News – Page 3 of 37 – The Orbital

Royal Holloway Denies Claims of Partnerships with Israeli-Military-Backing Entities

11Dec

By Isobel CarnochanNo Comments

News

Royal Holloway Denies Claims of Partnerships with Israeli-Military-Backing Entities

By Isobel Carnochan, Senior Culture Editor Recently, Association of Student Activism for Palestine (AoSAfP) circulated a flyer arguing that Royal Holloway, University of London “runs over £12.3 million in cyber-security research with BAE Systems and Thales”, who both supply military equipment to Israel. The flyer further identified Tel Aviv University as a “Key Partnership” of Royal Holloway, which it claims is “deeply engaged in defence R&D [research and development], military innovation, [and] intelligence work with the IDF”. AoSAfP also suggested that students use slogans online, such as “#CutTiesWithBAEAndThales”. A spokesperson for Royal Holloway, University of London told The Orbital: “Royal Holloway partners with a wide range of organisations to deliver high-...

4Dec

By Lily GregoryNo Comments

News

Is Academia Moving on from Classics?

By Lily Gregory, Senior Agony Aunt In the last academic year (2024/25), many news outlets reported the declining situations of many universities' financial problems. This issue could be found in many universities across the UK, and it appeared to impact the Classics community the most. In 2024, it was reported that the University of Roehampton had shut down their Classics Department, and Cardiff University would no longer run its course called “Archaeology and Ancient History” from 2026. For Classics and other Humanities Departments, things were not looking good. As a current Master of Arts student in Ancient History (and a Bachelor of Arts student in Classical Studies from 2021 to 2025), this was deeply worrying for me; the subject I loved seemed to be under threat. Rum...

The Orbital Investigates: Is Royal Holloway a Politically Alienated Campus?

27Nov

By Madeline SidgwickNo Comments

News

The Orbital Investigates: Is Royal Holloway a Politically Alienated Campus?

By Madeline Sidgwick, Senior News Editor Last academic year, over some Crosslands pints, myself and my peers came to the conclusion that Royal Holloway is not a politically active campus. It is a common stereotype that Brits are their most politically active, and adventurous, in their student years; archetypes of student protestors or the leaders of political societies that go on to take high office (the Jeremy Corbyn and Boris Johnson's of the world). Many in the older generation would point to their youth as their time of being ‘politically radical’ or ‘waving the red flag’. Winston Churchill himself can be quoted stating ‘If you are not a Liberal when you are young, you have no heart, If you are not a Conservative when old, you have no brain’. Now I am not endorsing Mr Churchil...

Breaking news: Toast makes its return on Monday 17th November!

11Nov

By Ruby SharkieNo Comments

News

Breaking news: Toast makes its return on Monday 17th November!

Photo: RHSU Ruby Sharkie, Associate News Editor After teasing it on their Instagram a week ago, the Students' Union (@surhul) has just announced in an Instagram reel that the free entry night-life event Toast will be returning to campus on Monday 17th November 2025. Unlike last year, the Monday night event will be hosted at the SU venue after the recent closure of the Medicine venue. This now totals to two mascot-based events next week, one being Quackers on Wednesdays with a big yellow duck mascot, and now Toast. Although the tickets have not been released on the Royal Holloway Students' Union (RHSU) website, VP Societies and Sports David Gallardo González said in the 11 second reel: “Come for free entry, cheaper drinks and good vibes, all at the SU”. The re...

Remembrance Day celebrations in Royal Holloways’ Student Community

11Nov

By Madeline SidgwickNo Comments

News

Remembrance Day celebrations in Royal Holloways’ Student Community

By Madeline Sidgwick and Ruby Sharkie, Senior and Associate News Editors This time 107 years ago David Loyd George, the British prime minister, announced the end of World War One (WW1) - now, we celebrate Remembrance Day and Remembrance Sunday to remember those fallen during the wars and those currently still in the armed forces. There are many celebrations happening on and around Remembrance Day including The National Service of Remembrance (where members of the Royal family pay tribute alongside Members of the Cabinet, Opposition Party leaders and former Prime Ministers), the Poppy Appeal, parades and many more. On campus, the Chaplaincy team hosted their annual Remembrance Evensong on the Sunday followed by a Remembrance Day Service on the 11th. The Royal British Legion...

The Louvre Heist: When Movement Shook the Stillness of Power

29Oct

By Liv Briens MonteroNo Comments

News

The Louvre Heist: When Movement Shook the Stillness of Power

By Liv Briens Montero, Staff Writer On the 19th of October, Sunday morning in Paris, the world’s most visited museum became a stage for an old fashioned heist. It truly sounds like something out of a mystery novel: a handful of men dressed as workers, a crane and a broken window- and the Louvre, the holy grail of French culture and history, robbed in broad daylight. In the age of elaborate technology, such as facial recognition and AI-driven surveillance, the burglars did not need high tech hackers or tools. They simply climbed, cut and left on their scooters. The world watched in disbelief. How could the most frequented museum on Earth, home to some of the most famous paintings, as well as the very symbols of France’s grandeur, be humiliated by an operation so simple it...

In Conversation with… VP David Gallardo González.

29Oct

By Ruby SharkieNo Comments

News

In Conversation with… VP David Gallardo González.

Image by: RHSU By Ruby Sharkie, Associate News Editor Last week, I had the opportunity to meet with and interview the Vice President (VP) of Societies and Sports: David Gallardo González. We met at the bustling Students’ Union (SU) Helpdesk, with SU team members passing us amidst their daily work. One of the first things I asked David was to introduce himself and his goals. He said his main goals for the academic year were to meet his Priority 8’s - To make timetables more student-friendly and and making the student events more affordable. “As a film nerd myself - I want to do a lot of that through social media” The VP graduated from Royal Holloway with a degree in Film but said that it wasn't the defining factor for his win in his campaign. “I...

In Conversation with Royal Holloway Friends of Palestine

13Oct

By Madeline SidgwickNo Comments

News

In Conversation with Royal Holloway Friends of Palestine

By Madeline Sidgwick, Senior News Editor In September I had the opportunity to interview Huda and Noah, the President and Secretary of Friends of Palestine society here at Royal Holloway for the 2025-2026 academic year. Upon preparing for this interview I wanted to reveal the practicalities of becoming a ratified SU society as well as the challenges that specifically activist related campus groups face. In a productive and inspiring conversation, Huda and Noah were transparent in the struggles they face on campus and emphasised the undeniable importance that students get involved in campus activism. How did you find the process of organising ‘Friends of Palestine’?The origins of the society are in Arab Society. Huda described to me the process of becoming a ratified society as simp...

6Oct

By Ruby SharkieNo Comments

News

Medicine: The Closure and the Impact

By Ruby Sharkie, Associate News Editor There was once a place at Royal Holloway, unknown to many current first years, that held countless memories for second and third years. Free entry, crowded dancefloors, Toast and a beloved photobooth… Medicine was a hub of socialisation, cheap drinks and themed nights out. In June 2025, the Royal Holloway Students’ Union (RHSU) board of Trustees decided that Medicine would be closed, and in September, the closure was announced publicly. This came to much distraught and surprise to the students of Royal Holloway, meaning that there were no free-entry bars on campus. During a time of cost of living and rising student debt, this closure seems counter-intuitive to many. It begs the question: “are universities doing all they can to be acce...

UK Supreme Court Rule “The Definition of a Woman is Defined by Biological Sex”: Royal Holloway Reacts

26May

By Madeline SidgwickNo Comments

News

UK Supreme Court Rule “The Definition of a Woman is Defined by Biological Sex”: Royal Holloway Reacts

By Madeline Sidgwick : Editor-In-Chief April 16th, 2025, saw the UK Supreme Court rule that the terms “woman” and “sex” in the 2010 Equality Act “refer to a biological woman and biological sex”. The ruling will result in transgender women being excluded from female only spaces and that in the eyes of the legal system, that sex is defined in biological terms rather than by gender identity. The ruling will undeniably impact the lives of all the transgender community. Upon surveying Royal Holloway students on their feelings, concerns and what they deem is suitable action going ahead considering the ruling, it has become clear that students have many differing concerns. Many see the ruling as a huge step backwards in terms of Queer rights and that it provides “a gateway for further pr...