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The coronavirus pandemic has changed the way many of us work. Unsurprisingly, museums and the broader heritage sector have had to drastically change their working practices too, moving the focus of their work to the digital sphere. Egham Museum has been no different in this regard and the pandemic has allowed us to develop new forms of digital engagement and ways of using social media. At the beginning of October, we had our most successful Twitter campaign, a ‘Choose Your Own Adventure’ thread set at Royal Holloway in October 1887 and based on the experiences of the first cohort of students. The opening tweet in the thread sees you assume the fictional character of Flora Seville and your challenge is to get through the day without being sent to the Principal’s Office. Although Flora is a...

Wednesday 7th October aired the second live debate in the US presidential election campaign. This time it was the Vice-Presidential debate: Kamala Harris versus Mike Pence. If elected, Harris would be the first female and the first African American Vice President, perhaps setting the stage for her to then run for president in 2024 and 2028. This alone shows the steps that the USA is gradually taking to becoming a more equal society in terms of race and gender. This is a turning point in America. However, the debate was full of constant interruptions. Not unusual if following the format of last week’s debate between Donald Trump and Joe Biden; the latter eventually breaking and going as far to tell Trump to “shut up, man” after Trump reportedly made 71 interruptions. The frustration fel...

In its seventy-year history, only one black driver has ever sat on the starting grid of a Formula One race. As it happens, that driver has gone on to become one of the greatest competitors that the sport has ever seen. With six world championships and ninety race victories to his name already, Lewis Hamilton is within touching distance of breaking all the records that matter. Throughout his racing career, Hamilton’s on-track performances have always done the talking, but now it seems as though the 35-year-old Brit believes it is time to speak up. Having been inspired by this summer’s Black Lives Matter protests in America, Lewis Hamilton has spent much of the year using his vast platform to speak out about racial injustice and inequality. His campaigning has been consistent and unwa...

Courtney Bridges Peter Preston describes how the decline in print media has been viewed as ‘standard stuff’ amid ‘digital carnage’, however  facts regarding the decline of radio and television news viewing are described as emerging ‘more elliptically’. This has been proven as the UK witnesses the removal of local radio to some extent, with stations being removed or replaced. Radio was already in decline, and this was further exacerbated by pandemic conditions. A possible reason for their removal lies within the pressure applied to stations as a result of COVID-19, causing radio to lose out on key advertising revenue, as broadcasting saw tougher operating conditions.  As radio is slowly being left behind, its significance as a form of leisure and recreation for many w...

The UK government has scrapped new plans which were set to allow people to change their gender on official documents, without a medical diagnosis. The plans, which were developed under Theresa May’s government, had been part of a long-awaited reform of transgender representation within the legal system. The current legislation was last updated in 2004 and involves a lengthy process should trans people wish to officially change their gender on public documents, such as their birth certificate. As it stands, they must be over the age of eighteen, have lived as their preferred gender for at least two years, and be able to provide medical evidence of gender dysphoria to a panel. On top of that, individuals are currently obliged to pay a £140 charge for a gender recognition certificate. ...

A prominent and liberal judge on the US Supreme Court, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg has died aged 87. She has now become the first women to be laid to rest at the US Capitol building. Although her passing has little impact on the UK, the legacy that she leaves can be an inspiration to us all.  The Supreme Court in America constitutes one third of the government; the federal judiciary branch. The cases ruled on by those judges have changed the political landscape in the US whilst also advancing the rights of many US citizens. For example, the case of Brown vs Board of Education in 1954 led the Supreme Court to rule that racial segregation of children in public schools was unconstitutional. In 1973 Roe vs Wade saw the judiciary also give women the right to have abortions. The Supreme...

Royal Holloway Debating Society have been widely criticised for inviting the former Labour MP Chris Williamson to give a talk as part of their guest speaker series. The Student’s Union stepped in to ensure that the controversial event, due to run on the evening of 5th October, was cancelled after the society received backlash for inviting an openly anti-Semitic speaker.  Williamson, the former Shadow Minister for Communities and Local Government, was suspended from the Labour Party last year, after a series of comments which underplayed and dismissed anti-Semitism within the party. Formerly the MP for Derby North, the 64-year-old politician described Labour as being ‘too apologetic’ over reported incidents within Jeremy Corbyn’s opposition.  He also attracted ire for admit...

With students returning to or beginning their university experience this autumn amidst the Coronavirus pandemic, many feared restrictions living with the virus would only ensure to make university life more challenging.  This comes alongside recent UCU warnings of a ‘silent avalanche of infections’, in a BBC interview as Jo Grady emphasised how student mass migration away from home ‘[risked] doing untold damage… and exacerbating the worst public health crisis of our lifetimes’.  Universities UK spoke for campus leaders, assuring face-to-face teaching was only to take place ‘where it is safe and appropriate to do so’. With little notice, but also a desire to return to some normality, we have seen students embark on this migration to universities across the country, and to R...

The COVID-19 pandemic has changed the way that we live. For those of us lucky enough to have emerged unscathed, it’s changed how we socialise, how we shop, and even how we receive our education. That is perhaps most true for students who had been planning to spend the 2020/21 academic year abroad. As a result of the need to minimise intercontinental spread of the virus, many students have seen their plans for the year ahead cancelled. Plus, those considering applying for an opportunity to study outside the UK, might be worried about how the pandemic will affect them too. This article, however, will hopefully shed some light on the subject. For students who have seen their plans cancelled, the university has introduced new measures to avoid disappointment where possible. In a normal cli...