Features – Page 4 of 26

Back to Live, Back to Reality: Bloodstock Review

16Oct

By Amber BrooksNo Comments

Features, Music

Back to Live, Back to Reality: Bloodstock Review

It took a long time to get to Bloodstock festival. There was a four hour train from Egham, but that was nothing compared to the two years I had been waiting for live music to return. The journey was long and arduous; there was so much at stake for the performance industry who had suffered greatly at the callous hands of the pandemic. Yet there was no greater joy than standing in a field in the Midlands for the UK's largest metal festival. Festivals were the glorious beginning of bringing live music back. The government introduced pilot events to test the spread of the virus, with festivals such as Latitude, Download Pilot (A downsized version of the Donnington giant) and Tramlines. Fortunately, there were only 28 positive cases of COVID-19 amongst the 58,000 people who attended these t...

The Samaritans Left me on Voicemail Imao

16Oct

By Zaki ChanNo Comments

Creative Writing, Features

The Samaritans Left me on Voicemail Imao

The appeal of autumn: Reasons to Fall in Love with Autumn

16Oct

By Jessica WattsNo Comments

Features, Lifestyle

The appeal of autumn: Reasons to Fall in Love with Autumn

It’s that time of year again: the earth applies her sepia filter and autumn arrives. It’s the season that calls for dad jumpers, thick socks, and hot chocolate on tap. Scarves, bobble hats and fingerless gloves seep into everyday outfits and you start pondering over your boot collection, wondering whether last year’s Chelsea boots are still ‘in’. It sounds so romantic that it’s easy to forget the correlation between the fall in temperature and the rise in mental illness. Autumn and winter are largely polled as people’s least favourite seasons. The latter half of the year isn’t as romantic as it might seem, but is there a way to rekindle our love for autumn this year? S.A.D. (Seasonal Affective Disorder) is a condition which affects up to three in a hundred people in the UK. A somewhat ...

How have international UK university students been affected by the COVID pandemic?

17May

By Jordan ThorneNo Comments

Features

How have international UK university students been affected by the COVID pandemic?

At the inception of 2020, the world was hit by the COVID-19 pandemic which resulted in over 3 million deaths worldwide and countries went into lockdown to minimise repercussions. This meant that borders were closed, travel was suspended, and working from home became a norm. The real world came to a standstill whilst the virtual world took on a life of its own. Alongside the issues that the whole population has had to face, such as periods of isolation and the loss of loved ones, students are continuing to deal with further issues. We have lost an important stage of social development, been the victim of last-minute changes, and often had a less-than-standard quality of learning and some of these have had implications for mental health and well-...

27Feb

By Thea DrakeNo Comments

Features

What’s happening in Myanmar?

Myanmar, also known as Burma, is in a military imposed crisis. Following the November 2020 general election, won by the National League of Democracy Party (NLD), the armed forces demanded a recount and claimed widespread fraud. (This is eerily reminiscent of certain recent events in the United States.) The leader of the NLD party, Aung San Suu Kyi, has had several charges filed against her accusing her of rigging the election; she has been detained and the power of the country has been given to commander-in-chief Gen Min Aung Hlaing. The would-be leader Aung San Suu Kyi began her work as a revolutionary, aiming to restore democracy in the country, and spent nearly 15 years in detention from 1989 for organising rallies which called for democratic reform. The NLD leader came into power i...

27Feb

By Thea DrakeNo Comments

Features

The Best LGBTQ+ Shows To Watch Now

It’s A Sin Where to watch: All 4: Channel 4’s free on demand service. About: Russell T Davies’ new drama focuses on the lives of a queer group of people in 1980s London, navigating the HIV/AIDS crisis. This heart-breaking and raw series depicts the way this crisis took over the lives of everyone in the queer community. It explores the ignorance and homophobia with which the public treated this disease in a truly tragic way. Pose Where to watch: Netflix About: Another show set in the 80s, this time in the world of ballroom in New York. The series dives into the glamorous (and not so glamorous) lives of queer people living in the Big Apple. The show features the largest cast of trans actors in television history, adding another to the reasons to watch this revolutionary revis...

Marsha P. Johnson and the Stonewall Riots

27Feb

By Jordan ThorneNo Comments

Features

Marsha P. Johnson and the Stonewall Riots

Marsha P. Johnson, an African American drag artist, was an individual that earned great respect due to their activism in the 1960s and 70s, in a fight for rights and equality for the LGBTQ+ community. Johnson first came to prominence in 1969 after the occurrence of the Stonewall raid, when the New York Police Department (NYPD) raided a gay bar in New York with the name ‘The Stonewall Inn’. Over 200 people were forced out into the streets and treated with excessive violence, and Johnson was amongst those who stood up to the police during this raid. This courage in the midst of an extremely terrifying event sparked inspiration throughout the country; in the following days Johnson led a series of protests and riots that were supported by the great uproa...

Royal Holloway’s Partial Accommodation Refunds

25Jan

By Jordan ThorneNo Comments

Features

Royal Holloway’s Partial Accommodation Refunds

Many students returned to their non term-time addresses for Christmas during December’s safe travel window but have found themselves unable to return to university due to the new lockdown imposed by the government on 4th January. Currently the date set for a review of lockdown is 22nd February, and this is the earliest possible time teaching could return to face-to-face. There has been outrage on social media about the impact of this lockdown on university students, both in terms of study and financially. Notably university students were not mentioned in the Prime Minister’s lockdown announcement, with information only released afterwards encouraging students to stay at their current location. Royal Holloway student, Finley Dyer tweeted “#nationallockdown Now that we’re in Tier 4 lo...

My first week working as an UberEATS courier in Egham

25Jan

By Jordan ThorneNo Comments

Features

My first week working as an UberEATS courier in Egham

During lockdown, like many people across the country, I signed up to become an UberEATS partner. The requirements for bicycle delivery? A bicycle (of course), photo ID, a bank statement & background check, proof of your right to work in the UK ,and a smartphone. The signup was straightforward, but the DBS check through Uber’s employment background checker Sterling took longer than expected. I was on the road about six weeks after signing up, but the wait may now be longer now due to a reported surge in applications. Uber Community Guidelines recommend you wear a certified, fitted helmet, use an insulated bag (I bought Uber’s own for £42.50 as well as their reflective rain jacket for £28.00), a battery pack, a bicycle phone mount and front & rear lights. Once m...

25Jan

By Jordan ThorneNo Comments

Features

The Fight for the Free School Meal

Free school meals were introduced in the early 20th century when a nursery school pioneer, Margaret McMillan, lobbied for the Provision of Meals bill in 1906. McMillan argued that if education were to be compulsory for children, then it should therefore be the responsibility of the state to provide meals for the children coming to school, particularly for those coming from lower income families. There has been great uproar following the recent debates regarding whether free school meals should continue to be provided throughout the ongoing pandemic and school holidays to lower income families. Many politicians voted against the continuation of this, including Matt Hancock, the Secretary of State for Health. Someone whose voice has particularly stood out in this uproar is profes...