royal holloway – Page 14 of 25

The Nightmare Before Christmas – The Return of Thomas Cramer

14Nov

By Shreya BeekarryNo Comments

News

The Nightmare Before Christmas – The Return of Thomas Cramer

Cramer's criminal behaviour report - via Surrey Police With the nights getting darker as winter approaches and headlines in the media warning of increased injection spiking, worry and insecurity is considered at an all-time high for university students looking to celebrate the first winter in two years without a lockdown. Unfortunately, there’s a pressing, returning worry for the student body of Royal Holloway. It takes the form of Thomas Cramer. The 29-year-old was discovered in the third term of last year taking unsolicited pictures primarily of the female populace on campus. He subsequently posted these images to social media. In response to those taking a punch at him in the comments for his perverted actions, he used derogatory comments, which included racial pre...

14Nov

By Lee MillerNo Comments

Sports & Socs

The Premier League Checkpoint

The 2021/22 English Premier League season has well and truly kicked off, but how is it shaping up? Leading the way is Chelsea, who are proving to be a well organised team. With the best defence and second most goals scored so far, it’s going to take a lot to slow this team down, their eyes set on a sixth premier league title. Liverpool remain the only unbeaten team. In close second, Liverpool’s squad are almost fully fit, desperate not to lose out due to injury as they did in previous seasons. Mo Salah, a forward for Liverpool, has been unplayable for the most part but if he makes a solid comeback that could be pivotal, allowing him to haunt his former team, Chelsea, come May 2022. Manchester City won't be happy with their start, having lost twice already. Pep Guardi...

14Nov

By Accalia SmithNo Comments

News, Opinion

Fact or Fiction?

How technology is helping to disrupt the truth ‘Fake News’ is a phrase most frequently associated with the likes of Donald Trump, pointing the finger at journalists for their sensationalist, subjective reporting and blaming them for the hate he received by many. Journalists have a lot of responsibility in that regard – we are a society built on the opinions of the masses and journalists have a large stake in swaying that opinion. Many also associate this issue with a rising ‘cancel culture’- one bad word and the twitter cavalry storm in. In the twenty-first century, we have got endless information at our fingertips. Thanks to the internet, we can momentarily discover breaking news or the height of a favourite celebrity; any kind of information that will satisfy a curiosity and ...

13Nov

By Accalia SmithNo Comments

News, Opinion

The Commercialisation of Religion

Many holidays, festivities and some of our daily activities that we celebrate more secularly are rooted in religious practices, but what does this mean for its traditional and cultural origins? “Nothing without intention, do nothing without intention”, says the lady in the bottom left corner at the start of Solange Knowles’ music video for ‘Almeda’. She rubs her hands with ‘Florida water’, used in spiritual traditions to purify and cleanse, next to several amethyst crystals symbolising trust and grace. The inclusion of such practices in a music video from a well-respected pop artist could be considered a bold move. For centuries, these traditions were demonised, and practitioners persecuted as organised religion took hold. But many young people seem to view their new ‘spiritual’ practices...

13Nov

By Madelaine GrayNo Comments

News, Opinion

The Diana Dilemma

The public’s obsession with Diana is as exploitative as the paparazzi who killed her. The final shot of series four of Netflix’s The Crown shows Emma Corrin as Princess Diana, a slow zoom bringing her wide, tear-filled eyes into prominence. It’s a haunting image, unpleasant to watch. In many ways, the whole series is. And yet we just can’t stop ourselves. Dianamania is back with a vengeance. Diana: The Musical was just released on Netflix (to a critical battering of possibly unrivalled ferocity), Spencer has recently hit the big screen, Rowing Blazers are re-releasing ‘iconic’ Diana fashion moments. Maybe it’s the upcoming 25th anniversary of her passing – is 25 years long enough that any semblance of respect goes out the window? It would seem so. With each year that passes, the ...

How an Investment Gap is Perpetuating Gender Inequality

13Nov

By Accalia SmithNo Comments

News, Opinion

How an Investment Gap is Perpetuating Gender Inequality

When most people think of investing, they think of Leonardo DiCaprio in Wolf of Wall Street or of pompous men in suits with briefcases; this thinking needs to change. Our society is built on what we value and how much we value it, and investment is one of the most influential ways we show our value of businesses and the way that many grow their wealth. But more men than women invest. According to HSBC only 2.4 million of their 11 million investing customers are women and just 23% of female adults in the UK hold an investment product, compared with 35% of men (Shares magazine). In a similar figure from Bph Wealth just 1 in 5 women in the UK hold an investment product compared with 1 in 3 men. Financial independence is key in gaining more freedom in the western world, something that is ofte...

13Nov

By Emma HollyNo Comments

News, Opinion

Taking Up Space (and Keeping it)

When Roxane Gay said that “weight loss, thinness really, was a social currency”, she hit the unfortunate nail on the even more unfortunate head. It’s a currency I lack, along with roughly two billion overweight others. Weight loss is a powerful industry and has the world within its grip; if it’s not fat-free yoghurt, it’s the brand new meal-replacement smoothie. If it’s not that, it’s fatphobia. Fatphobia is described as a “fear of fatness”, which is shocking enough itself. It gets more disturbing when you realise that the vast majority of fat people have had experiences with it. Although there isn’t one specific cause of fatphobia, the media has played an important role in its rapid expansion. Quite frankly, the media is obsessed with weight. Rebel Wilson is on a diet? You can hear th...

Halloween Costumes: Sexually Objectifying or Empowering to Women

2Nov

By Elena-Teodora ChiujdeaNo Comments

News, Opinion

Halloween Costumes: Sexually Objectifying or Empowering to Women

After Fresher’s week, a highly anticipated time for first years starting off at university, Halloween marks the second most awaited celebration. Royal Holloway had organised a chain of events, from pumpkin carving to horror movie nights, but the majority look forward to all the Halloween parties. Like every year, students scattered the campus in elaborate or last-minute costumes and as usual there were an overwhelming number of girls stereotypically dressed. The sexy police officer, sexy schoolgirl, sexy nurse – you get the idea. So, the unavoidable question stands. Are girls peer pressured into choosing these costumes, in the hopes of fitting in, or is it empowering to know you can be anything you want for a night? For students and young people in general, Halloween celebrations...

Orbital’s Madelaine Gray Covers Royal Holloway’s XR Protest: How It Happened & What Next?

30Oct

By Madelaine GrayNo Comments

Features, News

Orbital’s Madelaine Gray Covers Royal Holloway’s XR Protest: How It Happened & What Next?

“Climate change isn’t stopping,” says one of today’s protesters on location at Royal Holloway. “It isn’t slowing down for anyone. There’s no time to delay.” And so it would seem. It’s a chilly day on campus, one of the first on which you’d be hard pressed to find a student without a coat or scarf. There’s been the threat of rain all morning, from both the forecast and the ominous-looking clouds. But the protesters are undeterred. After all, with climate change comes the promise of more rainy days, even in perpetually sodden Britain. Since launching three years ago, Extinction Rebellion has been catapulted to the forefront of British media coverage of climate change. Their bold statements and radical approach, based on the historic practice of civil disobedience, has caused both a hu...

18Oct

By Bridget OSullivanNo Comments

Features

KLKutz: In Review

KLKutz is one of Royal Holloway’s underappreciated gems; too many students either go back home to their local barbershop or pay up to £40 for a sub-par cut on Egham high street. Well, they’re missing out and wasting money. Anthony Gidis started studying computer science at Royal Holloway in 2018. In the summer leading up to Freshers, he had a dilemma: Anthony wanted the university experience, he just didn’t want the university budget. It was either live in frugality or find a way to earn an income outside of maintenance payments. Frugality was the bleaker option. Anthony had been getting weekly haircuts since his early teens; something he realised he’d have to forfeit on his university budget. Rather than mourning his haircuts, that summer he learnt how to barber for himself. ...