Sports & Socs – Page 10 of 22

Dissent & Disapproval: English PEN’s Muslim Ban Protest

1Mar

By Michele TheilNo Comments

Sports & Socs

Dissent & Disapproval: English PEN’s Muslim Ban Protest

President Trump’s executive order banning refugees, migrants and visitors from Iran, Iraq, Syria, Sudan, Libya, Yemen and Somalia from entering the United States for a period of three months has sparked protests all over the whole world. As those seven countries are predominantly Muslim, people have taken to calling it a ‘Muslim Ban’ and protesting against it in an effort to stand against the somewhat questionable reasoning behind the ban. The English PEN society, headed up by Rebecca Wilson, organised a protest on the 2nd of February for Royal Holloway students. People gathered at The Hub and proceeded to march along the road up past the Students Union, congregating in Founders South Quad to stand, chant and listen to speeches made by representatives from the English PEN society, the M...

23Feb

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Sports & Socs

Puttin’ On The Ritz

Kathryn Pearson reports on RHUL Classical Society's highly anticipated Bacchanalia Ball. On the 27th of January, Classical Society hosted a night of glamour and style at their annual Bacchanalia Ball. The black-tie event was hosted in aid of the Iris Project, a charity dedicated to the promotion of Classics in state schools across the UK, and raised a staggering total of £744. The evening kicked off with a drinks reception in Founder's where guests received complimentary nibbles and a Buck's Fizz on arrival, before heading down to the Dining Hall to enjoy live entertainment, provided by RHUL's Gospel Choir, as well as Australian singer Sam Lawrence. As the society's chosen charity, the Iris Project is based on the principle that all children should have the opportunity to learn the...

14Feb

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Sports & Socs

Learning Self Defence

On the 8th of February, the Royal Holloway Karate, Judo and Ninjutsu ran Royal Holloway’s first free self-defence lesson. I arrived in the SU to discover a large group of 50 or so students already waiting. Before the class started, I asked some students why they had chosen to come. Most people replied that they had come because self-defence was a useful skill, that it would make them feel more secure. On being asked if they felt safe on campus, there was a unanimous agreement that the campus was very safe. A lot of the students there had little to no prior experience in self-defence, though a few people came with some previous martial arts experience under their belt. Once everyone had entered the class, the martial arts groups formed us in a loose circle and the instructor, Preside...

8Feb

By Michele TheilNo Comments

Sports & Socs

Comedy Society Showcase

Royal Holloway’s Comedy Society is popular for one reason: everyone wants to laugh. There are around 20 regular members of the society as well as many others that attend and perform at specific events, making the eventual number of participants in the Comedy Society uncertain but high. The Santa Isn’t Real event on the 7th of December was a striking representation of what Comedy Society represents their dedication to the “appreciation and performance of comedy”, as the description of the society’s Student Union page states. Several students went up onto the stage at Stumble Out to make jokes, sing songs and perform skits about Christmas and Santa in honour of the season. Stand-up comedy has gained notoriety and recognition in the last few years as an increasing number of stand-up comedi...

6Feb

By Michele TheilNo Comments

Sports & Socs

Dancing With The Stars

The Royal Hollywood Dance Show, hosted by the RHUL Dance Society, consisted of three acts of differing dance styles as well as a few musical performances, all performed to an incredible level. The Dance Society’s annual show had dances choreographed to songs from famous films across the ages with rehearsals only beginning 4 weeks ago, an amazing feat for the calibre of performances I witnessed. While every piece was outstanding in its own way, there were several standout performances that I found to be particularly amazing and deserving of recognition. ‘Inside The OR’, a competition street dance choreographed by Dance Society President Eden Brown, had dancers in surgical scrubs and masks, dancing to theme songs from medical TV shows. ‘Upside Down’, a Burlesque piece ...

1Feb

By Michele TheilNo Comments

Sports & Socs

Reuniting Through Poetry

The Royal Holloway English PEN society hosted a poetry and speaking event on the 2nd of December that aimed to highlight the differences and similarities between the Eastern and Western worlds. According to the English PEN society, the event was about “breaking down the East/West divide, through poetry and spoken word”. The event saw several students, one staff member and two outsider poets speaking about dual nationality and their positions in both the Western and Eastern worlds. Victoria Bulley and Antosh Wojcik, the two outsider poets, as well as Jazz Kaur, Modupe Reis, Prudence Chamberlain and Dr. Eley Williams all dazzled the audience with their insightful observations regarding the “East/West divide” and their own experiences of it, emphasising the notion of free speech that is ensh...

30Jan

By Izzy SwansonNo Comments

Sports & Socs

Bring It On MTS.

There is no doubt that the Musical Theatre Society had a busy 2016; last term's production of ‘Bring It On’ received rave reviews and this success was emulated by the success of their Christmas Concert, with a record number of participants and audience members. And this year, they’re showing no signs of slowing down. First up for the society is their production of ‘Marvel vs. DC: The Musical’, from the 18th-21st of February, a show written, produced and directed entirely by its first year members. The original plot will blend the popular comic book characters with existing musical theatre songs and is advertised as ‘a great, comedic show with many unexpected twists and turns, which promises to be fun for everyone.’ Their next big production will be ‘Spring Awakening’ from the 12th-15...

26Jan

By Michele TheilNo Comments

Sports & Socs

Rowing to the Rescue

On the 5th of December, the members of the Royal Holloway Rowing club sat on rowing machines outside Bedford Library and aimed to row 346km, the length of the Thames river. The fundraiser was in aid of the Midlands Air Ambulance Charity and the British Heart Foundation as well as the purchase of a new boat for the club’s competitions. Each member was required to sign up for at least one hour of rowing (or 12km) as part of the fundraiser. In the end, the rowers surpassed both their distance and fundraising goals. They rowed over 500km, the distance to Calais, France and raised £633, exceeding the £500 they originally aimed to raise. The idea for the fundraiser began when the father of one of their senior rowers passed away from a heart attack very suddenly. The club rallied around the me...

24Jan

By Emma HalahanNo Comments

Sports & Socs

Marrow Society: An Introduction

Emma Halahan finds out more about the latest society to get ratified, Marrow, linked to the bone marrow donation charity, Anthony Nolan. 1) Congrats on getting ratified! Tell us more about your society. RHUL Marrow forms part of a wider cross country student-led network that helps raise awareness of blood and bone disorders effectively saving hundreds of lives year after year. There are 3 main aspects to our work; spreading awareness, fundraising and donor recruitment events where we take spit samples and fill in some paperwork. We will also be holding training events for those of you who are interested in joining us as volunteers. One of the striking things about Marrow is how unified this organisation is and as president I love seeing and meeting people who share this zest for l...

Acapalooza with Absolute Harmony: An A Cappella Festival!

18Jan

By No Comments

Sports & Socs

Acapalooza with Absolute Harmony: An A Cappella Festival!

Absolute Harmony will be kicking off Term 2 with Acapalooza: a festival celebrating all things A cappella! As Royal Holloway’s only A cappella choir, we believe in fun, un-auditioned music and variety. With that in mind Acapalooza will be a great event drawing on all of the best parts of musical enjoyment and performing. The festival will be taking place between January 21st-28th and each day Absolute Harmony will be hosting an exciting event. Acapalooza will be bringing in collaborators from other performing arts societies to make it the best one yet! Events to be expected include an ‘Open Rehearsal’ on the Monday 23rd followed by a ‘Lip Sync’ at Stumble Out, a ‘film night’, an ‘MD swap’ with Voices and ‘Absolute Harmony takes over Stumble Live’! These are just some of the events to ex...