSimpson. to be farmoregripping. The series’commentaryonpolicetreatmentofpeople of colour is just as applicable to 2016asitistothe 90ssetting.It’snear-impossible to watchthe show without be- [Charlie Green] Books [Image: Netflix] Love:Enough To RoaldDahl: The Melt Your Heart Real BFG

CreatedbyJuddApatow, Love is asatirical,quirky, imperfectrepresentation ofmodern- RoaldDahlwas aliterarymagician, celebrated forhis children’s classics dayrelationships.Perhaps in some ways comparable anotherNetflixoriginal, Master of anddark-humoured shortstories foradults. Hisbooks have become timeless None starring Aziz Ansari, it seekstocreate an authentic, glamour-free portrayaloflove additionstobookshelvesthe worldover, treasured by children andadultsalike. in the21stcentury.Apatowisknown forhis satiricalhumour, lack of censureand long- As thecentenary of Dahl’s birth, 2016isset to be ajam-packedcelebration winded storylines,and perhapsNetflixoffershim theultimatespace tobeabletobring ofall things Dahl:embark on avoyage through ‘The WondercrumpWorld of this to hisaudiences. RoaldDahl’atthe Southbank Centre; enhance your vocabulary withThe Oxford RoaldDahlDictionary; andjointhe partyonRoald Dahl Day(September13th), The premiseofthe show seemedalittletoo predictabletomeatfirst;two polar pitchedas“thebiggest ever global celebrationofRoald Dahl’s birthday”by opposite characters gettogetherinanunlikelyturnofeventsand we arethere to witness organisers. theunravelling of theirromance.And yet, theseriessurprised me.Not only do the characters only meet at theend of thefirst40+ minute episode–they don’tevenspend Born in Llandaff, Wales, to Norwegianparents,Dahl’schildhood wouldlater much time together during thecourseofthe season. In fact,the audience is invited colourhis fictional worlds:his love of chocolatewas thepremise for Charlieand to seetheir livesdevelop separately,ina‘onestepforward,two stepsback’ manner, theChocolateFactory;his yearsofmiseryatStPeter’s boarding school were making us wonder whethertheywill enduptogether, of whethertheyare actually not exposedinBoy: TalesofChildhood.Beforehebecameasuccessful children’s destinedfor Love atall. author,Dahlservedasafighterpilot with theRoyal AirForce in theSecond WorldWar;havingattainedfive aerial victoriesthroughout hiswartime career, GillianJacobs’ Mickey seemstobeanextension of her Community character,Britta. he qualified as aflying ace. With theexception of Shot Down Over Libya,an Sheisabit of atrainwreck, goingfrom hate-sex withher coke-addict ex-boyfriend to anecdotaltaleabout histimeinthe RAF, Dahl didnot explicitly writeabout taking toomanydrugs anddriving around in hercar.She is on apathofself-destruction hismilitary exploits,although implicit referencesplaying upon stereotypes of anditisunclear why, butyet beneathall that sheiscaring,kind, andunabletogiveup military personnel canbeseeninanumberofhischaracters, notably Miss hersearchfor happiness. Trunchbull from Matilda.

Gus(played by Paul Rust) is ageeky typeaspiringwriterwho worksasanon-settutor Dahl’s humour,wit andwordplayworkharmoniously, creating storieswith butyet stillhopefultokickstart hiscareerasascreenwriter.Atthe startofthe season, universal appeal.Asachild,myfatherreadmeTheEnormousCrocodile on an he is dumped by hislong-term girlfrienddue to himbeing “too nice”and hestruggles to almostweeklybasis atalocal café;years later, it remainsastory that makesme getoverthe breakup. We almostbegin to seehim as the typical nice-guy,the antithesis smile. Thefirststory to be illustratedbyQuentin Blake, TheEnormousCrocodile to Jacobs’Mickey–and yetheisn’t quitesoperfect. sets itself apartfrom otherDahlbooks.The protagonististhe eponymous Enormous Crocodilewho trieshis hand –orrather, tail –atbeing apicnicbench, Neitherofthe characters arethe perfectmodelsof‘good’or‘bad’ –theyare asee-saw andaseatonamerry-go-round in hisdesperateattempt tofind a simultaneously likeable andunlikeable,and ouropinion of them changesasthe show “nicejuicy little child” forhis lunch, andgetshis comeuppance in ahilarious, goes on.Theyseemreal, andtheir lack of a‘meet-cute’firstencounteremphasizesthis. though child-like,way.Dahl’s abilitytonot just tell storiesbut show them,from achild’s perspective of theworld,isarguably what makeshis talessoendearing. Their first meetinghappens afterasleepless, guiltand drug/alcohol fillednight,ina localcornershop. Mickey wantscoffeeand cigarettes butisunabletopay forthem. Gus Whilst Dahl’s ownoriginalstories cannot be faulted, hismastery of rhyme offers to pay, andweare unsurewhether he does this out of thekindnessofhis heartor andability to create side-splitting humour makes Revolting Rhymes arguably becauseheisunabletocarry on watchingthe argument between herand thecashier. oneofhis best,though lesser-known, works. RevoltingRhymes is acollection They then proceedtospend theday together hot-boxing hercar anddriving around offairytales,reworkedintoverse,and complete with alternative–and entirely LA.There is no straightforwardattractionorromanticallusions –but it still worksdue unpredictable–endings:inshort,hilarious parodieswhich outshinethe happily to thechemistry of thetwo actors. This sets thetonefor therestofthe show –aquirky, ever afternonsenseofthe traditional fairytaleworld.Ofthe sixstories,‘Little mismatched setofcharismaticcharactersjustgetting by in LA.Whatthe series doesn’t RedRiding Hood andthe Wolf’is, hands-down, my favourite. Iremember achieveinits storyline, it makesupfor in asense of humour andlackofpretense. Now performing itwithafriendinprimaryschool, in fitsofgiggles overthe ending. that thewhole season is on Netflix,you have yetanotherexcusetospend your weekend Spoiler:Red Riding Hood –infeministform–“whipsapistolfrom herknickers”, shamelesslybinge-watchingthe show. shoots thewolfand makesoff with awolfskin coat.Dahl’smagiccomes under many guises,and theretruly isnobettertimetorediscoverit. [Sofia Dedyukhina] [Rosemary Maher] Food

[Image: Taste of Leeds] Review:It’sTurtleBay AllThe WayDown

February might be theshortest monthofthe year,but thewindand rain seem never- warming. Perhaps theonlynegativethingwecould findwas their lack of choice for ending,and theglowingwindows of thenew Turtle Bayrestaurantwere awelcome vegetarians; although theBridgetownDoubles we hadwereabsolutelytodie for, it sightthatpromised warmth andshelter.And they did not disappoint;the mismatched wouldhavebeennicefor theretobeafew more veggie optionswhich arealwaysin interior andreggae musicwelcomesyou like an oldfriend. We began ourevening high demandinLeeds.For ourmains we orderedCurry Goat andthe juicy marinated with agenerousintroductiontorum tasting, sampling some deliciousagedrum,and BBQPorkBelly,but in hindsight we should have sought guidance on whichdishes then swiftlymovedtococktails. were particularly spicy, as theCurry Goat wasenough to set themouthonfire,and yetthe meat wasfar tootendertostopeating. OurdessertsofLemon andLimeTart Thebeach shackbar in themiddleofthe restaurantismannedbyknowledgeable andthe Dark ChocolateBrownie,asrecommended by ourwaiter, were both melt-in- bartenders,whose free-pouringaddstothelaid-back atmosphere. Forrum connois- the-mouth, andrichenough to leaveuscompletely satisfied. seursthere’sanextensive menu of rumfromacrossthe West Indies. The real starsof theshowhowever arethe rumcocktails.TurtleBay boasts aselection of original reci- Thewaiters were incredibly friendly,and were polite andadaptable when adish pes like therefreshing watermelon MarleyMojito, withmanydrinksalsoconcocted provedtoo spicyonthe tablebesideours, withthe customersbeing instantlyoffered from homemadeingredients, like theirfierygingerbeer. Every cocktail we triedwas areplacement dish. betterthanthe last,and thebartenderswere only toohappy to change therecipeas perour requests. Having no authoritytocallitauthentic,Ican still attest to it beingdelightfuland unusual forthe Leedsdiningscene.The dishesare certainlynot forthe faint-hearted, Forstarterswedecided not to straytoo farintothe unknownand optedfor the so spice-hatersapproachwithcaution.But whocan resist thetender meat, chilled foodie staple,pulledpork. To oursurprise, theporkwasn’tdrenchedinsauce like atmosphere,and cocktails that good,especiallywhen they’re2-for-1 everyday until we’veall come to expect,itwas tenderand made withthe perfectblend of season- 7pmand 10pm-1:30am. ing, giving it aspicy andaromatickick.The accompanying mango andsquashsalad wasrefreshing andcleansedthe pallet,preparing us forthe next tastesensation on [Anastasia Kennedy] themenu. We then sampledthe Bridgetown Doubles: frieddumplings served with curriedchickpeas. Somethingabout thesedumplings wasinstantly comfortingand

[Image: Patsy O’Neill] TheWell-FedStudent: Smoothie Bowls

Smoothie bowlsare oneofmyfavourite breakfasts:they’re basicallylikeafruityice cream/soup.theytaste like adessert butyou don’tget thesickfeeling that comesafter abowl of actual ice cream, andtheyare full of goodness togiveyou amorningglow. If I’mhonest, though,smoothiebowlsare my go-tobreakfastfor when I’m hungover –theyare cold andrefreshing, andyou feel like youare filling yourself withvitamins to counteractall thetoxinsinyourbloodstream.

Youmight haveseensmoothiebowls before,possibly on Instagram,wheretheyare afavourite of healthfoodbloggers. Youcan make them in allkinds of exciting colours dependingonwhatyou putinthem, andtop them with fruitand varioussuper foods to makethemlooklikeaworkofart –they’reguaranteedtorakeinthe likes. They tastegreatontheir own, butIusually leavesomebananaslicestoput on top, and Toppingsuggestions sprinkle on some nuts,seeds,dried fruitand sometimessomegranola if Ihavesome. Asprinkleofnutsand seeds. More fruit; frozen or freshberries,slicedkiwi,satsumasegments. Here is mybudget-friendly smoothie bowl recipe,complete withtwo portions of Driedfruit eg.Raisins,dried apricots, mango or goji berries. fruit, andtopping suggestions below. 70+% cocoadarkchocolate,chopped (containsantioxidantsand is mildlycaffeinated), or even cacaonibs(bits of theraw cocoabean–tasteslikeincredibly dark chocolate). Ingredients Anotherspoonfulofnut butter (for extraproteinand good fats). 1large banana Coconut flakesordesiccatedcoconut. ¾mug of frozen berries Granola/muesli. 1tablespoonofpeanutbutter/almond butter ¼mug of liquid –Iwould usuallygofor almond milk or coconut milk,but juice, Additionalsmoothiebowlingredients coconut water, cowmilkorevenjustwater canworkwelltoo. Once you’ve gained some confidence in smoothie bowl construction,you mightwant to spiceitupabit.Try adding ateaspoonofground cinnamonorginger, or adropof Instructions vanillaessence.Ifyou want to investina‘superfood’ powder,Iwould recommenda [1]Put ¾ofthe bananainablender (savingaquarter to have on top),and addthe tablespoon of hemp proteinpowder foranatural proteinboost,acaiberry powder for frozen berries, nutbutterand liquid.Itwill blendupbetterifyou ensure that the itsdensity in vitamins andantioxidants, or lucuma powder forits subtly sweetflavour banana is nearestthe blade. andhighironand fibre content.You canget thesefrom healthfoodshops in Leeds [2]Blend! such as Millie’s or OutofthisWorld,oronlinefromAmazon. [3]Pourintoabowland artfully placeslicesofthe remainingquarter of banana on top, alongwithyourother toppingchoices… [PatsyO’Neill] 22 Columns It Happened In aWetherspoons

aprocess that I’ll probably have to do overand over wind. It happened in aWetherspoons on Mathew Street again. I’ve been doing it since the dayIcame out to in Liverpool, before afancyFathers’ Daymeal in ares- myself when Iwas about 13, and I’ll probably have to taurant across the road. I’ddecided it wasfinally time do it until the dayIdie. And that’snot abad thing, it’s about an hour before and Ijust knew Ihad to do it and I the most empowering feeling in the world, but Ican still had my friends messaging me words of encouragement write about the few days when it all became real. as it happened.

Ifirst realised when Iwas ateenager.Iwent to Catho- It’scliché, but my parents really are my biggest inspi- lic School. Ilovedschool, Ihad plenty of friends and I ration. They’ve lovedeachother since they met 48 years washappy, if not that confident in myself. This, howev- ago. They’re an inter-racial couple that met in the 60s. er,was aschool where even though most people were When Icame out to them, Irealised that they knew ex- open-minded -staff and students -old ideas were so actly what it waslike to struggle for love.The struggles institutionalised that we were taught about sex and rela- that they went through backthen –funnylooks on the tionships as part of our RE classes. We were taught that street as they walked hand-in-hand, finding it difficult the rhythm method wasjust as good as stickin’ some- to tell their parents, struggling to prove that their love thing on the end of it— just to give youaflavour of wasjust as valid as anyone else’s–are the same strug- some of the ridiculousness. So, Inever had anypeople gles Iface as their gayson today. Forme, being mixed like me to look up to and the few gaypeople Iknew race is as important as part of my identity as being gay didn’thaveaneasy time, as youcould imagine. is. Ialreadyknew what it waslike for something Ihave So abit about me: I’m in final year,Ispeak French, no control over-mybackground and the shade of my I’m from Merseyside, Ithink that the Obamas should Ifinally plucked up the courage mid-way through a skin –tobethe first thing that aplayground bully or a be everybody’srelationship goals, Ilove morning walks drunken argument with twoofmybest friends on holi- bigot would go for.Ialreadyknewthe importance of through the park, Ican be high-maintenance one day, day: the power of words said in haste. embracing whoyou are. My parents prepared me well. so laid backIcould fall overthe next, and I’m gay. Iknew Iwanted to tell my parents ASAP,whichisa [Jamie Ali] Now, writing acoming out story is apretty daunting difficult moment for anybody. Forme, there wasno task, because it’snot confined to just one moment, it’s pomp, no ceremony, no rainbowflags floating in the Why Representation Matters

queer,and don’thavethe greatest mental health. As it is blackcharacter and saythat is diversity.All too often LGBT history month, Ithink it is important to talk about we see this, there are one-dimensional characters de- howrepresentation can help young people grappling fined by their sexuality or race –and yes, being gayis with their sexuality. an important characteristic of whoIam, but there is so muchmore to me. We growupinasociety that tells us that it is normal to be straight, that no-one would ever choose to be gay, Not being represented is aform of oppression; it might that homosexuality is wrong. Youcannot overstate the not be as insidious as openly derogatory or hateful com- impact that these beliefs and attitudes have –and one ments. It really hurts though and it says that youare not of the best ways to challenge and counter these, in my valuable, that youare deviant, that youdon’tdeserve opinion, is through representation. ahappyending. But we are valuable, and we’re not deviant, and we deserveour ownlove stories and our Ifeel lucky that in my high school Ialwayssaw same- ownhappyendings. We deservetobelovedand most sex relationships and that there were people Icould talk importantly we deservetobeseen. to whoIknew wouldn’tjudge. But, it wasstill not an easy thing to go through and it took years for me to be All Iwant is adiverse representation of queer women completely okaywith it. One of the ways Iworked my on TV.Iwant to see disabled queer women, trans wom- Seeing yourself accurately and fairly represented when waythrough it wasthrough devouring every TV show en, queer women of colour.Iwant to see adiversity of youturn on TV or read abook is an unacknowledged or film that centred around lesbian characters – Skins, gender expressions and sexual preferences. Iwant this privilege –and it’ssoimportant. Pretty Little Liars, TheLword, Imagine Me &You –I for me, but more than that Iwant that for young queer watched them all, regardless of howawful they became kids –because people deservetoknowthat they fit in Theimportance of this is often swept under the carpet (looking at youhere, Glee). As Ihavesaid Iamlucky,a and that they’re okayand ‘normal’. Is that too muchto or it’streated as an added bonus, but Iwould argue that lot of whoIamwas represented, particularly as Iidenti- ask? it is fundamental. fy as femme, but all the characters came out of the same cookie cutter following the tragic trope that all lesbians [Emma Healey] Iwrite this as arelatively privileged person –Iam in the media face (spoiler: they all die). white, Iliveinthe UK, Igotoagreat university,Ihave asupportive family.However,Iam also awoman, and It’snot enough to just have alesbian character or a 23

Partying With Anxiety

planning the night out in your head for the hundredth of variables out of one’scontrol, alot of new social in- time. teractions and ahuge amount of stimuli. Combine this with the influence of alcohol, and the results can be Athousand ‘What ifs?’ are making your head implode. similar to those hinted at in the sections above.This What if you’re too hungoverand go through an hour of might include catastrophizing, health anxiety,nausea, the next daybelow100% productive capacity,oryou panic attacks and ageneralised inability to enjoythe don’tperform to your highest standard at the gym. You’ll present.* probably fail your exams, or gain weight, or waste your life awaynever achieving anything. And besides, do Though mental health problems on the whole affect youreally have the money? What if it’snot worth it? 1in4ofusduring our lifetime, the counterproductive, ‘hush-hush’ atmosphere surrounding the topic means Better keep it to yourself, though; they probably won’t we often find it hard to share these issues. Suffering understand. from anxiety on anight out, combined with this feel- ing of isolation, can result in avoidance of social scenes You’ve been at the club for an hour now. There’san suchaspartying. overwhelming amount of noise, lights and people, and no easy escape. Everything has become an intense ex- But by spreading awareness of mental health disor- ternal pressure. With your heart racing and anxiety spi- ders, engaging with the discourse surrounding them, It’saThursdaynight. Everyone’sgetting readyfor Mis- ralling, you’re instinct is fight or flight. And, as far as I’m and in turn reducing the stigma attached, we can lessen sion. Sarah’sdoing her makeup, Alex is showering, Da- aware, the effectiveness of hand to hand combat with a the level of social pressure that contributes to the social vid and Francis are alreadygetting abuzz on to JB’s sound system is limited. You’ve got to leave.You’ve left. impact mental health disorders. new album— and you’re hyperventilating on the floor You’ll tell them youwere just tired, though; don’twant of your room because your backhurts abit so you’re to seem abnormal. Forifthe discussion of mental health becomes widely probably going to die. socially acceptable, then the cost attached to social ac- Statistically speaking, one of your friends on anight tivities, like partying, for those with mental health is- Better not let anyone know, though; it’sembarrassing. out could have anxiety (figures vary from 1in6,to1in sues, like anxiety,can only be reduced. 10 people). Yetthe perplexing stigma surrounding men- Pre-drinks have begun. Afew friends have come up- tal health issues means that manyofusare unaware of *Note: this is far from acomplete list of symptoms. stairs from the flat below, and you’ve engaged in con- this. versation. One friend is saying something about Corbyn [Bradley Young] and you’re listening -well, trying to. It’shard to con- Partying can present those individuals with catalysts centrate when youhaven’tquite finished painstakingly for symptoms of anxiety.There is an increased number Mental Health A-Z: PIsFor Perception

Another stranger passes the window, her red curly hair frizzy hair,and yetapasser-byonthe street gazes at it flowing effortlessly in the wind, shielding her tinyfigure in wonder. from the weather with athickcoat. Think of all the times youhavewanted to compliment Icatchsight of my pale reflection in the glass. Isee astranger’sfeatures; their hair,shoes or smile. Remem- achubbyface, with podgy marks across eachcheek. ber all the people that you’ve temporarily fallen in love Theeyeliner has alreadybegun to smudge, merging into with on atrain, or even the times when you’ve loved flakyeye shadow. Cold wind has cracked my lips, dried abusker’svoice. But we’ve convinced ourselves that it and reddened my cheeks, and frizzed up my hair. would be too weird to compliment: they don’tknow me. I’ll just stayquiet. Imagine howmuchmore confi- Some days it’sareal struggle to like the face staring dence we would all have hearing suchcomments. backatme. It’simportant to remember that we all struggle with Ayoung girl skips past wrapped up in aduffel coat, negative bodyimage at times. We all have mornings laughing as her scarf and hair are clasped by the wind. when we hate our stomachorwish we could change She shields her face from the weather and runs backto something about our appearance. In fact we are all so her mother,still grinning as her shoes slip across the wet self-conscious about looking acertain waythat we for- It’sanother foggy morning. pavement. get the most beautiful thing about being human: dif- ference. ‘Perfection’ does not have asingle definition: From inside the café Igaze out of the window, watch- Whycan’tIbe that happyabout things Ican’tcontrol? whether your legs are chubbyorskinny, or whether ing the people pass by.Fog curls through the air,leaves your hair is straight or curly is irrelevant to howbeauti- eddying across the street as my coffee cup warms my Another student sits down on the stool next to me, sip- ful youare. freezing hands. ping her coffee as she gazes out of the window. Ifinish my coffee and venture backout into the cold. As strangers filter past, Ican’thelp but notice howper- And that’swhen Irealise. In reality,all that separates Next time Igobackthe café Iwill admire the strangers fect eachperson looks. me from this beauty is this window. walking past, but without avoiding my ownreflection.

Abusinesswoman walks by,confidently towering in Whyshould being an outsider looking in, or sitting [Charlie Collett] her red high heels, her blackdress matching perfectly by awindowlooking out, make youany less beautiful? with asmart jacket. Beauty is amatter of perspective;you mayhate your

Views 11 Views As theLUU Leadership Race hots up, TheGryphon asks:Should SocietiesBeAllowed To Endorse Lead LUUCandidates? Yes TomDixon Iwas luckyenoughtobeelected societieswithlarge membershipslike just force thecronyismthat canpervade This is clearlynot transparentand Education Officer of LUUin2014, so I HistorySociety andFoBSoc. So whilst theendorsement process underground. benefittedthose candidates with pre- have some experience of theLeadership endorsementscan be agreatway of Whilst also robbinglesswellnetworked existing connections, provingthat the Race andthe never-endingchase for gettingyournameout there –theyare candidates of theopportunity to spread system needstobechanged.Positive society endorsements. Theycan be certainlynot theonlyway to do that. theirmessage to students they might not changecan ensureendorsementsfulfil difficult to get, butinmymindthis There is atendencyduringLeadLUU for otherwise encounter. thepurpose they areintendedfor –to is thebestindicator that they work. thewannabe politicos of Leedstotreat The POLISSociety areagreatexample indicate to thosevoting whichcandidates Endorsementshavetobeearnedby it like abig time politicalracewhere of thepotential forendorsementsthat wouldbebestfor them. beingthe best candidate. endorsementsmeanagreatdeal. Former is currentlywasted. This year POLIS If endorsementsare used properly,they The effect of endorsementsisWelfareRep Lawrence Thompson called endorsed sixExecCandidates anda canlevel theplaying field by making it questionable –whenIran,Iknewthat endorsements“fundamentallyunfair” Candidatefor GryphonEditorwithout aboutwhat they should be –indicating oneofthe most important partsofmy becausetheyare often aresultofthe holdingahustingsoradvertising to to students whoSocieties thinkthe best campaignwas securing theendorsement committee’sdecision making processes, candidates that theirendorsement was candidates arebased on theirideas of theIslamic Society. Throughout voting andnot aresultofthe preference of there to be won. In this case,ratherthan andtheir character. That this does not week,Imet aconsiderable numberof societymembers.Thiscertainlyistruein making allLeadershipRacecandidates happen acrossthe boardcurrentlyis ISoc members whotold me they’d voted some instances, like thePOLIS Societythis accountabletoPOLIS Students by unacceptable;but theanswerisnot to formeoff theback of this endorsement. semester,but gettingrid of endorsements holdingahustingswiththeir membership, outlaw endorsementsaltogether, butto At thesametimeone candidateIran altogether is thewrong waytomakethe thecommittee lost theiropportunity to make them fairer andmoretransparent againstmanaged to accrue asimilar processfairer.Ratherthanmakingiteasier engagetheir membersinthe race.Instead so that everyone hasachance ofwinning number of endorsementstome, including forcandidates to secure votes, it would dealingout ameaninglessendorsement. them. No BenjaminCook

Nobodyist“”ruly sure if society members of thesociety to quiz candidates metthem, andprior to allcandidates they’veformedanestablishmentwithin endorsementscan actually swingan anddetermine whowill be best forthe manifestos beingofficiallyreleased. themicrocosm of LUU. election,but in theway they arecurrently students of that society.Inreality it all Now, candidates whohavebeenintegral As these electionsare decidedby decided, whetherornot they should is toooften amountstoastrange show partsofsocieties shouldn’tbedismissed acampuswidevote, theinfluence somethingweshould consider. trialwhere yourepeat thesamescript as opportunists.The dedication they’ve ofsociety endorsement couldbe LUUlikes societies to give you’ve readtwentytimes that week to showntotheir societies areadmirable, overplayed. Butmyworryisthat endorsements, andyou cansee why. A thecommittee of asociety whodecided andthe experience wouldserve them candidates whorepresent groups not constant reminder on your socialmedia whothey’dendorse in January. Or in the well in an exec role.But what’s taken often heardinthe debateswehavein feedsfromsocieties youmay be apart case of my ownexperience withRAG, shapeisafeeling amongst certain theUnion areoverlooked simply dueto of is likely to increase thechance you thelargestand thereforeconsideredmost societies in LUUthatitistheir rightto alackofconnections. mayvote.Societies also already play a influential society on campus last year exertanundueamountofinfluence Toke’s victoryinlastyear’sracefor role in deciding policy at LUUbyhaving (thisyearthey’re remainingneutral),a overademocratic processintended to UnionAffairs wasremarkablebecause theirviews expressed on ideasthat pass oneminute pitchtoasinglememberof engage30,000 students.Takeadelve it eskewedtraditional wisdom.Toke through forumbytheir activitiesreps. thecommittee. into #leadluu twitterand you’ll findthat came from outside of theestablishment Societiesalready form part of thefabric Alltoo oftensocieties will choose which membersofcertain societieswillquite of LUUsocities. Aproto-Sanders. Butmy of LUUdemocracysointheorythere is candidatetoendorse basedonthree proudly announce howthey“wintheir concern is that he is an exception that little to disagreewith. However, when things:Are they already amemberof elections”. Meaningthat candidates that provesthe rule. putintopracticeendorsementscan end this society?Dotheydothiscourse? Do theirsociety hasproducedorendorsed As much as it seemsI’vearguedthere up makingyou feel like thewhole thingis they have more matesonthe committee will win, becausethey’re backing is somethingrotteninthe stateofLeeds, abit of astitchup. Just like arealelection. than anyone else they’reupagainst?Take them.It’sdangeroustoademocratic Ihavenodoubt that whoeverwins Societiesholdhustingstodecidewhich forexamplethe curiousdecisionofone processbecause it threatens to exclude these electionswilldosofor allthe candidatestoendorse in each field of the society to announce last Monday which candidateswho have notspent yearsin rightreasons.Great policies,and agreat race.Hustingsare meanttobeeventsfor candidates they endorsed withouthaving theLUU bubble. It’s almost as though camapign.

thegryphon.co.uk 12 Views AskNot What AppleCan Do ForTheir Country.

George Jackson BA Philosophy &Politics

TimCook, CEOofApple,wrotealetter to Apple customerslastweek. Posted on thecompany’swebsite,the tech boss explainedthat thecompanywould not honour arequest madebythe FBI to providea‘backdoor’toencrypted iPhones. This decision to avoid developing atoolfor theUSintelligence agency, whichwould enable them access to encrypteddata, waspredicated on the CoCook hasmadesomething of aboldmoveinwhatcan easily be perceived–at least “on thesurface –asanact of corporatedefianceagainstst thestate. belief that such actionswould ‘undermine theveryfreedoms andliberty [the US] government is meanttoprotect.’ Cook”has madesomethingofabold move in what caneasilybeperceived –atleast on the surface –asanact of corporate defiance againstthe state, andfor thebenefitof Apple customers. In an agewhere data is easily gatheredand accessed,the issue of whocan view aperson’sdataand how such data is used hasbecomeaserious one, particularly in light of exposés [Image: Jack Roberts] from thelikes of WikiLeaksand Edward Snowdeninrecentyears. The FBI requestwas made in conjunction giventhe fragility of data security in the wayintothe mobile data andsubsequent erosion of this privacy. As acompany, withthe investigation of aterroristattackin face of retainingnationalsecurity. Only personal detailsofany iPhone user they Applehas an obligation toprotect the SanBernardino California last December,a theApple executive’s concern,inthis preyupon. Note also that over 700million privacyofits customers, be theyinthe massacrethatled to thedeathsoffourteen instance,isthat thedevicewould enable iPhoneshavebeensold worldwidesince USAorelsewhere. Anditmustbestressed civilians. It is clearthat theagencywant people to hack into anyiPhonewithout theiPhonewas first launched in 2007. that this isnot just aproblem forthe access to themobiledeviceofone of the having to beat themechanism that That figuretranslates into aplethoraof USA. Applehas an estimatednumber perpetrators,inthe hope of obtaining encrypts thephone’sdata. At present, if users, even consideringthe iPhonesthat of customers that stretchesbeyond 500 encrypteddatathatcould be of useto theright settingsare applied,aniPhone’s will have been brokenand disposed of in million people globally.Manyofthese will them in theinvestigation,ifnot helping data canbescrubbedimmediately if an that time. be iPhone users, allofwhomwillexpect to preventfurther attacks. The point unwelcomeuserfails to enterthe right We live in an ageofpeopleleading theirprivacy to be protected,regardlessof however, is that Applehavealready done passcode within10attempts. This setting increasingly public lives, particularly wherethey’re living in theworld. everythingwithin theconfines of legality provides numerousbenefits to iPhone in theonlineworld.Withmoreand It can’tbedeniedthat governmentis to help theagency. Although judges have users, from theprotectionofcontacts, more people beingabletolearn almost playinganincreasingly active role in the ordered Appletofollowthrough withthis photos andsocialmedia accounts,all anythingabout whoweare,which apps management of variousaspects of our new proposal thepotential consequences andwebsitesweuse,whereweliketogo lives. Ourdataisnoexception.Whilstit of creating such adevicerenderit, in out andwho our friendsare,and allthis is understandable that governmentswant Cook’s words, ‘too dangeroustocreate’. ApA plehas an estimated with the mere swipeorclick of abutton, to gain as much informationaspossible It is evidentthat creating this device number of customersthat thereisagenuineneedfor some degree in ordertoprevent furtherterrorist wouldlikelyput thedataofmanyApple stretchesbeyond500 of privacyand to ensurethatthisprivacy attackslikeSan Bernardino,the risks customers underscrutiny.Suchadevice “million [...]all of whom is protected.Personalprivacy is notonly of creating thedevicerequested,and couldfallintothe wronghands andbe will expect theirprivacy to beneficialtoour senseofdignity,but puttingcivilians around theworld and used forpurposes less noblethanthe be protected, regardless of more so to ourmentalhealth. It is also, theirprivacy in danger, aretoo greatfor investigation of terrorists –thisconcern wherethey’re living in the in some cases, necessaryfor ourpersonal thesakeofhacking into onewrongdoer’s serves as themainreasoning behind safety.Ifweweretoliveinaworld where phone. What’s more,once thedeviceis Cook’s stand. Apple is alreadyinalegally people areunabletokeepanythingto obtained andreplicatedbyinternational bindingpositiontohandoverinformation theway to safeguarding more critical themselves, then they areexposed and criminals, be they terroristsorotherwise, to thestate that couldbeperceived as a information, such as bankingand ”health unabletodifferentiatebetween theprivate theblame will be projectedontoApple. threattonationalsecurity, if not helpful details. The creation of adevicethatbreaks andpublicspheres of everyday life.The Cook is beingprudent in trying to block in preserving it.Inhis letter,Cookmakes through this mechanism withnexttono little privacythat remainsfor people the creation of such adeviceunder his it clearthatthe company hasalways effort wouldmeanthatincases of theft todayisalready beingeroded, thanks to watch. Most executiveswho want to stay complied with‘validsubpoenas and or hacking, criminalswho’veobtainedthe data storageand socialmedia.Tocreate a on thegood side of theircustomers, from search warrants’ issued by theFBI.An device (and they will findaway,ifsuch device that enablesencrypted data to be both ahuman and businessperspective, admissionofthiskindishardlyasurprise, adeviceiscreated) wouldhaveaneasy accessed with next to no effort is afurther would do thesame. thegryphon.co.uk Views 13 “Freedom of speech is not aright,but a privilege.” MichaelEverritt actually broadcastwas areinforcement course;peopledo BA Philosophy of anegativestereotype. Fryinvoked producecontentof hisright to free speech. Does this journalistic merit Ajokewas recently madebyStephen absolve himofblame forbroadcasting viasocialmedia. Fry, in hiscapacityashostofthe BAFTA an offensivejoke? Rather than admit These people arethe awards.The response on socialmedia responsibility,hedeletedhis Twitter creamofthe crop. illustrateshow people,millennialsin account. This distinct minority particular,are increasingly seeing free Newspaperjournalists spendyears representsthose speech as aprivilege.Itmadefun at the honingtheir craftand paying theirdues. whohaveearned expenseofanaward winningwoman’s Eventhe most naturally gifted writer forthemselves appearance.Later he foundhimself must prove themselvesmanytimes over theprivilege of defendingthe joke againstabarrage of before theirfirstprofessionalarticle freespeech. It is critical opinionsonTwitter. Thewoman, sees print. Journalists have to constantly justifiabletosilence a Fryexplained,was afriendwho was seek out inspiration, keep up to date bigotwho hasfailed in on thejoke. That wouldbeall well withcurrenteventsand stay abreast of to substantiate his andgoodhad Frynot knownthe joke popularopinion.When it comestopitch argumentsorengage wasbeing broadcastout of context theirarticle,the journalist must do battle constructively with [Image: Twitter/Stephen Fry[ to anationalaudience.Asa“national withtheir naturalenemy:the editor. thedebate. This is treasure”,Fry hasalouder voicethan In these ways andmore, newspaper not thesameassilencingthembecause abused that privilege by advancing mosmo tpt eople andwiththat comesa journalistsfight to earn theprivilege of youdisagreewiththem. If they have argumentswhich aredemonstrably free speech. failed to prove themselvesresponsible false. PeterTatchellabused that privilege FrFryyinvoked hisright to free Compareand contrastall that with enough to be givenfreespeech, then by allowinghimself to become painfully speech.Doesthisabsolvehim thecontentproducedbyany old they do not deserveit. out of touch. If people repeatedly abuse of blamefor broadcastingg an random bigotcapableofsetting up a Free speech is not aright butis, rather, aprivilege then it is only right that we “ offensivejoke? Twitteraccount.These arethe kinds of aprivilege that we afford each other by as asociety should stripthemofit. people whosecontribution to political virtue of beingresponsible members of Fighttoearnfor yourself theprivilege of degree of responsibility.The joke might discourse neverrises abovethe levelof society.GermaineGreer abused that free speech;pitchinganarticle to The indeed have been intended as abit “David Cameronisa[insert four letter privilege by speaking out of ignorance on Gryphon wouldbeagood start… of banter between friends.W”hat was word here].”Thereare exceptions,of thesubject of Transrights. Donald Trump “Why Cameronthinks that sexeducation doesn’tneed to be mandatoryisbeyondme.”

Liam Kerrigan at ayoungerage,coupled withthe fact BA Philosophy that sexually explicit content providing an extremely warped view of the In another startlingdisplay of his realitiesofsex hasnever been more totaldisconnect from reality, David accessible,itwould seem rather obvious Cameron recently decidednot to that mandatorysexualeducation in UK makesex educationmandatory forall schoolsisneedednow morethanever. schools. Despiteanumberofwomen There have been thosewho have within hisown cabinet, as well as raised concernsabout whether it is “fourparliamentary select committees, right to teachyoungerchildrenabout fiveteachingunions, theChildren’s theseissuesand whetherchildrenwill commissioner,the ChiefMedical be able to handle thematerialthey Officer,the Association of Police wouldhavetodealwith, butitstrikes andCrime Commissioners,two royal me that these worriesare unfounded [Image: BBC Parliament] societies andnolessthansix medical andultimatelymisguided.Children royalcolleges” backingthe proposed receiving sexeducation will obviously providing children withadecentsex theadult channels.Why Cameronthinks changes,according to Channel4’s Cathy be taught contentthat hasbeentailored educationthroughout school will that sexeducationdoesn’t need to be Newman, Cameron still decidedagainst to theirparticularage group; as mad as ultimately demystifysex andhelpdispel mandatoryinall schoolsisbeyond me. them. this government oftenseems,Icannot thefancifulimage it hasacquired, due We live in atimewhere sexual imagery It wouldappearthatthe UK ranking4th imaginethat they wouldhaveproposed largelyinparttoanunrealistic portrayal is everywhere; youngpeopleare highestfor teenagepregnancies in theEU getting5-year-olds to putcondomson in themedia,instead groundingitasa confronted with sexual issues farearlier; last year is no indicationthatperhaps a perfectlynormaland innocuouspartof sexually explicit contentisnomorethan greaterpushfor decent,compulsory sex VaVaccinations againstthese life. acoupleofbutton pushes away and educationinUKschools is necessary. sttrainsofmeningitishave Children todayare goingtobe youngpeopleare often madetofeel Nordoes it seem to matter that under- been fullydeveloped but, confronted withsexualimageryand as though sexisthe be-all andend-all, 25s areconsistentlythe agegroupmost “despite thelives they could contentfar sooner andmoreexplicitly andthat they aresomehowinferioror likely to contractanSTI in theUK. In save,havebeendeemed byy than ever before.One need only turn inadequateiftheyhaven’t yethad it.No, fact,Cameron’s decision in this matter thegovernment as notcootst- on thetelevisionand before long you’ll clearlythere is no need fornationwide seemstodefyall common sense. In an effective. undoubtedly encounteraperfume mandatorysex education. agewherechildren arebeginningto advert that will leaveyou wondering confrontsexualidentityand exploration to bananas,for example. More”over, whetheryou’veaccidentallyswitchedto thegryphon.co.uk 14 Science Is ClimateChangeThe ForgottenFactor In TheSyrianWar?

[Image: REUTERS/Muzaffar Salman]

KiraKnowles migration that came from thehumanitariancrisis. been simulated suggestthatthiswater will be displaced Syriahas asemi-arid climatewhich is conducive with elsewhere,makingitlesslikelyfor terrorist actionsor Climatechangeisone of thefactors that is shapingthis droughtsand indeed 25 yearsofthe period of 1961- civilwar to occurdue to water stress in nations like worldand canstill have manyunrealisedeffects on the 2009 were droughtyears.The human mismanagement Brazil,Mauritania,and BurkinaFaso. Thefuturewill planet,resulting in more widespreadimpact in human of resourcesinthese difficult conditions means that the seeanincrease in harsher,morefrequent droughtsbut livesthanoriginally thought.The effect of climate Syrian governmentitselfcan be held accountableand this is basedpurelyonmodelling so is lackingsufficient changeinalready volatile areassuchasthe Middle East is oneofthe largestfactors leadingtothecivil war. The evidence to come to aconclusion regarding theimpact andincountries such as Syria, canexacerbatethe affect Assadregimehad severalfailings, notleast thewater that climatechangewillhaveonunrestinnationsin that terrorismhas in causingconflict.Climate change andagriculturalpolicies, whichclimate changemay thefuture. allowsahigherfrequency of damaging events such as have increasedthe effectsof. Climatechangewillcontinuetoposeaproblem in famine to take place, leadingtomore stress in that area. Politicians also affect theway thepublicperceive thefuture with an averageglobaltemperature increase Oneexampleofthese stresses wasinthe period of thelinkbetween climatechangeand terrorism.For of 5ºC. This increase in temperature will notonly 2006-2010whenconsecutive droughts in theMiddle example, theUSadministration couldoverstate the ensure sealevel rise butalsowould affect agriculture East meant that affected countrieswereput under impact that theenvironmenthad in shapingISISin andleadtomoreextreme storms.These factorsensure pressure. As aresult, therewas agap in governance on ordertogaintheir environmentalagenda. In contrast, that people become moredesperate andmorewilling issues of climatechange which mayhaveallowed ISIS to theRepublicans believethat climatechangehad little or to go againsttheir government as they have nothingto gain afootholdaspeoplebecameincreasingly unhappy no role in shapingterrorism. Terrorismgenerallyseems lose.These peopleare thereforemoreeasilyrecruited in theway theircountry wasbeing managed in theface to be shorttermwithregards to theimmediate threatof into theJihadismmovement as it providesaliving of extreme climate. Thedrought temperatures were theclimate changewhereasitclearly hasthe potential independentofclimate. mirroredwiththatofthe global warmingtemperatures to affect global populationsbut is considered more Climatechangemay notberesponsiblefor theriseof in theregionand corresponded withthe Syrian civil of alongterm problem. The security risksassociated terrorismbut it certainlyplays aroleinworseningthe war. This hasled to speculation whetherthe climate withclimate change canbeseeninaPentagonreport conditions in afragile area,which canleadtoextremism change is directly relatedtoagrowthinterrorism. Of published in 2015which states that thecontinuing taking hold.Where thereismorewater shortages, course,climate change hasplayedanindirectrole effectsofclimate change will aggravateproblemssuch changingweather patterns andrisingsea levelscould in ISIS butitcould have been theadditionalfactor as socialtensions, poverty, thestability of weak political be more politicallyunstable.However,due to debates which sparked others such as alackofdemocracyor governmentsand environmentaldegradation. taking placebetween decision makers,itisunlikelythat widespreadcorruptiontocometoahead. In thefuture, although some countrieswill seea more legislationwillcomethrough in regard to climate Other regions were affected during thedrought decrease in precipitation, otherswill seeanincrease changeasaresultoffearofrisingterrorism. between 2007-2008, such as Iraq, Jordan andLebanon andbecomelesswater-stressed.Thismay lead to an butonlySyria wasaffectedwiththe largescale increase in unrest in Syriabut themodelsthat have thegryphon.co.uk Science 15 Science Funding: Science In PennyFor Focus Your Thoughts

SandyKelly

Preventing the spread of the Zika virus to the UK, ground-breaking cancer research,orthe production of vaccines for deadly diseases; all important work, I’m sure you’ll agree, but have youeverwondered just whodecides howand where allotted research money is spent? Science funding is, frankly,something we take for granted. We expect breakthroughs, but we – or rather the government –want to achievethese on the cheap. Following the promise in 2010 of This week, TheGryphon explores a aring-fenced £4.6billion for the scientific com- munity,times have turned bleak following the collection of some of the best new myriad of cuts made by our Chancellor of the Exchequer.InAugust 2015, the public spend on discoveries of the past month. research wasbelow0.5% of the UK’sgross do- Theoutcome of the Spending Review last mestic product (GDP): muchless than our de- November promised that the research budget veloped-economycounterparts. This prolonged would be frozen (in real terms) until 2020. This •Discovery of gravitational waves by LIGO uncertainty has provedtoo muchfor some engi- wascoupled with acommitment to along-term neers and scientists, prompting the emergence verify Einstein’s theory that space-time is distort- science investment of £6.9billion between 2015 ed by massive gravitational events suchasblack of pressure groups suchasthe “Campaign for and 2021. While welcomed by manywithin the Science and Engineering” (previously “Save scientific community,there is growing unease holes merging. British Science”) and “Science is Vital” to rally overthe lackofdetails related to these promises. •Astronomers predict the presence of a new Nep- and raise awareness for,what is now, the dwin- Is this acase of all talk and no substance? That is tune sized planet beyond Pluto drawingfromevi- dling flame of science funding. These groups the question playing on the minds of manyUK have been actively working hard to remind the dence of discrepancies in Uranus’ orbit. academics. Additionally,has the impending fear •NASA proposes a new propulsion system Government of the importance of maintaining a of cuts pre-review,followed by the post-review strong research and development core –the lat- relief, masked the fact that there is, unquestion- that could take us to Mars 3 days. Photonic ter urging to send postcards to George Osborne, ably,still muchmore investment required? propulsion uses particles of light to accelerate a 1600 of whichwere delivered to him before the Although Osborne has managed to initially space craft with areflective sail to fractions of the spending review. pacify manywith his spending review,there Theimportance of science funding is not just speed of light. still remains fundamental underlying issues. •Zika Virus has been found to cross the placental concerned with the past couple of years either; Firstly,why were cuts to science spending under the UK has alwaysbeen apioneer in scientific consideration in the first place? Our European barrier, suggesting a possibly link to microcepha- research.For example, we knowthat our DNA neighbours are continuing to invest in science, ly but more research needs to be done to confirm. has adouble-helix structure –aresult of the engineering and innovation to help kick-start •Half of the world’spopulation are predicted to be trail-blazing work carried out by James Watson their economies into gear,yet the UK finds itself and Francis Crick. It wasatKing’sCollege Lon- short sighted by 2050 with nearly a tenth of them rockbottom in the G8 for public science spend- at risk of blindness according to a study by the don that Photograph 51 –anX-ray diffraction ing. Is this the message we want to send out to image of DNA–was shown to the twoscien- talented researchers and potential corporate in- Brien Holden Vision Institute. tists, and together they determined the genetic vestors? Agovernment that does not fully sup- •New research suggests that parents who amplify ‘instruction manual’ required for humans and port research risks deterring the engineers and positive emotions and supress negative ones can almost all other organisms in the World. scientific pioneers of tomorrow, muchtothe According to analysis by the Department for damage parent child bonds and their own health. demise of the academic foundations that our •X-ray scans of dodos suggest the bird wasactu- Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) in 2013, a country is built upon. To those whoquestion mere 0.9% of the World’sscientists reside in the the importance of attracting the best scholars ally fairly smart, with brain size similar to that of UK yetthey produce 16% of the papers most from abroad, it is worth noting that three of the pigeons and had an enhanced sense of smell. highly cited. Do youbelievethis work could last fiveNobel Prizes for science woninthe UK •Researchers from CSIRO in Australia have re- be done, and maintained, without funding? In have gone to foreign researchers. short, probably not. We cannot expect inno- vealed that bats have aunique ability to carry Furthermore, the current turbulent atmosphere lethal diseases without being affected by them. vations that enrichour World if we don’tsup- surrounding apotential “Brexit” does not help port the scientists looking for them. Granted, matters; anyhostility between ourselves and the By keeping their immune systems switched the science budget is relatively well-protected EU is the last thing UK science needs. While on 24/7 they are protected from diseases like by the Chancellor,but research budgets for the notion of saving money remains, it appears Ebola. other departments –suchasthose determining the Chancellor has forgotten howhecan make health, climate change, and energy –havebeen it. Give alittle to get alot. If we properly invest slashed. So muchso, that the total government in science, whoknows what we can create and spend on engineering, science and technology what breakthroughs we can make. Hopefully, is as lowasitwas in 1986. we will find out sooner rather than later.

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COMMON facebook.com/groups/creativecommon Sport 17

China’sFootball Revolution Rolls On ter of 2016, the Chinese division ,founded Luke Barr in only 2004, spent nearly £250 million Football on footballing talent. To give this figure an increased level of context, only £25m was Having previously qualified for just asolitary World spent by the whole of Ligue 1inJanuary, Cup in 2002, one maybeforgivenfor thinking that whose current reigning champions are the China have rarely,ifever, imposed themselves on the Qatari-owned Paris Saint-Germain. global footballing stage. As awhole, the European China’sinsanely expensive spending spree elite have historically dominated this lucrative sporting included purchasing the likes of Ezequiel grandstand, demonstrated clearly by the dominance Lavezzi [Hebei China Fortune] from the of the Champions League and their universally recog- aforementioned PSG, Jackson Martinez nised theme tune. Foryears, high-class European clubs [Guangzhou Evergrande] for £31m from have hidden behind asubconsciously created veil of Atletico Madrid, Ramires [Jiangsu Suning] superiority,although this previously solid wall may from Chelsea for £20m, as well as an abun- soon be in danger of being breached by apowerful dance of further signings that left Europe’s presence from the FarEast. untouchables scratching their heads, con- fused and bewildered. This East Asian footballing deficiencywas previ- [Image: Francois Bowers] ously asource of embarrassment for one of the largest To make this footballing revolution even more staggering, it is also largely spear- economies on the planet, although certain clubs now cause the football wasvery good, then Iwas in Eng- headed by China’sPresident, Xi Jinping, whose passion seem financially intent on surpassing their Western ‘ri- land during the 2000s and all the players wanted to go for football is widely-known. When elected in 2013, vals’. During the previous transfer window, the newly- to the Premier League because of more money and the Jinping made it one of his main aims to promote the founded Chinese Super League spent more money on good football. Now, in 2016, it seems that every player sport in the country,specifying that he wanted China players than anyother division across the planet. This wants to come to China for the same reasons. Maybe to qualify,host and eventually win the World Cup. includes the Premier League, Ligue 1, Serie A, Bundes- 10 or 15 years ahead, I’m sure China’snational team Previously,this remark could have been easily and liga and La Liga, whichincorporates the likes of Real will compete well [enough] to win the World Cup.” understandably mocked, but nowevenformer England Madrid, Manchester United and AC Milan, whoprevi- `It is still yettobeseen if China’sgovernmental sup- and Lazio manager Sven-Göran Eriksson has optimisti- ously had all flexed their financial muscles to domesti- port will provide the nation with afootballing platform cally claimed that ablossoming China team do have cally dominate in the past. to propel themselves, although this uncertainty will the potential to win football’smost prestigious prize However,this financially-inspired command is no surely not deter these dynamic Chinese clubs, who within the next 10 years: “You can alwaysfeel how longer aunique trait within the ever-changing foot- are likely to continue their raids on Europe’sprimary football is growing in China,”said Eriksson to Xinhua, balling sphere and this is demonstrated clearly by the leagues and raise their status from their previously sec- Beijing’sofficial news agency. “I’ve been in Italy dur- sudden financial firepower that has been recently un- ond-rate standards. leashed by the Chinese Super League. During the win- ing the 1990s when every playerwanted to come be- England Batted Away by South Africa

Matthew Norman wonall fiveT20 Internationals they had playedagainst ond T20 International in Johannesburg and abig total Cricket the first three of those opposition in this time. However, looked on the cards after flying starts from JoeRoot (34), despite their recently good performances, the 2-0 T20 Eoin Morgan (38) and Buttler (54) guiding their team to series loss against South Africa has shown England still 157-3. However,amiscued Buttler drive wascaught be- have along waytogo. fore calamitous running the very next ball sawthe end Opposition captain FafduPlessis elected to field first of Morgan as well. None of England’sremaining bats- in the opening matchinCape Town, where openers Ja- man made it close to double figures as the South African son Royand Alex Hales appeared to get England off to seamers bowled extremely tight lines to bowl England the perfect start. Having raced to 38-0 early on however, out for 171, with England losing their remaining seven the exceptionally bright young talent of Kagiso Rabada wickets for ameasly 14 runs. Once again Tahir bowled removedRoy for 15. Leg spinner Imran Tahir then re- well for the Proteas, as his pressure meant the quick movedHales (27) to begin the rot. England’smiddle bowlers picked up the bulk of the wickets. order failed to make an impact and were soon found Thesecond innings followed the pattern of the end of floundering at 81-6 in the 13th over, Tahir finishing with the first –adisaster for England. Abatting masterclass four wickets. Aneat cameo from England’sJos Buttler from the ridiculously talented de Villiers (71 off 29) and (32*) ensured his side finished on adefendable 134-8. the majestic timing of Amla (69* off 38) sawSouth Afri- Chris Jordan struckfirst for England in the second in- ca canter to victory within 15 overs. Thevictory ensured nings as dangerman AB de Villiers wasremovedcheap- a2-0 series win for the home side and sawthem move ly for seven. Thestory of the top order for the home into second place in the T20I rankings just ahead of the side wasremarkably similar to the previous innings World Cup. as Hashim Amla (22), du Plessis (25) and JP Duminy Theloss showed that England still have along wayto [Image:GarethCopley] (23) all managed starts without being able to kickon. go in the one-dayarena, but are on the right path none- England’scommendable attempt at defending their low theless. With an average age of 24 in their World Cup After England’sdiabolical performance at the Cricket score waslooking good as Jordan removedbig hitter squad and no players over the age of 30, one can only World Cup last year,CoachTrevor Bayliss insisted his David Miller with the first delivery of the penultimate think this England side will thrive on the experiences side would embrace the new,fearless brand of one-day over. Jordan kept the overtight to concede amere six next month in India and be competing for the major cricket proving to be so successful for other nations. off the over, leaving South Africa requiring 15 off the last trophies in the future. Whilst South Africa, on the other Since then, England have recorded one-dayseries vic- over, atall order for anyside. Unfortunately for England, hand, surely go into the finals as one of the tournament tories overPakistan and World Cup runners-up New all-rounder Chris Morris (17 off seven balls) smashed a favourites and could finally pickupthe long-awaited Zealand as well as slim defeats to World Cup winners four and asix off consecutive Reece Topley balls before silverware that has been so notoriously elusive.Then Australia and recently South Africa. England had also sealing the victory on the last ball for South Africa. again, we saythat every year about them. Once again England were put in to bat in the sec- 18 Sport

Women’sRugbyEdge Into TheSemis

the Edge defence and made apromising run, but was With fifteen minutes to go, Morton changed the Fiona Tomas forced to knock-on. direction of play, booting the ball cross-field into the Women’sRugbyUnion TheGryphons were dominant in the scrum and were corner,whichwas picked up cleverly by captain Nicky University of Leeds 17-0 Edge Hill confident in the line-out, consistently challenging Dobrabefore forming amaul. Several phases later,Ro- their opponent’sthrow-ins. In agame whichwas con- sie Blount ranoverthe line but wasunable to ground tinuously stopped and started by the referee’swhistle, the ball, held up by the Edge Hill defence in amaul Alate trio of tries sawLeeds University women’s yetagain, but the Gryphons were getting ever closer. RugbyUnion team storm into the semi-finals of the Thefive-metre out scrum whichensued, howev- BUCS Trophy, after overcoming astubborn Edge Hill er,was worked well and the ball wasfed across to side 17-0. Jackson whocharged overthe line to the cheers of It wasabright and sunnyday as the Gryphons took to pitchside fans. Although Morton couldn’tconvert, the the field and the girls were happytobebackatfortress Gryphons had finally broken the awayside. Weetwood after severe waterloggings last week had Atame response from the Lancashire side ensued hampered aseries of Gryphon Rugbyfixtures. This from the restart, before Leeds gained backpossession, wasthe first time the girls had playedinaCup quarter- with aquickdelivery from scrum-half Ruth Flory set- final, and having enjoyeda10-0 win overNottingham ting Blount off down the middle of the park to go over in the last-16, the possibility of progressing even fur- for Leeds’ second under the posts, this time converted. ther washigh. At 12-0, aGryphon win looked all but secured, but Despite perfect pitchconditions, both sides strug- Leeds were still gunning for more. With Edge Hill’s gled to find their rhythm and took time to settle into defence well and truly fatigued, Carbutt exploited a the game, with manyknock-ons resulting in disjointed perhaps this is whythe home side managed to have gap in the Edge defensive line in the middle of the play. Edge Hill, lying only twoplaces belowLeeds in so muchfirst-half possession, despite failing to get on pitchand darted her waythrough, running around the Northern 1A league, looked the livelier side during the scoreboard. Theclosest they came to scoring was 30 metres towards the right-hand flank whilst shak- the first quarter,although they were struggling against when Tilly Heggie ranoverthe try-line but washeld ing off anumber of challenges to wheel in under the the Gryphons in the scrum with Dominique Nielsen, up in amaul by some desperate Edge Hill defending. posts. Morton wasaninchfrom converting –hitting Victoria Carbutt and Amber Barnicoat all causing Thesecond-half sawthe Gryphons continue on the the right-hand post as the final whistle blew. problems for the Edge Hill forwards. front foot, dominating the possession, while runs from Having lost to Edge Hill in the league only twoweeks With 20 minutes played, Leeds gradually began to Nielsen and Jackson offered glimmers of hope that ago, this wasawin that will be truly savoured by the gain more and more possession inside their oppo- Leeds would score. After abrief bout of Edge Hill pos- Gryphon girls, whoshowed grit and mental strength to nent’shalf and wonapenalty on the half-way line, session, the in-form Heggie produced awell-timed patiently overcome atricky side and to prolong their whichHannah Morton kicked into touch. Following tackle to win backthe ball. fantastic and historic cup-run. asuccessful line-out, Bo Jackson spotted agap in Sheffield End Volleyball’sUnbeaten Run

John Gibby Leeds’ bravewomen’svolleyball recorded their first went on to win the second set 17-25. Women’sVolleyball loss of the season at yhe Gryphon Sports Centre, leav- Though they showed composure and resilience in the University of Leeds 0-3 Sheffield Hallam ing their conquerors from Sheffield Hallam as the sole early parts of the game, the belief seemed to largely remaining unbeaten side in the division. Thegame be gone from the Gryphons by the time the third set started off evenly matched, with the agility of Irmak began, and this wasreflected in the 0-8 lead Sheffield Gökçesu and pacey setting of Catherine Laffan serving managed to attain in the early stages. Following ase- the Gryphons as well as it has all season, and even ries of errors from both sides, with serves and rallies managed to open up the first set to 13-10 following a alike frequently ending up in the net, Sheffield once series of mistakes from the visitors. After anumber of again used their overwhelming strength overatiring mistakes of their own, however,alongside playwhich Leeds side to make sure the result wasnever really in utilised the strength of the experienced Sheffield side, doubt. Frequently forcing the West Yorkshire side to the they found themselves winning only one of the follow- floor and beating them at the net, they secured victory ing seven points to make it 14-16. Though their op- in this vital game in the division with a15-25 win in ponents were made to work for the set, this deficit was the set. Leeds’ playinthe earlier parts of the game may to prove unassailable, and at the end of along rally have warranted ascoreline more flattering than 0-3, mostly fought out close to the net, Sheffield closed it but the hardworking visitors were unforgiving in their out 22-25. efforts to dismiss them and secure their place at the Thesecond set started out more positively for the head of the table. home side, with some very impressive play, coinciding with adip in form (and perhaps some complacency from their opponents) resulted in them winning four of the first fivepoints. Things took aturn for the worse, however,when Sheffield seemed to identify their ad- vantages overLeeds in terms of strength and net play, and wonseven consecutive points to open up a7-12 lead. Thehome team never really got backinto it after that, despite an apparent lackofcontrol of the volleyball [Image: Jack Roberts] from the leading side, and again utilising their powerful [Image: Jack Roberts] serves and spikes that became ahallmark of their play, thegryphon.co.uk Sport 19

Athletes On TrackFor Success

Zoe Thresher seconds off his heat time. Both ath- in 2nd place with atime of 8:23.28 Athletics letes secured their positions in the minutes. Thefollowing daysaw 1500m final with Ashcroft winning Sesemann win the third BUCS medal Thefirst of the 60m heats kicked off bronze in 4:00.07 and Powell gain- for Leeds as he finished in 2nd place the first dayofthe BUCS Champion- ing sixth position in 4:05.04. with an impressive time of 8:11.63 ships at the English Institute of Sport Will Snook took first place with a minutes. Daythree of the competi- in Sheffield last FridayasLeeds’ time of 50.24s in the 400m heats, tion continued to be one of success Anna Short and Chloe Boomer took putting him in apromising position as Beechand Money stepped up to the blocks. Short stormed through for the semi-finals the following day for the 200m heats. Beechtook 5th her heat gaining first position with a in whichheran 49.30s and finished place in her heat and Money took time of 7.88s, not far off of her per- in second place, with the help of his 2nd with atime of 26.29s, securing sonal best. Boomer impressed the lucky headband (although he just aplace in the semi-finals later in the American Football 1sts 14-21 Manchester team as she held second position missed out on aplace in the final). day. She continued to impress her- Met1sts throughout and rananew personal Meanwhile in the field events, Anna self and the team as she rananew best time of 7.75s. Having secured Short jumped 5.07m in the long indoor personal best of 26.24s in the herself aposition in the semi-finals, jump, and gained 7th place overall. semi-finals. Despite not making the Badminton 1sts (W)2-6 Loughborough she rananother personal best of Nerves were high as the 4x200m re- final six, Money waspleased to have 1sts 7.70s, making herself the first Leeds lays were soon to kickoff with only made it as far this year as she had athlete to gain aspot in the BUCS six teams able to qualify out of the done in BUCS last year. Basketball 1sts (M) 62-64 Northumbria finals and finishing in 7th place. thirty-seven entered. Zoe Thresher, Dobrabelieved it to be one of the Richard Powell and John Ash- Gussie Beech, Nicky Dobraand best BUCS performances for Leeds 3rds croft both secured acomfortable Sophie Money achieved smooth ba- University Union Athletics Club for Basketball 2nds (M) 53-75 Newcastle 2nds first place in their 1500m heats on ton hand-overs and finished in one afew years, whichput the team in Basketball 3rds (M) 29-47 Bradford2nds the second dayofthe competition. minute and 51 seconds. However, high spirits. They have even higher Powell’s4:07.91 run and Ashcroft’s they were unable to qualify to the hopes for outdoor BUCS whichis Fencing 1sts (W)124-109 Aberdeen 1sts 4:02.08 finish sawthem both pro- relayfinals. Despite this, they were due to take place in late April or gress to the semi-finals. Ashcroft ran extremely pleased with their perfor- early May. an identical time in the semi-finals mance. Football 1sts (W)4-3 Edinburgh 1sts as in the heats, whilst Powell man- Hopes were high for Phil Sesemann aged to shave an impressive eleven as he breezed the 3k heats, finishing Futsal 1sts (M) 2-1 Lancaster 1sts

Hockey 1sts (M) 2-2 Edinburgh 1sts (Leeds won 4-3 on penaltyflicks) Lax Leeds Lose to Edinburgh Hockey 2nds (W)1-1 Sheffield 2nds Hockey 2nds (M) 1-3 Newcastle 2nds Alex Bowmer the deluge of goals continued una- front of goal, before Edinburgh struck Hockey 3rds (W)1-2 Newcastle 3rds Women’sLacrosse bated as Edinburgh’scombination of backonce more. Thesecond-half tus- University of Leeds 7-18Edinburgh intense pressing, fearsome running sle contined as Yates wasfinally re- Hockey 4ths (M) 3-0 Sheffield Hallam 3rds and unerring shooting ability meant warded for her perseverance. Hockey 5ths (M) 1-4 Northumbria 2nds Thewomen’sLacrosse first team that the home side were 12-1 behind Therest of the matchwas similar- Hockey 6ths (M) 5-1 Leeds Beckett 4ths fought valiantly on Wednesdayat at half-time. ly nip-and-tuck, with McLoughlin Weetwood, but came up against a However,the girls didn’tappear rounding off the scoring from aLeeds Netball 1sts 35-45 Nottingham Trent1sts formidable opponent in Edinburgh. downhearted at half-time, re-entering perspective,before alate Edinburgh Theteam are arguably the best uni- the field determined to showtheir double made the final score 7-18. Netball 3rds 29-48 Sheffield Hallam 2nds versity team North of the Border and true colours. In LucyYates, Leeds had In ateam missing four regular play- Netball 4ths 42-46 Leeds Beckett 4ths demonstrated that ability in aruthless aplayerwho waslightning quickon ers, the girls in green can be rightly first-half display. Barely twominutes the break, with her superb close con- proud of their efforts. Although the RugbyLeague 1sts (M) 16-54 Loughbor- in and they were on the scoresheet. trol and slaloming runs causing head- first half wasone-way traffic, the ough 1sts Edinburgh continued to push for a aches for the Edinburgh backline. second half wasanevenly-balanced second goal, and were duly rewarded Leeds got backonthe scoresheet contest. for their efforts, before Gryphon Polly through Katie Aird, whoarrowed Speaking to TheGryphon following RugbyUnion 1sts (M) 14-66 Loughbor- Finchhit backtohalvethe deficit. aterrific shot into the top corner to the match, Yates did saythat ‘the de- ough 1sts However,despite the goal, Leeds jubilant celebrations from the home feat hasn’tdampened our spirits, but RugbyUnion 2nds (M) 10-46 Northumbria were not able to gather anymomen- contingent. has only made us more determined to 2nds tum. Soon after they were 3-1 be- Themain problem of the first half, secure promotion’, with team-mate hind, and, despite putting together keeping possession, wasslowly being Lydia Griffiths adding that it was‘on- some good passing combinations, rectified, and another neat passing wards and upwards from here’. Awin Squash 2nds (M) 3-0 Durham 3rds their opponents were putting in an sequence found Lauren McLoughlin, awayatYork on 9March could see Squash 3rds (M) 3-0 Durham 4ths obdurate defensive display. In attack, whocleverly rolled the ball in off the them secure the title, provided that Edinburgh were devastating, cutting post. Leeds were starting to put on an Durham slip up against Newcastle. Tennis 1sts (W)0-12 Loughborough 2nds through the pitchatwill, and it wasn’t impressive display, but they were up long before star playerCaitlin Baty, against an unbeaten team and Edin- Tennis 2nds (M) 8-4 Sheffield Hallam 1sts sidelined following aconcussion in burgh made sure that they kept the Tennis 3rds (M) 4-8 Newcastle 2nds aprevious match, called atime-out. lead to acomfortable margin. Following their pep-talk, Leeds ini- Finchpopped up with asecond Volleyball 1sts (M) 0-3 Sheffield 1sts tially seemed to be rejuvenated, clos- goal to make the score 4-13, before ing the ball down muchmore readily the visitors responded in kind. It was than they had previously.However, then Ellie Dove’s turn to find joyin WaterPolo 1sts (M) 10-13 Oxford 1sts

thegryphon.co.uk Issue1326.02.16 thegryphon.co.uk

[Image:Guangzhou Evergrande Taobao] [Ima[Imgeag:Ne: FianoncyaTGiomllenas][][Image: Ga[Imretage:hCJackopRolebey]rts] Image: ZoeThresher] TheGryphon looksatChina’sfootball Women’sRugby into thesemi-finalsof Matthew Norman reviews England’sloss Zoe Thresher reports on the Athletics at spending spree p.19 theBUCSTrophyp.20 to SouthAfricainthe T20seriesp.19 the BUCS Championships p.21

[Image: NaoTakahashi] BadmintonCrowned League Champions [mage: Jack Ro • Leedsearnpromotion with winoverNewcastle • Team win all eight games

JamesCandler to thewire. The twoGryphonsresponded perfectlyto The boys knew that they had ajob to do,and wasted Men’sBadminton thepressure. Like twolions that hadbeenbackedintoa no time in achievingtheir goal.The first game wasover University of Leeds8-0 Newcastle corner,theyattackedtheir opponents witheverything in aflashwiththe pair totallydominatingthe opposing they had.Kavimanipulated hisopponentwithsuperb team to warranta21-13 score.The second game was The 2ndteamofthe University of Leeds’ men’s skill,executing smashshot afterdropshot,pulling Chui awashwithtension,asGongand Sheikh’s teammates Badminton squadattainedtheir year-longambitionof from onesideofthe courttothe other, andultimately watchedonwithagonising attention.Thiswas a championingthe Northern 3B league andearningthat winningthe final game of hismatch 21-12. Carcelmont much closer affair,withNewcastle’s representatives ever-tantalisingand hitherto illusivepromotion.The toodemonstrated hisresolve,comingbackfrom a demonstratingakeenability to winpointseasily, with team only needed adrawinorder to winthe league, lacklustre secondgameinorder to win21-19. startlingsmash shots. Fortunately,wheneverthe play butthe Gryphons hadenjoyed astellar season, and Thedoubles teamswerenexttoplay, andiftheywon evolvedintoarally,the twoGryphonsshowedthat were notabout to lettheir blisteringseasonend on a both of theirmatches respectively then Leedswould they had theskill to winthe point. Thegamefinished bittersweetnote. be crownedchampions of theirleague. The triedand withascore of 21-19. The Gryphons hadwon the The firsttwosinglesmatchesgot underway, each player tested partnership of captainCallumAndrews and league andsmilesbroke out allaround thecourt.The visibly enduring asense of nervous anticipation.Kieran Ben Beresford, wasfirsttotakethe doublescourt.The daywas not overyet however, andliketruesportsmen, Kavi’s first matchagainst BillyChuiran alongsidethe twoexperiencedashaky starttothe match, as they theboyssaw theday out till theend -winning the matchbetween SamCarcelmontand JamesDunlop, committed atroublesomenumberofunforcederrors whole day(rather fittinglyfor such adominant season) withbothofthese twooutingsproviding an impressive andone particularlyunflatteringserve –which was in straight matches. spectacleand some trulytense badminton.Kaviwas possibly theresultofanover-enthused nervousness Afterthe match, TheGryphon caught up with 2nd certainlytestedrigorouslyagainst Chui,who showed a gettingintheir way. However, when theteamwere five team CaptainAndrews,who attributedsuccess this rigorousdetermination that perpetuated achinglytight points in arrears,Andrews executedacrucialsmash seasonto‘astrongset of playerswithalot of depthto rallies between thetwo.Consequently, Kavi lost the shot that turnedthe tide.The duowentontowin thesquad.The commitment from everyone hasbeen first game of thematch(somethingthat hadbeena theirfirstgamebyamarginof21-16.Following this, great, so we’vebeenabletoplayataconsistentlevel.’ starkrarity this season) andhad alot of work to do. Andrewsand Beresfordwere able to clearlyrattletheir When askedabout thechallengesofnextseason, the Carcelmont meanwhile,had wonhis first matchwith opponents,who became flusteredtothe extent that at captainresponded: ‘Nextyearcould depend on who relative ease andascoreof21-16.However,Dunlop onepoint,theyran into oneanother whilst chasing a we getthat’snew,but if we getagood set againthen experiencedsomewhat of aresurgence in thesecond particularly adeptdrop-shot form Beresford. Andrews Idon’t thinkwe’ll have aproblem staying up’. The game,asCarcelmontallowed hisopponentaway back andBeresford wontheir match in straight games– Gryphons then,are alreadysetting theirsightsonnext in,via aseriesofunfortunateunforcederrors. With Kavi meaningthat thepressurewas allonthe partnershipof season. Butinthe meantime, theimpressive team can pulling through to winhis secondgamebyanachingly JunHoGongand Zayd Sheikh. nowgoand celebrate. close21-19,bothmatches were goingtogoright down Thepairquickly setabout defeating theiropponents.