CLAM UP!! - Seren - Bangor University

Seren - Christmas Issue 2007Dr Drums!After five years of post graduate studyand a total of eight years study DewiEllis Jones has achieved a doctoratein Music Performance and Composition inMusic. A student at Bangor University, he isthe first person in the country to do so.Hailing from Anglesey, Dewi has studiedfrom renowned figures such as Dame EvelynGlennie, Dr Pwyll Ap Sion and SimoneRebello. ‘I was lucky enough to study composition…withtwo of the country’s leadingpercussionists.’, says Dewi. In his eight yearsleading to the Phd, Dewi has had manyachievements. In 2001 he achieved a BMUS(Hons) and went on to get a MA degree. Ontop of this Dewi has a LRSM PerformanceDiploma from the Royal Schools of Music.‘Welsh Universities such as Bangor [are] atthe forefront’, Dewi explains regarding hisdoctorate.Even without his doctorate Dewi is veryinvolved with music. Dewi is Wales’ only fulltime solo percussionist. He has featured onboth TV and radio programmes. As well asthis Dewi is also a freelance Orchestral andband percussionist. Not including freelancework Dewi is the principle percussionist in‘Ensemble Cymru’. ‘Ensemble Cymru’ havebeen called ‘ambassadors for all that is goodabout music-making in Wales these days’.Aside from this Dewi is also involved withother projects such as the recording of a newCD. Dewi is also involved with Trinque, aproject including Claire Jones (Harpist) andRhys Taylor (Clarinettist/Saxophonist).‘The degree would not have been possibleDr Drums: Dewi Ellis Joneswithout their support [lecturers]’, says Dewi.However Dewi also points out the importanceof support from his family and girlfriend‘and the constant encouragement frommy parents, grandmother and girlfriend’.Dewi is described as a ‘top bloke’ by thosewho know him. A musical talent, Dewi EllisJones has a bright future ahead of him inthe musical world. Currently Dewi is busytouring North Wales and says ‘each concertbrings with it new and exciting experiences’.On 1st December Dewi performed at thePrichard Jones Hall, Bangor. He will also beplaying at the launch of Claire Jones’ new CDon the 10th December.David Horn3QUESTIONS ABOUT STUDENT DEBT?HERE ARE SOME ANSWERS:Afew weeks ago, during the Queen’sParliamentary opening speech, it wasannounced that the government areselling £18 billion worth of student debt to theprivate sector. This figure constitutes nearlya third of the £55 billion the Student LoansCompany (SLC) expects to loan to studentsover the next ten years.Press coverage of this event was minimal,as the announcement seemed to meanlittle to anyone but students. But whatdoes it really mean to us? Will we all bepaying back double what we have borrowed?The government said any panic isunfounded and has promised the salewill make no difference to the termsand conditions for individual borrowers.It said it will retain control of theloan arrangements, including interestrates and repayment schemes.It seems then, that the changesshouldn’t affect us too much. However,considering that only a few months agointerest rates on student loans doubledto 4.8%, many students feel they are beingfinancially punished for wanting to furthertheir education. At the time of the rate rise,the SLC explained that its interest rates werecalculated annually in September, on the basisof the March Retail Price Index (RPI). “Usingthis figure allows us to get a true reading ofthe value of what has been lent as the valueof the pound fluctuates,” said Ian McLarenThompson, a spokesperson from the SLC, “Itdoes not, and is not intended to, produce anysurplus for us”.THE BLUDGEONERThe Bludgeoner noted with extreme University is a voyage of discovery in so itself, one would surmise. It’s easy enough tointerest this week whilst avoiding many ways; another chap from the library get a young chap some Lego or that stuff in athoughts of Christmas shopping that department was giving the attic a spring pot that makes fart sounds, but there comes aresearchers at some university or other (obviouslya bit keen as the Research AssessmentExercise deadline swings by) have discoveredthat chimps are more intelligent thanstudents. Putting aside that they were fromthe media studies course at NottinghamTrent (the chimps that is; the students werestudying Russian literature at Cambridge)the Bludgeoner enjoys a good bit of scientificendeavour – in fact just the other monthsome chap at Menai Bridge was out on theUniversity yacht and hooked himself a centuries-oldclam for dinner. The Bludgeonersuspects that an aged mussel isn’t comparableto a finely antiqued wine, apparently it wasthe oldest living creature ever found. Theynamed it Sir Ming, for some reason – after aspot of digging the Bludgeoner finds out it’san amusing reference to some Chinese manwho used to be involved in politics.clean and found an old letter from somefamous Welsh chap which was in all of thepapers. Who needs to go on Bargain Huntwhen you’ve got your own set of AntiquesRoadshow experts just hanging around givingoccasional lectures and moaning aboutthe latest management initiative?Despite his morbid terror of having to gonear to his local High Street in order to purchaseoverpriced goods for people he hasn’tseen in 11 months (and why be so scared?Every week in the paper there’s someoneshopkeeper or other moaning that no-onevisits him anymore), the Bludgeoner is verymuch looking forward to Christmas this year;in fact it can’t come round quickly enough inthe Bludgeoner household. This child-likeglee is of course tempered by the fact that theBludgeoner is reaching an age where he onlygets crap presents. A voyage of discovery intime in your life when people have to play itbland simply not to cause offence. The Bludgeonerlooks forward to plenty of socks andthe odd bit of Avon shower gel.Yet still, ‘tis the season to be jolly – andwhat’s not to be jolly about? Who wouldn’t bejolly, what with constant rain, nippy weatherand the constant thrum of life beating aboutone’s temples? Oh yes, the Bludgeoner knowsthe very best thing about Christmas: it’snothing.Nothing and plenty of peanuts, with asmattering of James Bond.The Bludgeoner lives in Iran, with histhree children and stash of enriched uranium.WELSH EDUCATION CAMPAIGNOn Tuesday the 27th four students fromBangor went to Cardiff in the name ofWelsh Education. Higher EducationWales (HEW) were launching their paper ona Welsh College in the Assembly for the ministersand the important people in the Welsheducation sector. We too went to the bay withour alternative paper that was put together byRhys Llwyd, Welsh Language Officer for NUSWales and Menna Machreth from Cymdeithasyr Iaith, the Welsh Language Society.We have been campaigning for a WelshCollege for a few years now but what is itall about? Even though you can study somecourses through Welsh there is quite a limitedchoice. Around 15% of students in Walesstudy their A Levels through Welsh but bythe time they get to University this numberdrops to just 3%. However this figure is quitemisleading. To be part of this figure you onlyhave to be studying something through Welsh– and that ‘something’ can be as little as 25% ofa 10 credit module. So if you just speak Welshto your tutor you are more or less consideredto be studying in Welsh. The number of peopleactually studying in Welsh is much lower.Bangor is the biggest provider of Welshcourses in Wales. We are also in a universitythat is leading the way with regards to Welshcourses, being the first university to offer somescience modules in Welsh. Compared to otheruniversities that fail to offer even the most basiccourses through Welsh we are lucky, butthis still isn’t enough.Funding is also a big problem, at the momentWelsh education is given some £1.5million a year and although this sounds likea big sum of money, it’s only 0.5% of the totalamount spent on higher education in Wales.The alternative paper we presented to the ministersasked for an increase up to 5% so that wecan establish a Welsh College that’s worth having.Unfortunately HEW are only suggestingan increase of 1% in their paper. We were alsoasking that this extra funding is independentto the rest of the funding of higher educationin Wales.Why do we need to spend so much on thismany people? There are many students whowant to study in Welsh but just don’t have theopportunity. This is especially true in specialisedsubjects but why? There is difficulty fromboth sides with some courses. The terminologyis thought to be complicated, we hear themmost often in English so it’s very difficult to getused to using Welsh terms. Lecturers feel theydon’t have the terminology to be able to giveWelsh language lectures and students feel theywont understand the terminology.There is also a problem where some schoolsdon’t offer courses in Welsh because there isn’ta progression in the university, and the universitiesdon’t offer Welsh modules becausestudents don’t ask for them, because theyhaven’t done them through Welsh in school.So something needs to change. The governmentneed to take this step forward and giveWelsh education the chance it needs.Bethan WilliamsThis explanation did not stop huge hostilityfrom many students across the country andthe NUS itself. Many students expressed theirhostility through social networking site Facebook.The group “Protest Against Huge StudentLoans Interest Rate Hike, 2.4% to 4.8%has attracted nearly 13,000 members. It seemsthat there is more than just a little concernabout this issue.The vice-president of the NUS, Wes Streetingsaid: “We are obviously extremely concernedabout any increase in student debt.Graduates are in a precarious position whenthey leave university; many work in low paidjobs and can’t even begin to think about theproperty ladder, families and pensions.”Repayments of student debt are calculatedon the basis of what a borrower earns, not juston what they owe. This means that while thetotal amount owed will increase faster withthe new 4.8% rate, the sum of individual paymentswill be unaffected. However, any increasein loan amount will mean an extensionin the time it takes to pay it back. And it’s notjust the students that are concerned with thegovernment’s handling of our hard earneddebt.Professor Michael Driscoll, Vice-Chancellorof Middlesex University and Chair of theCMU Universities group is seeking assurancesthat any funds raised from the salewill be invested in higher education.He said “If student debt is sold off, theTreasury will have capitalised future incomestreams from students. Whateverthe merits of this approach, it would providean important one-off opportunity toaddress the backlog in capital investmentand the teaching infrastructure in universitieswhich has not yet been addressed bythe Government. Universities and studentswill be keen to have assurances that anysale will bring forward this much neededinvestment rather than being used to pluggaps in the Treasury’s finances.”None of us want to see our debt increase,but it seems that in today’s financialclimate, interest rate rises are unfortunatelyinevitable. If you do have any concerns aboutthe amount you will be paying back, or howthe changes affect you personally, you cancontact the Student Loans Company direct on0845 607 7577.Jo CaulfieldNEW CONSTITUTIONFOR NUSTuesday 4 December was an incrediblyimportant day for the National Unionof Students (NUS) as a new constitutionbased on a governance review instigatedback in April was finally passed at ExtraordinaryConference.For Bangor, involvement in this governancereview started in March, when we held areferendum on whether we should disaffiliatefrom NUS. Although our students ultimatelyvoted to stay affiliated to NUS, a relativelyhigh proportion of students voted to leave,enough to give the National Executive Committee(NEC) a bit of a fright.Our referendum was one of fifteen disaffiliationreferendums held around the countrylast year, a clear sign that something waswrong with NUS. The NEC recognised this,and at Annual Conference back in April, theyproposed to instigate a far-reaching governancereview, a proposal which was passed byan over-whelming majority.For those of you unfamiliar with governance,it is essentially the processes and structuresan organisation is based on. NUS’s governancestructures have become bloated andconvoluted over the years, and needed a completeoverhaul to turn it back into an efficient,democratic organisation.The governance review was led by a GovernanceReview Steering Group consisting ofthe National President, the National Secretary,four members of the NEC, representativesfrom two trade unions, three governance expertsand two student officers. I was one ofthose two officers, giving Bangor a huge inputin this extremely significant governancereview.The review process involved substantialconsultation, with 550 written submissionsand verbal submissions from consultationevents held up and down the country. Thesteering group considered all the submissions,synthesising them into a final set of proposalsto present to the NEC. Once the NEC hadapproved the proposals, 25 students’ unionsaround the country (including Bangor) submittedcalls for an Extraordinary Conferenceto discuss and vote on the proposed new constitution.This Conference was held in Leicester onTuesday 4 December and was attended byapproximately 400 students’ unions and 800delegates. After a long day of debating andimpassioned speeches, Conference finally approvedthe new constitution with well over thetwo-thirds majority it required.So what’s different? The main change isthat the roles and responsibilities of differentsections of NUS are much clearer. The NEChas been abolished and will be replaced bytwo separate bodies: a Board which deals withthe administration (e.g. finance, human resources,legal compliance) and a Senate whichdeals with the political side of things, such asrunning campaigns, lobbying Parliament andsetting interim policy.The renamed Annual Congress will still bethe primary policy-making body and will stillbe enormous. But the introduction of ZoneConferences (e.g. Higher Education Zone,Welfare Zone, Union Development Zone) todiscuss and pass some policy in advance ofthe Annual Congress will speed up the policymakingprocess considerably, allowing broadlyconsensual policy to pass before AnnualCongress so that we can spend time debatingthe more contentious issues.In the past, Conference has spent so longdebating a controversial policy motion (suchas whether NUS should campaign for free educationor to ‘keep the cap’ at £3000 per year)that policy that would have been passed easily(such as creating a Mature Students Officer)didn’t even get discussed.The changes themselves are extremelybroad and far-reaching, and will allow NUSto use less resources on lengthy processes andmore on improving the lives of our students.It may take a year or more for the changes tobe truly felt, but Bangor students should beproud that we played such an integral part inthis reform.For more information, visit http://www.officeronline.co.uk/library/governance/274840.aspxCarolan Goggin

4 Seren - Christmas Issue 2007STUDENTVIEWSCONTINUED FROMFRONT PAGE2nd Year MarineBiology &OceanographyStudentThe department has gone downhill.There is not a lot of support as thereare hardly any lectures with the new20 credit modules that have been introduced.I feel that we are being pushed into a singledirection of study, rather than having an openchoiceas there are no module options. Lastyear you could choose from five or six differentmodules, and you really felt you were studyingwhat you were interested in. The lectureswere broader and more in-depth.The practicals seem to be very similar towhat we were doing last year so you don’t feelthat you are learning anything new. The timetablevaries weekly with 14/15 hours of studyone week, then only three hours the next.I was looking forward to working morewith Andy Yule and John Lachford as theywere brilliant lecturers who knew their subjectsvery well and were very helpful, but theyboth left at the end of last year.I came 300 miles away from home tocome to Bangor University as it was supposedto be the best for Ocean Sciences, but I nowfeel I could have easily gone to Plymouth orSouthampton and got as good a, if not a better,standard of degree.[On the news that Bangorscientists killed the oldest clam]It’s a bit stupid really, but it sounds like agenuine mistake.1st YearMarine BiologyStudentIreally like the course but I’m disappointedthat I wasn’t given any module choices atthe beginning of term as I was expecting.Some of the modules are not very in-depthand it feels like the lecturers are rushing to getthrough all the content.We’ve had quite a few cases of lectures beingcancelled with no warning, but I’m findingthe practicals really enjoyable. I can seewhy some of the recent changes could bedetrimental for some people, but I’m lookingforward to doing a written dissertation ratherthan practical-based project, as it fits in betterwith my working style.[On the news that Bangorscientists killed the oldest clam]I’m not too bothered really; there are probablyplenty of other old clams down there.MEN VERSUS WOMEN:ARE WOMEN BEING PAID LESS?The treatment of women in the workplacehas greatly improved over thelast few decades. For a start we wereallowed to work! The days of women beingno more than stay at home mothers are over.The lure of success on the career ladder has ledto many women holding some of the highestprofessional positions in theworld. Currently womenalready outnumber men asdoctors and solicitors; twoof the world’s most highlypaid and qualified professions.However a recentarticle in Glamour magazinerevealed that the gapbetween women’s and men’ssalaries is alarmingly high.Reading that article ledme to investigate just howmuch women are discriminatedagainst in the workplace. If you’re consideringa job in a male dominatedindustry and you think thatin this day and age womenand men are paid equally fordoing the same job, you maybe in for a slight shock.Women graduates are paid less than theirmale counterparts from the very beginning oftheir careers; men are earning at least £1000more than their college classmates withinWomen of child bearing agesuffer, because they’re seen as afinancial liberty to employers.three years of leaving university, accordingto a study by the Higher Education StatisticsAgency. This is not only a disgrace to a supposedlyequal society but to the professionsthat treat women as second class employees.So why are women treated differently to menin the world of work? Despite the Equal PayAct being established thirty seven years ago, awoman doing the same job as a man will loseout on an estimated £330,000 by the time theyretire. The question that needs to be answeredhere is: why are women still being financiallydiscriminated against in the workplace? Therehave been many supposed reasons for this butnone that I would personally consider valid.For example, it is suggested that women ofchild bearing age suffer, because they are seenOne of Wales’ biggest heroes can befound in Bangor University’s MainArts Library this month. No, it’s notGlyn from Big Brother, it’s legendary FirstWorld War poet Ellis Humphrey Evans, betterknown by his bardic name ‘Hedd Wyn’ (whichtranslates as ‘white peace’).An exhibition of some of his material iscurrently on display in the Shankland ReadingRoom which contains, amongst numerousother items, a draft of the Eisteddfod Chairwinning poem ‘Yr Arwr’ (The Hero) and aletter written by him ‘from somewhere inFrance’.‘Yr Arwr’ was written in 1917 under thenom-de-plume ‘Fleur-de-Lis’, whilst HeddWyn was in the 15th Battalion of the RoyalWelch Fusiliers. He was sadly killed in actionon the fields of Flanders at Pilkem Ridge,near Ypres on 31st July 1917, but was awardedthe Eisteddfod Chair (the highest accoladean Eisteddfod entrant can be granted) posthumouslyin September of that year at theBirkenhead National Eisteddfod. The chairwas subsequently draped in black cloth, andbecame known as the ‘black chair’ of Birkenhead.For the many Welsh families that experiencedloss in the First World War, the blackchair came to symbolise their empty chairs atthe family dining tables.The letter provides a poet’s view of life ‘behindthe lines’ but instead of focusing on thehorrors of war, it provides the small momentsof beauty that Ellis found to contemplate onand chose to share with the reader. In one partof the letter Ellis almost predicts the symbolismof the Remembrance Day poppy by sayingthat France’s flowers will be doleful in thefuture and a sad wind will blow over her acresbecause the colour of blood will be in oneand the sound of sorrow in the other: “blodauprudd fydd blodau Ffrainc yn y dyfodola gwynt trist fydd yn chwythu achos fydd lliwgwaed yn yr un a swn gofid yn y llall”.as a financial liability to employers who wouldhave to pay for maternity leave.But is anything being done about this? Arewomen’s attitudes as much to blame for thisinjustice? The answer is both yes and no. Manywomen are content with being paid less thantheir male counterparts in exchange for greaterjob satisfaction and less stress. On the otherhand there are some women who simply willnot stand for unfair treatment. Perhaps themost high profile of these cases was that of JulieBower, a former city analyst in 2002. Afterpresenting evidence in front of a tribunal thather male colleagues were being paid bonusesof up to £650,000 in contrast to her £25,000,she was awarded a record £1.4 million in compensation.Perhaps this proves the statement‘hell hath no fury like a woman scorned’.In terms of demographics in the UK,Northern Ireland has the smallest pay discrepancywith women earning 0.2% less than men.The South East has the biggest gap with menearning 17% more than their female counterparts.So exactly why should men take homean extra £460 per annum because of theirgender?With more and more women training forjobs in male dominated industries such asengineering, architecture and quantity surveying;why shouldn’t this be reflected in paystandards? An Equal Opportunities Commissionsurvey showed that the national pay gapis worsened by women taking part time rolesafter having children.However while pay discrepancies for womenin general are dismal, the gap for womenfrom minority ethnicities is abominable. 67%of black graduates are more likely to be studyingbut twice as likely to be unemployed.For years, girls have been outperformingboys at A levels and more young womenenrolling at University. Why is it then, thatwomen are seen (andtreated) as second classemployees? Kat Stark,Women’s Officer forthe National Union ofStudents said: “Manywomen are unawarethat they are being paidless than men - in orderto tackle this, thegovernment shouldforce employers to revealhow much theypay their employees.”Glamour magazine’srecent survey revealedreactions of women inthese professions whohad no idea they werebeing paid less thantheir male counterparts.Claire Smith, arecruitment officer, found out she was beingpaid £2000 less per annum; she said “It’s ridiculousthat someone’s sex should impact ontheir earning potential.”“It’s ridiculous that someone’ssex should impact on their earningpotential.”So what remains to be said about the paydiscrepancy between men and women? In asociety that supposedly treats us all as equals,the figures leave a lot to be desired. As a womanstudying for a degree in a male dominatedindustry, I am shocked and appalled. I hadbeen under the impression that this chauvinisticattitude towards the female race hadbeen dispelled along with women aspiring tobe like Samantha from ‘Bewitched’! So all thatremains to be said is, to any young womenreading this, when you land your dream job,will your salary reflect the work you put in toget there?Bianca MurrayWAR HERO EXHIBITION AT MAIN ARTS LIBRARYProfessor Gerwyn Williams, Head of theSchool of Welsh who specialises in the literatureof the First World War, says: ‘reading theletter and imagining the conditions in whichit was written offers a direct and unique connectionwith the poet. It’s an excellent exampleof the treasures to be found in Bangor University’sArchive, a rare manuscript which bringsto life the experience of studying the work ofan important man’.Ellis Humphrey Evans has also been immortalisedin a film bearing his bardic name,‘Hedd Wyn’. Made in 1992 and starring HuwGarmon as Hedd Wyn, it was nominated forthe Best Foreign Language Film in the 1994Oscars, as well as winning numerous WelshBAFTA Awards. It’s moving storyline and extremelyimpressive war scenes makes it one ofthe best Welsh language films ever made.Hedd Wyn is clearly a Welsh legend andwhether you speak the language or not the exhibitionis definitely worth a visit.The exhibition is at the Shankland ReadingRoom, Main Arts Library, Bangor Universityis open between 9.00-21.00 Monday, 9.00 –20.45 Friday and 12.00-17.00 on Saturday andSunday.Emma DixonVOULNTEERSARE GO!Welcome to the Student Volunteeringcolumn! Every Seren issue,we will be filling you in on whatthe society has been up to, what we plan tobe up to, and how you can get involved!Student Volunteering has moved fromstrength to strength this semester; beginningwith an incredibly successful Moulin Rougenight at Academi. The night, filled with raunchyfun and fancy frivolity, went off withouta hitch, raising just over £800 that will contributeto the many SVB projects. Thank youto all that turned out for it!After adopting our new SVB Manager,Helen Munro, volunteers have never beenmore involved with working in the community.Upcoming events include the annualChristmas Tea Party on Saturday 8thDecember and a sponsored silence on theSunday. We’ve also been maintaining our inregular beach cleans, clearing rubbish andclutter off the beaches and into our bin bags.A new addition to SVB as of this Semesteris “RAG”, a project with the simple aim ofraising funds for charity. So if you have anywacky ideas for raising money or wish to beon the committee please get in touch withHelen!SVB’s Chairperson, Biddy Andrews,and Social Secretary, Abi Moore, were alsospotted on Children In Need’s live show onFriday 16th November after holding a giant‘Twister’ tournament outside the SU building;all proceeds going to Children In Need.Finally, we are always looking for volunteersto join us in our escapades. If you’re interestedin taking part in any of the projectsor have any ideas for events please contactHelen Munro at svb@undeb.bangor.ac.uk or01248 388021.Matt Richins & RobynNoden

THAT’S WHEN GOODInterviewing is usually one aspect youexpect a reporter to be quite relaxedabout, however, when I signed up tointerview the famous Alan Fletcher I wasnot expecting my nerves to suddenly kickinto overdrive. Alan Fletcher or ‘Fletch’ ashe likes to be known, is renowned for hiswork as Dr. Karl Kennedy on the hit daytimesoap, ‘Neighbours’. Alan Fletcher was herein November visiting Bangor to perform atAmser/ Time nightclub with his band ‘TheWaiting Room’.I, like most students, have been an avidfan of the Australian soap opera ever sinceI was born and must confess that I wasquite excited when the hour fi nally arrivedto meet the man himself; The two questionsthat everyone asked me about him were,‘What is he really like?’ and ‘What did hesay?’ In answer to the fi rst question; honestlyhe was a brilliant, very modest andgenerous. He answered all my questionsand didn’t mind talking about ‘Neighbours’at all, which I thought he might have objectedto. So Seren readers, enjoy this interviewwith our favourite Doc:Siobhan Holt: So, Alan where are youoriginally from in Australia?Alan Fletcher: I was born in Perth, WestAustralia.Siobhan: Do you miss home when youare away?Alan: Yeah, I miss my family. Australia iseleven hours ahead than the UK. So thekids, Veronica who is twelve and Tom whois ten are usually going to bed when I amgetting up. It’s hard to keep in touch. UsuallyI wait and speak to them at the weekends.When they were little they used to cometouring with me. They don’t now they areolder. We have a strong family unit thoughwhich helps.Siobhan: How long have you andthe band been together?Alan: It’s been three and a halfyears. Our drummer has been withus for eighteen months.Siobhan: What have been thehighlights over the years?Alan: One of our highlights is obviouslyreleasing the fi rst album.Going on the Jo Whiley show is anotherhighlight and I am going onagain on Friday.We also performed at NottinghamTrent University as a surprise act tofi ve thousand people. It was at theirsummer ball. That was really cool.Siobhan: Which do you preferacting or singing?Alan: Well they both involve tellingstories and that’s why I love it.I have done stage work in the past.Recently I did ‘My Fair Lady’ andI’m doing ‘Mame’ next year.Siobhan: How does your actingability help your band?Alan: I’m a bit like Robbie Williams;I’m not saying I’m a Rock artist. I’mnot Matt Bellamy.I’m an entertainer; I just want thecrowd to have a great time.Siobhan: Are you excited about the performance?Alan: Yeah, it’s a really nice venue with abig reputation.Siobhan: What is your favourite song onyour set list tonight?Alan: My favourite song is probably ‘MrBrightside’ by the Killers and we are alsodoing a cover of ‘Ruby’ by the Kaiser Chiefswhich is a favourite of mine. So those twoSeren - Christmas Issue 2007are probably my favourites.Siobhan: Have you ever been to Bangoror Wales before?Alan: Yes I have done panto near here, inLlandudno. I was in Aladdin in 2000. I knowthe area quite well so it’s a bit like comingback home.Siobhan: You have done a lot of work recently,filming with ‘Neighbours’ in Londonand also in Manchester with ‘SoapstarSuperstar,’ what is your favouriteCHRISTMAS CRISIS!7COME TO BANGOR!Siobhan Holt interviews ‘Neighbours’ star Alan Fletcher aka Dr. Karl Kennedy.Be warned he has revealed to Seren the up and coming storylines, you have been warnedpart of Great Britain?Alan: I love Yorkshire; I love theplace and the towns and the people.I also love Liverpool becauseI am a Liverpool F.C. supporter. Iam going to see them play BoltonF.C. at Anfi eld.Siobhan: How do you manageto balance touring and filming‘Neighbours’? How does itwork?Alan: Right, well I tell ‘Neighbours’in advance when I am doing a tourand I take unpaid leave. After thistour is fi nished I will be going backto fi lm for a week and then I’m offfor four weeks for Christmas.Siobhan: What do you think ofall the attention you get fromstudents when you do come toEngland?Alan: I am very appreciative of thefans. I love meeting them and I’mdelighted to do it because withoutthe fans I would have no job.Siobhan: What is the funniestthing someone has asked you?Alan: I have been asked by malestudents questions about healthissues to do with their sexual organs(laughs).Siobhan: How is ‘Soapstar Superstar’different from anything you have donebefore?Alan: Oh it was terrifying! Absolutely terrifying!It was 7am starts till 1am in the morning.We didn’t get much sleep; it was likeboot camp. We were also having to learnnew songs every day.Siobhan: How did you get the job in‘Neighbours’?Alan: I was asked to audition for the part byGrundy television because before I joined‘Neighbours’ I was on another programmethat they were doing. I auditioned and gotthe part. I have been on ‘Neighbours’ forthirteen years now.Siobhan: What do you think about thefact that ‘Neighbours’ is moving fromBBC1 to Channel five?Alan: I think it’s massively positive. We hada good working relationship with the BBCbut the move will be good. Channel fi ve hasbeen over and fi lmed trailers and documentarieswhich the BBC couldn’t do because‘Neighbours’ was a foreign show. Channelfi ve are very enthusiastic, and are heavilypromoting it. They are keeping it at thesame time and making it one of their mainprogrammes.Siobhan: What has been your favouritestoryline?Alan: I have so many, I like the silly things;like when Karl went around stealing gardengnomes. They had written this storyline as away to break up a more dramatic scene thatKarl was going through.Siobhan: Are there any exciting storylinescoming up?Alan: There is Susan’s illness and a car accidenthappens in the street which will affectall the families. It is very much like the oldschool ‘Neighbours’ where everyone pullstogether. It’s really effective and should hityour screens in around three months time.‘Neighbours’ should be changing channelsat some point in 2008, so keep your eyespeeled.Interview by SiobhanCatherine HoltPHOTOGRAPHER COMING TO BANGORIs Christmas becoming too commercial?Is it better to give or to receive? Who cares, as long as it’s the latest;the most in demand; and the best advertised product on themarket! Yes, that’s right; forget the old debate of whether you’re aScrooge or a Santa, there’s a much bigger argument at stake here: IsChristmas too commercial?As a long time self-confessed Scrooge, I have to argue, yes, it blatantlyis. Why? Well, let’s consider the commercial cacophony that isChristmas. For a start, it’s no longer limited to December. Oh no, forgetthe old rule of “twelve days before and twelve days after” for your festivetree; now it’s all year long. Advent calendars are on sale in October;which, if you’re anything like me, is pretty pointless, because it’s gonein a day. So you buy another, and another,and so on, and just when you thought thewhole furore was over, cue Januaryand half price decorations. Cuea rush of impulse buying,followed by more (fullprice) buying in November,becausethe ones you havedon’t match your“theme”.And it’s notjust limited to decorationsand chocolate.In the months leading upto Christmas, consumersare bombarded with advertisementsfor even the mosttrivial of items. It’s no wonderdepression and debt peakat Christmas. As well as RSI,from writing the box of 500Hallmark cards to all your“closest” friends and family.Kids only want the latest“in” thing (this year it’s theNintendo Wii) becausethe media and advertisersare convincing them theyhave to have one, even ifit’s in the bin by Boxing Day.The same applies for clothes and food. Clever shops tap into the desperationto be the best dressed at the office party, or to have the verybest turkey, and pull the wool over customers’ eyes. Prices are markedup a few weeks before the Christmas rush; then lowered back downto their original price. “Savvy” shoppers think they’ve had a bargain,when really they’ve parted with the same cash they would have donein August.Perhaps the most depressing fact in all of this is that Christmastradition has been sacrificed in favour of commercialism. I’m not particularlyreligious, but I’m alarmed that kids are growing up withoutany knowledge of the true meaning of Christmas. Why aren’t familiesattending Christmas Eve Mass and spending time with theirloved ones? Because they’ve just seen a really great offer inArgos and had to have it. Why aren’t they sat aroundthe table on Christmas Day? Because they’re arguingover who will get the next go on one of the millionextra Wii consoles produced (and there’s still notenough to go round). Why aren’t they hanging theirNana’s wooden numbers on her twenty year old adventcalendar? Because they’re too busy adding to the UK’sobesity level. Why aren’t families sharing a sherry onBoxing Day? Because at 5am, they’re stood outsideNext, queuing for half price clothes they’ll neverwear, deepening the holes in their pockets,and fattening the fat cats.So this Christmas, if you see theSpice Girls climbing down yourchimney, arms laden withTesco carrier bags, don’tworry, it’s only becausegood old Saint Nick andhis sack haven’t shifted asmuch ‘High School the Musical’memorabilia. It’s a volume businessyou see. It’s just a pity convention has been replacedwith commercialism.Elizabeth StevensHave you ever wanted to haveyour picture taken professionally?Do you think you couldmatch Kate Moss posing in front of acamera? Would you like to see your portraitclassed as a piece of art?Seren is offering you the chance tohave your picture taken by a professional.We have joined forces with ‘SomeoneOnce Told Me’ (someoneoncetoldme.com) to offer students here at BangorUniversity the chance to have a romantic,black and white photograph professionallyproduced for our Valentine’sDay issue. We want our students to posewith their romantic saying or messagein front of beautiful sites in and aroundBangor. If you are interested please sendme your name and email address tofeatures@seren.bangor.ac.uk.

8 Seren - Christmas Issue 2007TravelA BREAK FROMBANGORVOLUNTEERING INDISTANT LANDS...“And this one time, at band camp...”This is probably the most well knownline from the teen comedy AmericanPie. Ah yes, summer camp: an Americantradition - something we in the UK do nothave the opportunity to experience. Not thatwe are missing out, I mean, how much funcould it possibly be?This was the question I asked myself onJune 18th last year, whilst sitting on an aeroplanebound for New York. Only five monthsearlier I had thought I would be spending myholidays working at a restaurant in the Midlands,watching the days drag by. Then all of asudden, it seemed, I was on my way to a campin New Jersey. I was hired at a camp called MtMisery (yes you read that right, Mt Misery) asa lifeguard Councillor with CCUSA.What had I let myself in for? Had I reallyapplied to get a job looking after AmericanWhen considering writing this article‘why go on a volunteer holiday?’I wrote the first draft,whichinvolved a neat list of all the good things: whatyou gain, what they gain etc. I scrapped thewhole piece. Going on a volunteer holidayshouldn’t be about the gain (though that prettylittle line on your CV saying what a goodperson you are is damn appealing). A volunteerholiday should be motivated by one thingpure and simple- because you want to. Thereasons for wanting to go will differ from personto person, but what ever they are, if youwant to go, you’ve got to go.Ever since I heard about gap years I wantedto do one. I didn’t know what until I heardabout volunteer teaching projects, and thenit was just a case of choosing the company. Iwanted to go to a foreign country, I wanted tostay there for a while, I wanted to see how acommunity works, and I was under the naïveillusion that as a teacher, I would give some-children? Insanity, surely.... this summer, however,proved to be the best of my life by far.I was quite nervous at the thought of havingto play teacher and surrogate mother tohundreds of children, especially Americanones. My apprehension, however, turned outto be unfounded. Unlike any of the notoriousAmerican stereotypes, the children turned outto be as well behaved, inquisitive, and mischievousas other children that I have lookedafter. Camp itself also exceeded all my expectations.There is no better way to describe campthan by saying that it is just like the movies.I became part of a unique world comprised ofcookouts, campfires, and sing-a-longs. I foundmyself dressing up in crazy costumes for thesake of entertainment, having the Union Jackpainted on my face when we went on mudthing back to the country. I thus ended up in aNorth Indian village for three months, teachingat a D.A.V Lambagaon (a local school).My illusion of helping the communitymay have been a naïve one, but it was not entirelymisguided.My contributionto the children’seducation wasthree-fold, andnot entirely academic.The lessonsI planned for myclasses startedoff as carefullystructured sessionsaboutEnglish grammar,but when Irealised that thiswas completelydifferent to theircurriculum (andin no way helpful to their upcoming exams),I decided to make my lessons fun. I wouldread nursery rhymes to the younger children(whose English was limited) and play gamesand do quizzes with the older classes. I like tothink that these lessons provided some formhikes (a giant mud fight), smothering myselfin sun-tan lotion to perfect my tan, and jumpingaround whilst singing the theme tune to‘Pinky and the Brain’ amongst other things aspre-bedtime entertainment for the kids!I looked forward to meals of corn dogs andtater tots, PB & J (peanut butter and jelly tothose uninitiated in American cuisine) sandwiches,and of course, the ultimate in camptreats-‘smores’. I shared in the children’s triumphs,and disappointments, their laughter,and tears. I became the one who tucked themin at night, helped them get ready in the mornings,and the one they looked up to. I’ve neverfelt so needed, or wanted, in my life before.Camp was followed by a week travellingaround different American Universities, visitingfriends I had made at camp. I was amazedby the differentculture that theyexperience, for exampleit is not unusualfor freshers tobe sharing a roomwith three otherpeople!I then went ona two-week tourof the East Coast;taking in New YorkCity, Washington,and Boston alongthe way. I saw themonuments inWashington, NiagaraFalls and aYankee’s game inNew York and thefamous Harvard University in Boston.I left the USA with memories that I will alwayscherish, and friendships that I never imaginedI’d form. I am still in contact with thepeople I met, and am planning on returning tocamp in the summer - how else can you get anof respite from their intensive academic studies.Secondly, I was able to make a monetarycontribution to the upkeep of the school inthe form of sports equipment and new chairs(though I personally think the building couldhave benefited from a glass window or two).I hope I was also able to show the children adifferent culture, not a better one, just a differentone. When one child asked me aboutEnglish schools and I told her that they don’thit children, but discipline there is of a lowerexperience where you play sport all day, whilstearning money and getting a great tan – not inthe UK anyway. For the moment, however, Icontinue to talk about “this one time, at summercamp...”The Camp Counsellor programme offeredby CCUSA was fantastic. I was able to work inthe States for the duration of camp (9 weeks)and then spend up to two months travellingafterwards. My flights, food & accommodation,travel insurance, visa, and social securitywere all organised for me, as well as gettingpaid pretty well too, allowing me to focus myattention on other things, like how on earthwas I going to get everything in my backpack!If you think you would be interested inspending your summer as a camp counsellorin the USA, or taking part in another overseasworking holiday programme, email mepsu27b@bangor.ac.uk, or check out the CCU-SA website www.ccusa.com.Rachael ClaytonIf you’ve got to go, you’ve got to go!My illusion of helping thecommunity may have been anaïve one, but it was not entirelymisguided.standard, she looked wide-eyed and curious,wanting to know more. So I think my ‘hope’was a valid contribution to the children’s education.I worked with the teachers and the children,I saw their community functioningfrom day to day and by befriending a localshopkeeper, I became part of that community.I got more than I wanted.If you’ve ever thought about doing avolunteer holiday, be it teaching, conservationwork or something entirely different,don’t make a list of pros and cons, don’t think‘I couldn’t do it’. There are so many differentcompanies out there these days. I typed‘volunteer holidays’ into Google for researchpurposes, but there were too many differentcompanies to count. They don’t solely caterfor school leavers’ gap years. Many companiesrun ‘Graduate gap years’ or ‘Graduate ventureprograms’. There aren’t as many opportunitiesfor accumulating wild travel stories as you getolder; the burden of responsibility is looming.If you’ve ever wanted to volunteer abroad, doit and do it soon. My CV’s got that pretty lineon it as well now and a pretty little referencethatnever hurts a person’s future.Rachel EalesSince the last issue, I’ve had the most‘French’ experience I could possiblyimagine. Yep, my Uni went on strike. Infact, most of the country has been on strike,but my Uni went on strike first. Now, at therisk of sounding like someone’s grandma, I’mgoing to say this – these French kids don’tknow they’re born. They were striking becausethe government wants to make them pay forUniversity (it’s currently free in France). I canunderstand them being angry – I agree thathigher education should be free, but whenthey’re being asked to pay over £3000 a year,as a lot of English and Welsh students are –THEN they can bloody well complain!Suffice to say, my fellow British Erasmusstudents and I weren’t too impressed. We’dliterally all just returned from our Vacancesde Toussaints (a.k.a. half term holidays) at thebeginning of that week and we’d all been backto the UK. Had we known there was going tobe a strike, we blatantly would all have stayedat home longer.Two students at UBO who weren’t complainingtoo much were myself and my newfriend Nicky from the University of Ulster.We decided to use our unexpected holidayto have a little mini-break to Paris. Neitherof us had been there before and decided ifwe didn’t do it then, we wouldn’t have time/funds before Christmas. So in the words of thegreat Peter Kay, “we booked it, packed it andf****d off.” We decided we’d rather not sit ona train for five hours, and it turned out thatflights were only £2 more expensive than thetrain, and only took an hour from Brest airport.So, Friday night, we booked flights anda hotel, and Monday morning, we were off onthe 11am flight. We managed to navigate theMetro, which is basically the Tube with differentcoloured lines on the map, and were in ourhotel by 2.30pm.Being the over-excited tourists that wewere, we headed straight to the Eiffel Tower,just in time for sunset. Despite the freezingweather, we had a great time and managedto see most of Paris (apart from Montmartre,which I am still annoyed about) in a day and ahalf. Not believing our luck at how smoothlyeverything had gone, we kept saying thingslike “everything has been great” and “aren’t wedoing well!”Naturally, we then spectacularly jinxedourselves. The night before we were due toleave, we discovered that all Metro and RERtrains were going on strike the next day. Wedecided we’d have to get a taxi to the airport,and asked our hotel receptionist to book usone. Apparently this wasn’t possible. Panicking,we went back to our room and Nickycalled her Erasmus coordinator from UlsterUni. to the rescue – he told us that taxis woulddefinitely be available tomorrow, but that it’dbe easier to get one if we walked to the nearestmainline train station. Luckily, we werewithin 15 minutes’ walk of both Gare du Nordand Gare de l’Est, so we set off early the nextmorning and walked to Gare de l’Est, thinkingit would take quite a while to get a taxi. It took20 minutes and a further 30 minutes to get tothe airport, leaving us at Orly airport with fivewhole hours to kill. Needless to say, we madeit safely back to Brest, only to find Uni strikingfor another week and a half, with our facultybuilding completely blockaded! Ahh vive laFrance.This is the last of my French exploits – afterthe Christmas holidays, I’ll be moving on tosunnier climates- literally. I’m going to Valenciain Spain.Loran Perkins

10 Seren - Christmas Issue 2007

LifestyleEver wondered what you can make outof the remainder of your food that’s leftin your fridge? Lets admit it, we’ve allbeen there. The money is low, the shops areshut, your hungry and don’t want the mundane‘something’ on toast, well ex studentChris Voke has created a website that willIcannotbelieveChristmasis almostupon us, whereon earth does thetime go? I don’twant term to end,nothing is betterthan being atUniversity, surroundedby yourbest mates andhaving a greattime. I feel likeI shouldn’t sayprepare yourselffor the party season; for me Christmas unlesshere, doesn’t mean nights out and elegantChristmas parties, yea right, we’re students,without jobs and not yet glamorous enoughsolve all your hunger problems.notbeansagain.com is a student recipewebsite. The difference between this websiteand others is that the student inputs a list ofthe actual contents of their refrigerators, cupboardsetc. into the “Ingrediometer” and thedatabase then provides them with a best-fitsolution, rather than having to trawl throughcountless drop-down menus, only to findthat they do not possess the majority of theingredients. This should prove economicalto the student and hopefully be kinder to theenvironment through thereduction in food waste. There isalso the facility for users to submit their ownrecipes through a wizard. The most popularrecipes on the site are displayed in the“League of Thrift” on the front page. Thereis no subscription fee for the site, and it isto go to Christmas dinner parties.But the end of term and Christmas loomingdoes mean farewell nights out, Christmasmeals with your course mates and the finalTrash or Occy for the term. And we all wantto look our best and most girls enjoy gettingdolled up and pouting in pictures with yourfriends, which appear the next day on facebookand make us look pretty as, or worse forwear either way un-tag no problems.If out for an occasion there is plenty tomake yourself to look extra fabulous, if youcan carry it off solid, block colour dresses,worn right with some funky tights and high,high heels can look really stylish. This is achance to wear your favourite colour to themax, beware of the smock it can drown youout and make you look larger than you reallyare, along with pleats and big, overdone bows.Why not feel really chrismassy and wear blockSeren - Christmas Issue 2007very easy to use: Say one night you only hadcheese, bacon, rice and veg left in, you inputthis data and the website will generate recipes,such as Stuffed Aubergine heaven, andAmazing stuffed jacket spuds. All of a suddena dismal bacon sandwich has been turnedinto a delicious recipe.So for all those sceptics who think thismay all be too good to be true, or for all thoseun-adventurous chefs, check the website outand tag it as your prime resource for all yourfuture kitchen debacles.FOOD CRITICS IN WETHERSPOONSIchose the minted lamb burger with chipsand a pint of Fosters. The beer came nice BLACK BULL INNand cold and made for a good middaypint. However the chips were served coldand were served in a small portion. Theburger was served in a soft bun and wasreally flavoursome and the relish side wasvery tasty. The lettuce had seen better daysbut the fresh onion and tomato made up forit. For £4.49 I would recommend it and it’sdefinitely better than cooking at home. MarkVarley recommends the muffins. I’d rate themeal as 6 out of 10.Sam EvansEating at half three in the afternoon itwas only half an hour after the ‘steakclub’ had started (any steak meal witha free drink for £5.99 on a Tuesday). I choseto order the 10oz rump steak cooked mediumwell. Although the cut of steak was goodit was cooked medium at best and neededcooking a bit longer for my liking. The chipswere cooked well and you can’t really gowrong with peas! It’s good value consideringyou get a free drink and the meal was wellprepared. You’d have to pay at least doublethe price in another restaurant for the samemeal and I’m sure there’d be little differencein the quality of the steak.Will VarleyDE L’ ORME AND BONNEY TACKLE WINTER FASHIONred, this is always a classic, elegant look thatcan be teemed with black heels and accessories.Nothing says “I am here” than a hot,red dress, avoid clingy lyrca, find somethingthat suits your shape and enhances your bestfeatures. A low V-neck for larger breasted ladieswith a good bra of course, something totie- around to show small waists, somethingshort for those lucky enough to have long legs.And remember less is always more, don’t havetoo much goose-pimpled flesh on show. Sexit up with some fishnets, or other funky, styletights.Other dress styles out there are; ‘the 60’sshift’, ‘the strapless dress’, ‘the mini prom dress(Lilly Allen style), ‘cocktail dress’, ‘slip dress’,‘LBD’ (of course) and finally if your dare ‘thetube dress’ or ‘tuxedo dress’, not really mything, but that is what fashion is all about, tryingnew things and vamping up your look to1815 CAFE- REVIEW1815 is an independent, café-deli-barlocated on Waterloo Street outside theDeiniol Shopping Centre in Bangor.You may be forgiven for passing it by duringan excursion along the High Street; it’s asmall place sitting modestly a little way pastthe Waterloo Inn.Arriving on a busy Monday lunchtime,we sat down and were handed menus by anenthusiastic member of staff. We selected ourdrinks from a very imaginative list, which includeda display of tropical beverages as wellas the more traditional winter-warmers. I ordereda mocha priced at £2.10, which arrivedin good time before the food. It came with agenerous offering of Malteasers to sweetenthe deal.I had an interestingly named orange andlemon jigger costing £1.95, a very nice twiston sparkling orange. It was nice to see thata good selection of drinks were fair trade ororganic.It took longer than expected when decidingwhat to eat. With all the food availableon the menu, I certainly felt spoilt for choice.We eventually decided to order the Tapasfor two, priced at £11.50. I selected the brie,tuna and mayonnaise, and the pate of the day(pork and mushroom). To accompany ourchoice, two offerings of ciabatta bread withsweet chilli dip were included.Being vegetarian I chose feta cheese,guacamole and sun dried tomatoes; out of13 tapas options over half are vegetarian,and there’s always the opportunity to mixand match with your eating partner. With sixample portions of tapas there was more thanenough for two people and plenty left over11make you feel good.Tights of various colours are in and canstylise your outfit and make it your own. Withthe lack of clothes shops here, you could endup wearing the same gear as someone else, soaccessorise your outfit and make it uniquelyyou.If you’re not into dresses no problems, therange of sequinned tops, black chiffon tops,beads, and silk they are all there to give aclassy, sexy look. Team with the good old skinnies,skirt, black trousers and not forgettingshoes. Beaded ballet pumps if you’re not intoheels, there has never been a better choice forflats and if you want those few extra inches getsome shoes and gel pads if they really pinch.But try and get a comfy heel, a chunky heelmakes it easier to walk than tiny stilettos, andNew Look has a fab range of ankle boots.Team your outfit with cute, block colouredcoats with the large buttons or otherdecorative features, keeps you warm and addsmassive stylish points to an outfit.For make-up, get really glamorous usesome sparkly eye-liners; purple for greeneyes, blue, smoky black even bronze brown.Add some sprinkle dust around the corner ofyour eyes and lid to really light up your eyesand not forgetting mascara, where would webe without it? I love it.Hair have it how you like; long withbouncing curls, super-straight, the bob withlayered edges, the blunt fringe or emo-sidefringe, get your style looking slick and makeyourself feel really damm hot. Have an amazingend of term, make the most of it. AndMerry Christmas to all, still feels too early forme, but hay ho.Sophie De L’ ormedespite out best efforts!Oh, and youhave to try the fetacheese dipped insweet chilli sauce.The foodarrived in reasonabletime and wasvery well prepared,presented in such away that it seemeda shame to eat it.A portion of freshfruit,vegetablesand salad sent off the right signals; slices ofapple, orange, melon, plum and pineappleadded colour and some character to the dish.The amount of fruit and vegetables easilymatched the amount of main course, and theselection carefully complimented the tastes ofour choices. A good and tasty way of gettingsome of your 5-a-day!I had no complaints when I parted withmy housemate’s cash to pay for the meal. Althoughprobably not the cheapest or quickestplace to grab a bite to eat, 1815 makes up forthis with its fine selection of quality food anddrink. I recommend the café to loved-up couples,or friends who need time for a lengthycatch-up; the relaxed atmosphere 1815 providesis ideal for either.The food was well worth the price though,a little bit more expensive but the qualitymore than makes up for it. 1815 is an absolutelygreat place to eat, beautifully decoratedand perfect food. Treat yourself whenyour loan comes through, or take the parentssomewhere unusual when they visit. Alternatively,sweet talk a housemate into paying foryou… though make sure you remember topay them back!Star ratings:Food *****Drink ****Atmosphere ****Service ***Price ***Matt Bonny andHeather WalkerI’m writingthis inr e s p o n s eto Miss DeL’Orme’s requestfor amale’s perspectiveon women’sfashion. Likemany men, Ido not claimto be an experton this topic.In fact, it’s apart of conversation I try to avoid as much asI possibly can for health reasons. Every guyknows what it feels like to be asked, “does mybum look big in this?” by a woman. It’s a questionwhose answer needs to be treated withextreme caution and delicacy. My knowledgeof the fashion world is extremely limited - myeducation being what I can gather from thefast-track chatter of my female friends andthe odd Ugly Betty episode, which tediouslycoincides with my teatime.Far be it for me to tell anyone what to wear(I’m certainly no Gok Wan). But I do realisefashion is a hot topic for many women. Infact, when has it not been? In today’s westernsociety it seems essential for girls to looktheir best day in day out. It boosts confidence,gets you noticed and feels good, right ladies?At the end of the day it’s all about making apersonal statement to the world: this is whoI am and how I want to present myself. I justfind it a shame that some people, religiouslystudying their glossed copies of Vogue magazine,choose to follow the trends of the latestclothe-horse model. I have no quarrelwith someone wanting to look their best, butmimicking someone else’s appearance surelydoesn’t lead to a sense of individuality oruniqueness. A sense of belonging, of sorts, ismaybe felt; but is it really that bad to stand outfrom the crowd?It seems every girl has a favourite part ofher body. Something they really like aboutthemselves. I believe the phrase ‘if you got it,flaunt it’ can be applied here. It really doesn’tmatter what it is, just be proud of yourselfand feel comfortable with who you are. That’sbound to turn a few heads on a night out. Bythis I don’t necessarily mean showing as muchflesh as you possibly can – believe it or not thisisn’t everything a guy looks for. Sometimes it’sbest to leave things to the imagination, youknow? It’s all part of the fun for us lads, andgives us something to talk about other thanthe football or the copious amount of alcoholwe claim to have drunk the previous night.Make-up (excluding face paints) is reallyalien to me, but I would recommend makinguse of the eyes, windows to the soul andall that. Eyes are cute; they entice and drawpeople in. You’re a girl; you know how to dothis. Mascara, is it? Well, use that. Just don’toverdo it because personally, I think makeupcan be overused to the point that it’s laughable.There’s nothing worse than a date wholooks like Krusty the Clown (believe me). Inall honesty, I’d rather be talking to a personthan a cosmetic mask. I remember chattingwith a friend of mine back home, who agreed,adding: “if she’s too into herself then she’s notgoing to be into you”. Surely makeup shouldbe used to bring out those facial features, notmask them. I must also add that too muchfake tan will make you look like you’ve fallenvictim to an unfortunate Tango-ing incident.It’ll get you noticed, but not in the way I’msure you intended. Don’t get me wrong, whenused correctly fake tan can have stunning results.Just make sure you buy the right stuffaccording to your colouring, ladies, and usethe recommended amount.I’m way out of my depth here, so I’ll stopwriting. Bottom line is wear what you want towear and be happy. I’m sure your girl friendswill tell you if what you’re wearing makes youlook a bit of a tit anyway. If they don’t, thenmaybe consider getting some new friendsalong with that new wardrobe, sweet cheeks.Matt Bonney

12 Seren - Christmas Issue 2007Seren’s Radio Times08:00 - 10:00Storm In A Tea Cupmorning mix11:00 - 13:00Storm Bites - GeekChicJackGreenand IsaWilson13:00 - 14:00The SU Show16:00 - 18:00Homeward Bound18:00 - 20:00The Time TunnelSpencer, Lex & Tomwith the best of the 60s,70s & 80s, including the30 Second Challenge20:00 - 21:00Debating panel showfrom the news team withspecial guests21:00 - 22:00Kate’s KlosetHip Hop and R&B withKate Barratt22:00 - 00:00Tropical StormStormMondayTuesday Wednesday08:00 - 10:00Storm In A Tea Cup11:00 - 13:00Storm Bites13:00 - 14:00The SU Show16:00 - 18:00Homeward Bound - OutLoud and ProudMusic and chat fromBangor Pride18:00 - 20:00The Text SessionDJPJ & DJ Hanniepantswith your requests - textSTORM and ur msg to6030020:00 - 21:00Tuesday’s GoneRock/Metal/Unsignedshow with Gaz & Zara22:00 - 00:00Storm’s ParadoxDan & Sav provide a mixof 80s, 90s and todaywith a bit of chat andgeneral rubbish!08:00 - 10:00Storm In A Tea Cup11:00 - 13:00Storm Bites13:00 - 14:00The SU Showwith Xanthe Larcombe,the Union’s Education &Welfare Offi cer14:00 - 16:00The Big Mix UpClare Moore-Smith withmainstream music andchat16:00 - 18:00Homeward Bound19:00 - 20:00The SpeculativeAnalysis ShowHighlights fromSpecAnal’s weeklyexperiments and tours,with music and chat of aspooky variety20:00 - 22:00Bangor’s StudentSoundNon-stop music22:00 - 02:00Trash LIVE!coming in JanuaryCompiled by John JacksonForecastThursday08:00 - 10:00Storm In A Tea Cupmorningmainstreammix11:00 - 13:00Storm Bites13:00 - 14:00The SU Showwith Bethan Williams,UMCB President with aWelsh language show16:00 - 18:00Homeward BoundLucy & Charlotte18:00 - 20:00Something Borrowed,Something BlueDJPJ with an eclecticmix of old and brandspankingnew19:00 - 21:00UltrasoundLee Howson & SeanLashec with their Trashcool-off of new, classicand obscure indie21:00 - 22:00The Jazz Hourwith Jack Baker22:00 - 00:00The UndergroundAlex ‘Colonel’ Kirkhamhosting undergrounddance at its bestFriday08:00 - 10:00Storm In A Tea Cup11:00 - 13:00Storm Bites - The Daveand Ryan ShowMainstream music & chat13:00 - 14:00The SU Showwith theUnion’s CSO& President,Carolan & Sam16:00 - 18:00Homeward BoundMatt & Lorna18:00 - 19:00Sound of the AUThe best of the AthleticUnion, hosted by AdamJames19:00 - 21:00Music Team Show21:00 - 23:00No Added SugarWinner of the BestMainstream Show award2006-07 - hosted by JackGreen and Dave Pallant,with lots of challenges23:00 - 00:00Late Night QuickieStation manager Mikewith co-presenter,BiscuitsSaturday11:30 - 13:30The Slightly StrangeDave ShowSlightly strange, sillyand other ‘S’ words!Random mix of music(incl. TV theme tunes!)with Strange Dave & co.18:00 - 20:00Bach A Tew(Little and Phat)Kerry Walton’s Welshlanguage showSunday12:00 - 13:00Hindi Music Show13:00 - 15:00The Chart ShowWeekly countdown withMatt Ison15:00 - 16:00Around the World in60 MinutesEm & Jen with awhistle-stop tour aroundthe music world16:00 - 18:00The Classical ShowClassical tunes youknow, mixed with thoseyou may not22:00 - 00:00TomStock & TwoSmoking Barrels00:00 - 02:00The SaturdaySessionsIf you’re interested inrounding up the weekend’ssporting action for StormFM, both nationally andlocally, then get in touchwith Programme Controller- peter.banks@undeb.bangor.ac.uk18:00 - 18:307 into 30The news team presentthe week’s happeningsin 30 minutes, with KateBarratt19:00 - 21:00The MotelSarah & Alex with funkand big tunes, includingthe Helpdesk21:00 - 22:00Sin Roc GymraegWelsh rock music22:00 - 00:00Dead AirMainstream chat, musicand madness!Phone: (01248) 38 8048or just 8048 from internal Uni phonesTxt: storm + msg to 60300E-mail: studio@stormfm.comYour Name:.......................................................................................Your Bangor Uni E-mail:..............................................Puzzles, Posers & Problems1 Animal WordsearchHidden in the grid below are the names of variousdifferent animals.Usual rules for a wordsearch apply - horizontally,vertically and diagonally, but in straight lines only.However, unlike some wordsearches, the wordsthemselves are not listed, and the number of themremains a secret - see how many you can fi nd...R T A S O X E E W I K E Z M YV A N G O E F L D N L Y E B OQ C E A R F C M E A P E A J LM B Y B A L H C H P R B A L AY O H R G E I W T C H G L E FG B I A N M N H A S U A L R FL G N O A M C T U A M O N U UY E L K K I H B R A V U Q T BR E R E H N I D O R M O U S EA J K R O G L N I H P L O D DT R T N I P L T E S O M R A ME S X I O U A H A T E E H C WL I W C G D Q R L E M A C L OH A M S T E R S D L E M U R LO C E L O T R X Y R O F B B Fcompiled by John JacksonWIN A SERENPINT GLASS!(or 2)!!!WHAT TO DO... Complete either(1) Animal Wordsearch or(2) Codeword - or you can enterboth if you wish!Next, fi ll in your name andBangor Uni e-mail address(above) and hand this page in tomain reception at the Students’Union. Alternatively, you cane-mail your answers to:editor@seren.bangor.ac.ukWinners will be selected atrandom from correct entries andwill be awarded by 11/01/08.2CodewordThe numbers in the crossword grid are to be replacedby letters. Below the grid is the key showing 3already completed letters. Fill in the other numbers,remembering to mark them off on the alphabet list asyou go. Note that only 1 number represents 1 letter.3 8 16 7 7 13 7 20 15 11 3 39 4 9 23 25 18 147 10 12 4 7 21 11 26 10 25 26 117 10 10 7 25 224 22 12 23 20 25 25 22 3 4 7 213 23 24 22 722 7 7 10 7 20 17 16 6 23 11 67 20 3 6 1118 10 7 5 12 15 10 7 4 3 11 2222 5 11 16 1 167 19 7 1 4 7 20 11 10 11 22 233 22 7 17 22 22 1514 11 4 7 17 24 23 2 14 11 6 11A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y ZS1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 1314 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26OR/ / /RSO

Seren - Christmas Issue 2007MusicCraigBritney Spears - BlackoutBritney Spears’ latest album ‘Blackout’has been hotly anticipated. MsSpears is never out of the tabloids,celeb magazines and not for her music.The press hound her and as the public weare bombarded with her latest antics. As afan of Britney from the beginning I’m notashamed to say I love her music and I can’thelp but follow her disastrous personal life.So as soon as her latest album came out, Ihad to buy it. As a fan of her last albumand greatest hits one can’t deny she was theprincessof popand hadhit afterhit; Toxic,Everytimeand olderhits as weall know,Baby OneM o r eT i m e ,Slave 4 U,Crazy andalmosteveryonewill knowthe wordswhetherthey likeher or not.H o wdoes herlatest albumcompare? To be honest on first listeningit doesn’t blow your mind. When I firstheard ‘Gimme more’ I was thinking “whatis this?”. But it grew on me and I can’t helplike the grinding, dirty lyrics that get youmoving. Twelve tracks - all very new-agewith computer beats, synthesised voicesand dare I say a Gwen Stefani feel.‘Piece of me’ is an honest take on herlife and the press. ‘Radar’ is a cutesy songwith a funky background beat that kicksin as the song goes on. “It’s been a while/I know I shouldn’t have kept you waiting”,are the opening lines of ‘Break the Ice’.True, it’s been a while since Britney has hitour charts. ‘Heaven on Earth’ is directedto some hot lover of hers, not particularlygreat, but very breathy and ‘Britney-Esque’.‘Get Naked (I got a plan)’ if you listenclosely enough I noticed it has a ‘grudge’style sound, scary! As the album progresseslyrics get slightly dirtier, we should expectno less; she is long past the cute blowingbubble gum and flipping around a gymphase. She is no longer a girl, but now awoman, or so we are led to believe. Crotchshots, shaved head, bad mother, drug-takingand lesbian Britney fascinating, no?‘Freakshow’ is in a rap style, I’ll sayno moreand let youfind outfor yourself.‘Toysoldier’ isthe onetrack thatremindedme ofGwen Stefani.Onthis trackshe talksmore thansings. ‘Hotas Ice’ is asure hit inmy eyes,it’s got hergirly, Britneyvoicein finestyle. ‘PerfectLover’-the title says it all really. Finally ‘Whyshould I be sad’ is the slowest song of thelot, and trying to prove that she is OK andcan deal with what path her life is taking.If you’re a Britney fan you may be disappointed,I’m not sure every song will bea classic pop hit like her past. I think hercrazy, personal life is propelling her careerand interest. Overall it’s a fun pop albumand one for getting ready for a night out,or bopping around your room. We all loveher or love to hate her, I don’t think wecould escape Britney if we tried; embraceit, dance away and love her breathy, dirtylyrics, because I do.Sophie de l’ OrmeBurial – UntrueAs Lethal Bizzle, Dizzee Rascal andKano attempt to transcend the thrivingand nebulous – if often unheralded- UK urban scene that first gave them aspringboard, it’s interesting to see if other actsless attuned to the mainstream’s ears will benefitin any significant manner from the raisedprofile of a few key proponents. For one, EastLondon grime squad Newham Generals havealready been given a helping hand by Dizzee,who acts as their label boss under hisown ‘Dirtee Stank’ imprint and also hookedthem up as support for his recent UK tour.Due to an incremental rise in profile courtesyof key advocates such as Radio 1’s Mary-Anne Hobbs and the groundwork laid by hismighty fine self-titled album, dubstep/2-stepartist Burial presents a third way; he has thepotential to reach a wider audience, and withsecond album Untrue the tipping point iswithin reach. Just one problem: no-one actuallyseems to know who he is.The issue of gender aside, details aresketchy regarding the man Burial. Preciousfew interviews have been conducted withhim and he’s never played a live gig, nor doeshe plan to. His own love of underground artistssuch as Digital Mystikz may yet keep himfrom wider exposure. This state of affairs notwithstanding,even a cherry-popping listen to‘Untrue’ yields manifold treasures, and for thecasual listener it’s easy to see why such a fussis being made over the man’s work. At first,second track ‘Archangel’ provides the standout,with its irregular percussion poppingand crackling with the help of the grooves ofworn vinyl, whilst an indistinct female vocalpunctuates the mood, looping the same fewlines over and over mingled with lush stringsserving to heighten the emotion.The tracks that follow, ‘Near Dark’ and‘Ghost Hardware’, utilise a similar palette;they establish a mood of genuine melancholy,whilst the affected vocals reach back even furtherinto garage’s past. Burial has spoken previouslyabout how his music is tapping intoa certain spirit, a certain vibe that emergedfrom the late ‘80’s rave culture that led throughjungle into garage and its offshoots. Though‘Untrue’s tunes are not primarily designed tobe played in clubs, they do hint at a similareuphoria. As such, this album is a huge rushwhen played on headphones at night.These elements of sound, so often disparateand disconnected throughout ‘Untrue’reach a conduit in the album’s centrepieces,the title track itself and ‘Etched Headplate’,divided themselves by the segue of ‘In Mc-McFlyManchester M.E.N.Arena 23/11/07Iam a writer with a confession to make.My crime: using my girlfriend as an alibifor going to see McFly. In reality I was anticipatingthe gig, like one of the many excitedkids in the sold-out Arena tonight.Tonight sees McFly in the middle of theirGreatest Hits tour at one of their biggest evergigs. They are in a triumphant mood andcome on stage to a Rocky-style intro video.The second they arrive the place erupts, twogirls behind me nearly bursting myear drums.They open with “That Girl”,a suitably energetic start thatsees Dougie running roundthe stage like a kid dizzyon lemonade. “Transylvania”from their latestalbum opens to a spookychurch organ; they improvisedon this onelive, perhaps too much,repeating the chorus abit too often. Thingssoon pick up with anairing of a pop punkstyle cover of Rihanna’s“Umbrella”.With hit after hit comingyou wonder if they’re peakingtoo early in the set. Technical difficultieswith the piano hold up newbie “TheHeart Never Lies”, but the show continues, theboys playing an impromptu jam to fill the gap.The band then disappear off-stage, reappearingon a mini-stage in the middle of the arena,sending a surge of fans round it and somerather unhappy-looking fans down the front.McFly don’t relent, treating those further backto the likes of oldie “Ultraviolet”. Those at thefront soon cheer up though when the bandreturn to the main stage with Queen’s “Don’tStop Me Now”. This is joined by a story abouthow Danny and Tom met during which theyserenade each other. They know how to entertain.They head off the stage with “I’ll Be OK”,before returning for an encore, the crowdchanting their name. The crowd are in finevoice and are even permitted to sing sectionsof “All About You”. It’s then just a matter ofclosing the set with “5 Colours in Her Hair”,exiting as triumphantly as they came on, to achorus of “oo doo doos”. Tonight was somethingof a celebration for McFly and they showno signs of letting up. So mock me for likingMcFly if you will, but be warned, you do so atyour peril!Liam RandallDonalds’. They arguably provide the record’sstandout cuts. ‘Etched Headplate’ mixes lushtones with the album’s most emotionally devastatingvocal performance (the pained, bittersweetcadence of the vocals all the moreresonant for their anonymous origin) whilstthe more rhythmic ‘Untrue’ uses an unaffectedvoice and perhaps the most dynamic,reverb-laced beats on the record to provide arousing counterpoint. From here the record’satmosphere expands outwards, as if into thenight, flashes of sound devoid of percussionor reverb gradually morphing into a more upbeat,celebratory mood that culminates in theclosing ‘Raver’, perfectly mirroring the postclubeuphoria.This is a more complex beast than itspredecessor overall, and a fantastic realisationof the UK underground’s potential, made allthe more startling for it’s humble origins –Burial’s own claim is that he is a non-musician,given his basic, at-home set-up. Comethe final moments of the final track, thesense of ongoing movement and enjoymentcouldn’t be more life-affirming. Potentiallythe album of the year.Stephen DaviesDavid - Trust MeSo, you hear Craig David has a new albumout-feeling sceptical as to whetheryou’ll like it? It’s been a good few yearssince he re- leased a record andas a youngster Imyself wasn’ttoo keen onhis music, soif this scenariosounds familiar,give this a read.Without reallyrealising, I’d alreadyheard‘This ist h e13Girl’ featuring Kano and ‘Hot Stuff (Let’sDance)’ on the radio. Already surprisedat liking ‘This is the Girl’, I was even moreshocked as to how catchy ‘Hot Stuff ’ was,even though it does sample David Bowie.However, the biggest surprise came when Ilistened to the album. It was quite well circulatedthat David had spent time in Cubawhen producing the album and spent timewith big artists such as Kano as well asspending a lot of time DJing.I honestly can’t compare this album toany of David’s other work, as I only rememberdisliking his earlier efforts, but I thinkperhaps this is the album for a new group ofCraig David fans. There’s a good and equalcombination of upbeat dance tracks andmellowed out R ‘n’ B, doing justice to David’swide ranging abilities in different styles.One of my particular favourites is ‘FridayNight’, which if you find it on YouTube is setto a dance scene from Saturday Night Fever,which more than sums it up.In all honesty this is a brilliantly put togetheralbum, gliding from one track to thenext effortlessly. The time spent on it is evidentwith quality tracks worked on by establishedartists and David’s time out DJing inthe field comes across as really influential.Jennifer StanleySkindred - Roots Rock RiotFor those of you that haven’t heardof them Skindred are a band hailingfrom Newport, South Wales. Theyare a band that mix reggae with metal. Somesee them as pioneers of a new genre: ‘reggaemetal’, whilst others only go as far as ‘reggaefunk’. Whatever you call them the end resultis a fresh and new sound. ‘Roots Rock Riot’is their second album, which sees the bandtaking their unique style to a new level. Thealbum was recorded in America with MattSquire – who also worked on Panic! At theDisco’s platinum album ‘A Fever You Can’tSweat Out’.From the first song you are hooked bythe loud and intense, ‘Roots Rock Riot.’ Thetitle track is an instant introduction to Skindred.This song is charged with energy andattitude, the blend of metal being fairly even,instantly making you ask yourself, “Whyhasn’t this been done before?”. The pace ismaintained by the second track, ‘Trouble’,whilst supplying the necessary metal thissong shows the reggae aspect of the bandto a much greater extent. This song also exhibitsthe uniqueness and versatility of BenjiWebb, the lead singer’s, voice. ‘Rat Race’ followsin a similar vein to the previous songs.‘State of Emergency’, track four, changessong style to a degree jumping between reggaeand metal sections. Both ‘Rat Race’ and‘State of Emergency’ highlight the lyrical talentsof Skindred, ‘Rat Race’ acting as socialcomment on today’s increasingly businessdominated society, something equally obviousin ‘State of…’ through its comment onpeople and the world, even it’s title. Hate isugly / and it’s everywhere. From ‘State of …’,the album shows reflections of the modernworld, claiming it’s an emergency situationthough repetition of: Calling there’s anemergency. At some points the songs makereferences such as ‘911’ (emergency phonenumber), considering the band’s niche thisseems to be an attempt at ‘cracking America’,giving a sense of commercialisation to theband; a conclusion not helped by their extensiveUS tour.‘Alright’ brings an upbeat tone to proceedings,still maintaining a healthy mix ofreggae and metal, whilst changing lyricaltone with an apologetic feel in the chorus.I never meant to hurt you / The scars aresad but true. Songs such as ‘Ease Up’, ‘CauseAh Riot’ and ‘Spit Out the Poison’ carry onwhere ‘Roots…’ and ‘Trouble’ left off, howeversongs like ‘Killing Me’ and ‘Choicesand Decisions’ have a slower less heavy feel,showing a more thoughtful side to the band.In a further style shift ‘Destroy the DanceFloor’ has a metal element, but arguably alsohas a techno element obvious throughoutthe song.‘Roots Riot Rock’ is an album that is refreshinglyoriginal in today’s music market.There is good variety of songs, ensuring thealbum remains fresh and interesting. Thealbum covers many contemporary issuessuch as drug use and weapons in schoolsmaking the album lyrically meaningful. Forthose looking for something different thisyear this album is a must have. With theirprevious album, Skindred found their niche,with this album they have truly developedit. Skindred’s sound is refreshingly uniqueand Benji Webb’s vocals are spot on. If yousee this album, BUY IT! You won’t be disappointed.David Horn

14 Seren - Christmas Issue 20072007?1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000sHaving pretty much entirely avoidedthe furore afforded The X-Factor thisyear (excepting Rhydian, Sharon Osbourne’srevolving door policy to working onthe show and, uh, Rhydian) , I won’t be ableto give you a considered judgement on whosegoing to win and be elevated to the statusof “This Year’s Christmas No.1 Winner-inwaiting”.It has, however, got me to thinkingabout the origins of this one-time phenomena,and what it means in an age where digitaldownloading hysteria has all but eliminatedthe chances of Christmas singles becoming“A Major Event” except in the eyes of red-toptabloids, willing to publicise a scrap for salesat a time often found wanting for news storiesof a more sober nature.The stem for this resulting hullaballoowas arguably the Slade vs. Wizzard battle ofChristmas past, circa 1973 to be more precise.The two rock bands of the glam persuasionwaged what was effectively commercial waragainst each other, Slade weighing in with‘Merry Xmas Everybody’ whilst Wizzardchose to duke it out with ‘I Wish It Could BeChristmas Everyday’. Though Wizzard lostthe battle, settling for the runner-up spot andchoking on the dust of Slade’s triumphant effort,they arguably penned the more resoundingtune – see almost every chain departmentstore at Christmas time herding bargainseekingconsumers through their doors withoffers of cheap tat and the majority of shamelessChristmas TV ads blaring at elderly folktoo strung out on their tipple of choice to doRemember the theme to BBC’s PlanetEarth? That was the sound of SigurRos and its dramatic and stirringbeauty was the perfect match for the programme,winning the hearts of the nationand bringing the uncompromising Icelandicfour-piece a completely unforeseenlevel of success. In fact 2005’s Takk wasthe band’s fourth album and their recentreleases- 2CD set ‘Hvalf/Heim’ and DVD‘Heima’- round up over a decade of musicdating back to 1995s debut album ‘Von’.After touring the world with ‘Takk’,Sigur Ros returned home to Iceland wherethey played in thirteen locations across thecountry. Described rather interestingly as‘A film by Sigur Ros’, ‘Heima’ is a documentof this unique and fascinating tour whichis recommended as strongly for its stunningphotography as it is for its music.Each location in which the band playsoffers a completely different scene and atmosphere,making ‘Heima’ far more interestingto watch than a conventional music DVD.‘Heysatan’ is performed outside amongst anumber of dilapidated rural houses by thecliffs and sea, ‘Gítardjamm’ is played in anatmospheric abandoned factory and fittingly,much else but blare incoherently at the offendinggoggle-box for disturbing their slumberfor compelling evidence.Since then, everything from the sublime(The Flaming Lips’ Christmas At The Zoo) tothe ridiculous (Bo’ Selecta’s “Proper Crimbo!”,“The Blobby Song” - by he of Crinkly Bottomfame- , and any South Park affiliated single)to the frankly bobbins (the Christmas-themedworks of Chris De Burgh and Cliff Richard– music’s own Axis of Evil TM) has been releasedin an effort to capture some twinklingof nostalgia, or more likely, to sate the needof parents’ desperate need for one more lastminutestocking-filler, whilst stocks last.As I stated earlier however it appears thatthis tradition, nay institution, is going the wayof the dogs. (To visualise this previous sentence,imagine Winston Churchill or someequally iconic British figure with a solitary tearrolling down patriotic cheek… whilst clutchinga copy of the Daily Mail, natch). Short ofPaul Phoenix lookie-likey Rhydian releasingsome Tekken-related single after destroyingthe competition (and hopefully, by extension,the set) on the final of X-Factor, anything elseis most likely resigned to comparatively meagresales and little interest. Since Girls Aloud’snumber one in 2002 with the festive ‘SoundOf The Underground’, the Christmas chartshave been dominated by Cowell’s offspring,which has led to bookies taking bets on themore unpredictable Christmas number twosinstead. This means that this year it is in theshadows that some interesting ChristmasSigur Ros - Heima DVD‘Vaka’ is performed acoustically and withoutelectricity at a protest camp-again outdoors -where a dam is being built amongst Iceland’sstunning, unspoilt highlands. Each locationand performance is punctuated by interviewswith the band which provide background toeach scene - and rousing, artistic photographywhich really complements the music:choices lurk. Chief among them are New Yorkbased dreampop group Asobi Seksu (Japanesefor ‘playful sex’), who have released a cover ofThe Ramones’ Merry Christmas (I Don’t Wantto Fight) this Monday. If it maintains the tunefactor that made this year’s full-length ‘Citrus’so good then it’s a sure bet.BBC Radio One DJ Colin Murray hasjumped on the back of Malcolm Middleton ofArab Strap fame and his macabre song ‘We’reAll Going To Die’. According to Middleton,“Dying is a bit like writing a letter to Santa.Unless you’ve been a good boy or girl, you’refucked.” Can’t imagine your granny singingalong to that one. The public seems to be buyingit though: William Hill has extended theodds from 1000/1 (the longest ever odds) to12/1, making it the fourth favourite.Several rungs above on the publicity-hoggingladder are the omnipresent headliners ofthis year’s Glastonbury Saturday night, TheKillers. Following on from last year’s ‘A GreatBig Sled’ single, they’re trying their luck thisyear with ‘Don’t Shoot Me Santa’. Ho, ho, andindeed ho. What this song has to do with theAIDS charities the profits will be funnelled toas part of the RED campaign, I have no idea,but it is a very worthy cause if you can ignorethe presence of U2’s Bono (aka King Ego)pulling the strings behind the scenes. It’s outnow.Where would the Christmas charts bewithout some sort of collaboration? Grantedthis usually involves some boy band or ex boyimages of children playing by the sea, kitesflying, waterfalls gushing, ice melting, thegrass blowing in the wind. It’s the perfectcomplement to Sigur Ros’s unique brand ofintensely serious and emotional music.Disc 2 features the performances infull- separately, without the documentaryfootage - and includes some wonderfulmoments which were not part of the mainfeature - particularly the gorgeous, acousticDVD title-track ‘Heima’, the instrumental‘Samskeyti’ played in a room full of candlesand the complete version of ‘Takk’s’ upliftingpeak- ‘Se Lest’ - with its dreamy, soothingxylophone chimes and a truly joyousfull brass-band climax.Sigur Ros’s music is strange, unique,sometimes dramatic and heavy, and alwaysserious, emotional and powerful. By addinga visual dimension to the music, ‘Heima’seems like the perfect demonstrationof everything the band has ever strived toachieve. It’s a landmark in the bands careerand sets an entirely new standard for musicDVDs.Chris Carterband member (see Westlife and Diana Ross,Christmas 2005; Robbie Williams and NicoleKidman, Christmas 2001) but this year seesthe advent of the indie-collaboration. Art Brutand The Black Box Recorder have joined forcesto create The Black Arts (www.myspace.com/christmasnumberonetheblackarts) and releasea single, the ingeniously named ‘ChristmasNumber One’. It is naturally all very tongue incheek and the video involves the band recreatinga traditional nativity play, complete withEddie Argos dressed up as Joseph. Definitelyworth a look.Continuing the charity theme is AnarchyXmas (www.myspace.com/anarchyxmas), atwo-dozen strong collective with eyes on theNo.1 prize in aid of causes such as Cancer Researchand Friends of the Earth. Their ‘SmellsLike Christmas’ is out this week too, andis hoping to put Simon Cowell on his hightrouseredarse. Finally, also looking to hit theX-Factor where it hurts, i.e. the wallet is Last.FM’s hand-chosen combatants Lucky Soul,who won an online vote to secure their Cowell-baitingspot. Their effort, Lips Are Unhappy,is released on the 17th for the princely sumof 40p. It’s download-only, so it faces an uphillstruggle of David and Goliath proportions,but at least the tussle promises to be violentand not without casualties. And after all, isn’tthat the true meaning of Christmas? Er…Stephen DaviesCDs, clothes, alcohol – there are plentyof other things much more deservingof your cash than wasting it all on rent.Try not to think of how much your halls orhouse is costing you over the course of a year,it’ll only depress you.With this inmind, NME.comhave teamed upwith Virgin Moneyto offer one luckystudent an entireyear’s worth of rentpaid on your behalf,freeing you up toconcentrate on the real necessities.All you need to do is go to NME.com andclick on the Student Guide section where you’llsee the now infamous NME Music Quiz. Answer20 questions by NME as fast as you canThis year’s oddsaccording toWilliam Hill:2/7 X Factor winner (with Rhydianat 1/3)4/1 Sugababes - Change7/1 Soulja Boy – Crank That12/1 Malcolm Middleton – We’re AllGoing To Die14/1 Shaun the Sheep – Life’s ATreat14/1 Andy Williams – It’s The MostWonderful Time Of The Year33/1 Amy Winehouse - Love Is ALosing Game40/1 Enrique Iglesias – Tired Of BeingSorry50/1 Kate Nash – Pumpkin Soup66/1 Asobi Seksu – Merry Christmas(I Don’t Want To Fight)66/1 Newton Faulkner - Teardrop66/1 Lauren Rose – I Go To TheBeach66/1 Stereophonics – My FriendsWIN!!! YOURRENT PAIDFOR A YEAR!!!and cross your fingers. The scores will all berecorded and the winner will be announcedonce the deadline of January 30th 2008 comesaround. You can also check the leaderboard tosee which university is the most Rock’n’Rollwith more brainy types than the rest. At themoment, BangorUniversity hasn’t yetearned a place so weall need to put in theeffort and show howclever we all are!The quiz goeslive on December3rd and will haveloads of promotion in the paper and on thehomepage of NME.com so make sure you getin there nice and early to be in with a chanceof winning.

The Pigeon Detectives -Time 09/11/2007To be completely honest, when myfriend asked me if I wanted ticketsto see The Pigeon Detectives I didn’thave a clue who they were, and when the datefinally came round to see them play I wasn’toverly enthusiastic about it. Nevertheless, Iwas pleasantly surprised at their performanceand by the end of the night I decidedthat I highly rate this band.After this gig, my verdict is that The PigeonDetectives are now one of my favouritenew bands. I am also pleased that thereis a good line-up of live acts in Bangor thisyear as ‘We Are Scientists’ played on the 29November in Time. All I can say is that ThePigeon Detective’s album ’Wait for Me’ willbe on my Christmas list this year.Seren - Christmas Issue 2007Bangor Goes Live!First up was The Wallflowers, their BobDylan-esque set gets feet tapping andheads nodding, and as one band memberconfirms with me later in an expletiveriddenconversation “all you need is drums,a bass and an acoustic guitar to make a goodtune” . The main support tonight are OneNight Only, their song “You and Me” is onconstant rotational play on MTV2 as I witnesseda week ago, while at a house possessingsomething further than Freeview (beinga student I was amazed!).They step it up anotch by getting a few people to bop alongto their set.Then as The Pigeon Detectives themselvesgrace the stage all the non-studentsand older members of the audience push forwardchanting along, singing, jumping andgenerally enjoying themselves to the spectacleonstage, the lead singer relishing this byturning himself into a gymnast, bouncing allover the stage like a demon, climbing speakerstacks and balancing himself precariouslyon random ledges. After plenty of time askingBangor if we had “had a good time?” itwas finished way too early and after everyonehad mobbed every band member just to gettheir autographs all that was left to do wasto traipse home and realise that we were nolonger on some kind of fantastical rock ‘n’ rollplanet but alas, back in Bangor.Sion Wyn LaszekInterview - One Night OnlyTwo intrepid and very female Seren reporterswere thrown into the testosterone-filledpit that is One Night Only’s tour bus. Here’swhat happened:Seren: So how did you mange to makeit from the small Yorkshire town ofHelmsley to huge venues supportinghigh profile bands?George Craig (lead singer and guitarist):I suppose just getting interest from the songswe’ve got. We’ve got an album of killer songs- for me I think a good band is all about thesongs.Seren: What can we expect from the newalbum then?George: I think people are going to beshocked. With ‘You and Me’ we get comparedto stuff like The Kooks, it’s a bit annoyingbut with the first single that’s got to bethe way it is – catchy, can dance along to it,it stays in your head. But the album is different-there’s a lot of variety on it, every song isworth being there and I think it’s going to bea big album for 2008.Seren: Who are you influenced by?Sam Ford (drummer): Queen, we’re influencedby the sky, Spice Girls, this bus. . .George: As a band, we really like ArcadeFire, The Killers, [and] Bloc Party. Individuallywe’re all into different things, I’m into alot of 80s stuff and other stuff like Bob Dylan– bit of everything really.Seren: What do you think of Bangor? Haveyou had much of a chance to look round atall?George: I like it - we went into town and Ihad a nice English breakfast.Sam: I went to the seaGeorge: You went to the sea! I was lookingfor the sea. My mum used to come up hereyour MySpaceprofile and thereare a lot of girlscommenting - doyou have to pinchon holiday andshe said to me,‘You can have alittle holiday upthere’, it’s nicehere, I like Bangor.Seren: We’vebeen looking atyourself sometimesthat thereare lots of lovelyladies throwingthemselves at you?George: It’s good because we need girls.Every band needs fans and I guess that if it’sgoing to turn out that 60% of our fans areyoung girls that’s fine but I found a Facebookpage today that’s an appreciation society forme. It’s called ‘Are you feeling the vibe ofGeorge Craig?’ It’s got a picture of me on abike!Seren: The Pigeon Detectives have got a reputationfor their partying, have you got anyantics or stories for us?Sam: We once ended up in a random housein Newcastle with Matt (Bowman, lead singerof The Pigeon Detectives).George: When you’re with Matt it alwaysends up pretty confusing.Seren: So you’re gonna go partying tonightthen?George: It depends on how lively tonightturns out and when the bus has to leave. . .15So what happened next? The girls took bothOne Night Only and The Pigeon Detectivesto a house party, here’s what One NightOnly have to say about it on their MySpaceblog:‘What a night. A great crowd, despitetheir weird obsession with sausage rolls...great dancing, singing, the lot! And...ahouse party. We'll leave it there shall we?’And apparently one of the girls just mightstill be texting one of The Pigeon Detectives,but she won’t confirm or deny thoserumours. . .Interview by AliceWeston and AimeeBessant, words byEmma Dixon.We Are Scientists –Time 29/11/2007Willow ManuelAs we waited eagerly for the PigeonDetectives to begin their set, Time’smodest dance floor rapidly filled up.We Bangor students definitely make a goodaudience, making up in enthusiasm what welack in numbers (a totally unbiased opinion,of course). The lead singer was entertainingand energetic, but unfortunately I got the impressionthat some of the other band memberswere a little bored. Considering the band onlyhave one album out, they played for a reasonableamount of time, although I felt we deservedto see an encore.Most of the crowd left as soon as the gigwas over, but there was plenty of photo andautograph opportunities for those of us whostayed behind, as the guys from all threebands stuck around for a friendly chat. Therewas plenty of the usual memorabilia, includingbadges which for unknown reasons werethrown at us! So: live music, dancing, alcohol,autographs and free badges. All in all, it was avery good night.Rachel StrettonDuring their latest British tour We AreScientists stopped off in Bangor tograce us with their presence and playan electrifying gig in Time. The band that TheGuardian dubbed as ‘nerds’ defied their geekyimage to give a brilliant and memorable performance.The lead singer certainly further defies thispicture as he was definitely hot! The venue wasjam packed, even more so than for the PigeonDetectives and the crowd went mental whenWe Are Scientists finally hit the stage. Theirmusic is now becoming widely known as it hasbeen played on Radio One for quite a while.It has been stated that their songs mix punkand pop sounds which comes out as soundingoriginal and quirkyI am a big fan of the band’s first album‘Love and Squalor’, which I particularly likeas the cover consists of the band holding upcats, so I was happy when they treated us toan array of songs from it such as ‘NobodyMove, Nobody Gets Hurt’, ‘It’s A Hit’ and ‘TheGreat Escape’. It was clear that everyone lovedtheir performance as the crowd were dancingand singing along the whole time. When theband paused for a moment the crowd startingchanting, “We Are Scientists” until they carriedon playing again. Enthusiasm was alsoshown in the beer throwing and the crowdsurfing, especially when the band first startedplaying. After the gig We Are Scientists alsomade a brief appearance in Time to chat to allof the fans.All in all I had a great night watching Weare Scientists, their music and performancewas very entertaining. I am very pleased withthe live music acts that have come to Bangorthis year and am only upset that I missed outon Alan Fletcher!Willow Manuel

Fans of Joy Division will be familiarwith the story of lead singer, IanCurtis’ life and death. This film dealswith his struggle with depression and epilepsyand how he eventually ended his own life.Based on the book written by his wife, DeborahCurtis, Control focuses on his personallife from an early age and during the band’sFilm nights are every Sunday at7pm in the Main Arts LectureTheatre.Hosted by Bangor Amnesty StudentSociety.Free entry.Students only.The last films of the semester are theOscar award winning film, Boys Don’t Cry(02/12/07). Based on real life events, HilarySwank is Brandon Teena; the popular newguy in a tiny Nebraska town. Hangingout with the guys, drinking, cussing, andbumper surfing, and he charms the youngwomen, who’ve never met a more sensitiveand considerate young man. Life is good forBrandon, now that he’s one of the guys anddating hometown beauty Lana. However, he’sforgotten to mention something about is. It’snot that he’s wanted in another town for GTAand other assorted crimes, but that BrandonTeena was actually born a woman namedIt has been a pretty decent year for filmoverall hasn’t it? Plenty of classy mainstreamand “arthouse” films have hit ournearby screens, and some have actually beenrather good. As we all disperse for Christmas,have a complimentary list courtesy of us hereat Seren. Merry Christmas! - Ian1) Into the Wild - Emile Hirsch gave astupendous performance as ChristopherMcCandless who chose to live rough fortwo years in America. My favourite film ofthe year by far, make sure you check out thesoundtrack by Eddie Vedder of Pearl Jam.CONTROLrise to fame.Shot entirely in black and white, thisindependent film makes a good attempt atunderstanding the mind of a troubled genius.Readers of the original book may suggestthat the extent in which Curtis mistreated hiswife wasn’t fully represented in the film, butSamantha Morton’s portrayal of his long sufferingspouse was well executed. As well asgetting an insight into Curtis’ mindset, sympathiesdefinitely fell with Deborah who was avictim of Curtis’ impulses and deteriation.The audience sees her frustration at theinability to help the man she loved, ashe tried to deal with himself. The maintheme of the film, expressed in the title, Control,expresses Curtis’ difficulty in structuringhis own life and dealing with his illness andmany medications.Life inside the band is portrayed to a lesserextent and mainly as a way of showing his deteriation.His epileptic fits onstage obviouslycaused concern and it was striking how theband seemed ambivalent to his extra maritalaffair. The film generally made good use of JoyDivision’s music, though everyone was waitingwith baited breath to see when they woulduse the iconic ‘Love Will Tear Us Apart’. PersonallyI don’t think they used it to best effectand there were other opportunities when itsuse might have been more pertinent. Joy Division’smusic, however, provided a solid backdropto the entire film, reminding viewers ofjust how great they really were.Especially early on in the film, attempts aremade to show the influences which effectedthe band, from their original name, Warsaw,taken from a David Bowie song, to the posterson the young Curtis’ wall at home. Not everyissue experienced by the young Curtis couldbe explored fully in the film, since there musthave been many which contributed to thetwenty three year old musician with a youngfamily and flourishing career, to take his life.But on the whole, Control is an affectivefilm, well shot and insightful in its look atan important, if tragically short, life.Emma DoddAMNESTY FILM NIGHTSTeena Brandon.andTsotsi (09/12/07) Tsotsi (Presley Chwenayagae)is the leader of a gang of who haveno bounds of decency in getting what theywant. After a callous murder for cash, one ofTsotsi’s men, hits a sore spot, causing buriedmemories of Tsotsi’s horrifying childhood tobubble to the surface, he explodes in angerand beats him senseless. Soon after, he commitsa carjacking, only to discover a baby inthe backseat of the vehicle. Tsotsi decides tobring the child home with him and try toraise the boy.Then we will be taking a break over Christmasbut they will be starting again on Sundaythe 13th (13/01/08) to give you guys a welldeserved break from revising.The film list for next year has yet to beconfirmed but will definitely include the followingpowerful and evocative filmsCity of GodRabbit-Proof FenceSchindler’s ListEDITORS FILM CHOICES 20072) Knocked Up - My choice of the Summer,and still one of the year’s finest.3) Two Days in Paris - Julie Delpy wrote,directed and starred in this wonderful romanticcomedy, which looks at a couple on abrief stopover in Paris. Realistic dialogue andplenty of humour made this a joy to watch.4) Transformers - Giant robots battling. Yes.5) Zodiac - David Fincher’s return to form.Seren - Christmas Issue 2007BEOWULF ****If you ever studied the epic poem at school,probably the last thing you want to do ifgo and see the 3-D film version of it. Howeverthis latest version brings the narrative intothe 21st century with the mocap style (motioncapture)- a favourite form of the film’s director,Robert Zemicks, enabling the charcters tocome to life in 3-D format.Beowulf ’s claim to fame as a poem is thatit is the oldest story to be committed to paperin the English language and it has no knownauthor due it being verbally passed on for along time. Unless you’ve spent countless hoursanalysing the old-English it was written in, tothis day the story has lost none of its fantasticalcharm.The story exists in a time of legends, heroesand monsters. Beowulf is a great warrior fromthe land of the Geats, he is famous across theland for slaughtering monsters that plaguedthe earth. Upon hearing of a Danish kingdomruled over by Hrothgar (an aging AnthonyFollowing their last collaboration, the2006 flop and disappointment ‘A GoodYear’, ‘American Gangster’ is a majorreturn to form for Ridley Scott and RussellCrowe. And the addition of Denzel Washingtonto the already great team makes foran even more exciting proposition. A filmthat is extremely far removed from Scott andCrowe’s previous collaboration with none ofthe lighter, more romantic tone of that film,‘American Gangster’ is a late 60s/early 70speriod crime drama based on the true storyof crime boss turned informant Frank Lucaswho outdid the mafiain the drug tradeduring the 70s andhonest police detectiveRichie Robertswho was out tocatch him and puta stop to his operation.This filmis very differentto many of RidleyScott’s past effortsand sees him tryingout a numberof new techniquesthat give this film abit of an edge overmany of his pastmovies.‘American Gangster’ begins in 1968 withFrank Lucas (Washington) being nothingmore than the quiet driver to crime bossBumpy Johnson. Following the death of hisemployer and mentor, however, he exploitsthe opening in the power struggle to buildhis own empire and create his own visionof the American Dream. Buying heroin directlyfrom the source and coming up witha unique way of importing it into America,Lucas is able to offer a product that is betterthan the competition and at a considerablycheaper price, and creates many enemies forhimself. Meanwhile, Richie Roberts (Crowe)is one of the few honest drug cops in NewHopkins) that was being dominated by the attacksof the monster Grendel, Beowulf travelsto the kingdom to free the people from theircaptor. In so doing he gets drawn into a bloodybattle with Grendel’s mother which brings outthe flawed elements of his human nature- heroor not.I confess when I agreed to go and see it Idid not realise it was a mocap piece, and in myignorance I called it ‘animated’. This couldn’tbe further from the truth. The cast performedin front of a blue screen, and they were thendigitally recreated and placed in a CG background,loosing none of their performancein the process. This style meant they coulddo so much more with the story. Beowulfcould battle his sea monsters in great detailand the dragon-like offspring of Grendel’smother could chase his foe all the way backto his new-found kingdom. Unfortunately themocap style also meant that for me, the characterstook on a computer game like edge andYork and when he is given the chance to heada specialist team with the purpose of catchingthe big bad guys he soon finds himself onthe trail of Lucas. The two are soon caught ina conflict where only one of them can comeout on top.All the components of ‘American Gangster’suggest that this film should be a masterpiecelike ‘The Godfather’. Skilled directionfrom one of the most talented directorsever in Scott, terrific performances fromtwo of the greatest actors ever in Crowe andWashington, not to mention a fantastic ensemblecast, all highlight how much potentialthis film has. Unfortunately, it never fullylives up to it. A masterpiece? Not even close,but that’s not to say that there aren’t things torecommend it. One of the first things of noteis the cinematography The film really doeslook and feel like it is set in the late 60s/early70s, and creates a very convincing depictionof life in New York at the time. The film alsoconvinces in its depiction of events. Much ofwhat happens is shown in quite graphic detailbut never is the film in any way gratuitous.The performances are what really makes thefilm stand out though, with Crowe excellinghimself as Roberts, making us sympathiseFilmto see them walking, talking and thinking (inthe context of the film) for themselves was alittle surreal. But this did not taint the overallimpact of the film.The cast injected their characters withstyles that each are famed for- Ray Winston asBeowulf issues commands that make you wantto stand to attention, and Angelina Jolie, evendigitally recreated as a half-human monster,could seduce the most faithful of men.Beowulf is the original sci-fi/fantasy epic,complete with sword-fights, dragons, buffmenand sexy women (even if they are digital).If you like epic tales and can overlookthe computer-game likeness of the characters;Beowulf is definitely a film worth seeing.Rachel EalesEDITOR’S NOTE: See this in 3D if you havethe chance! 2D just does not do this filmjustice.AMERICAN GANGSTER ****with him completely as one of the very fewgood cops among many bad ones. Washingtonis superb too, convincing as both the brutalgangster and the family man, showing thathe is an actor capable of a range of performances.His performance is so powerful that, attimes, we almost feel for his character in spiteof all the bad things that he does. The restof the cast also worth a mention with CubaGooding Jr, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Armand Assante,Ric Young, Josh Brolin, and ClarenceWilliams III (in a brief cameo) all putting inappearances. The only let down on the actingfront is thatCrowe andWashingtonhardly appearon screen together,withtheir charactersonly encounteringone anotherface to faceat the end ofthe film. Thed i r e c t i o nfrom Scott isvery strongalso but attimes thefilm does feela bit disjointed with certain story developmentsseemingly coming out of the bluewithout thorough explanation. This is one ofthe things that holds the film back from beingwhat it could be, along with the fact thatit does seem to run a bit long without enoughgoing on to really maintain the interest forthe entire duration. However, these complaintsaren’t enough to stop this from beingan extremely well made and very interestingfilm overall. ‘American Gangster’ is certainlya very slow film but is still a fascinating anddaring one, and certainly worth seeing.Robert Mann

Booksby Emma McCallThe Tin Roof BlowdownThis is James Lee Burke’s latest crimemystery featuring themuch loved characterDave Robicheaux. The storybegins with the shooting oftwo would-be looters in NewOrleans during HurricaneKatrina, and then follows amotley group of characters;from street thugs to a bigtimemob boss, from a junkiepriest to a sadistic psychopath,as their stories converge on acache of stolen diamonds. Thenightmarish landscape createdby Hurricane Katrina isthe perfect setting for Burke’salmost Biblical visions of goodTwilightby William GayThis fantasy horror novel begins witha fascinating discovery by two teenagers,unaware of what lies aheadof them in this adventure. With a tale thatunravels withevery dark,unknown cornerand tangledroads, theboys will haveto deal withlost families,the unfamiliarand witches.This is set tobe the mostc o m p e l l i n ggothic novel ofthe year withGay rivallingthe best of the business. This is for those wholove fantasies such as Kings’ classics.by James Lee Burkeand evil. You can really feel the undercurrentsof rage and pain beneath thenarrative, making this notonly his most personal anddeeply felt book for sometime, but quite possibly hisbest novel to date. This is notjust a superb crime novel; itis potentially THE fictionalchronicle of a disaster whosehuman dimensions Americais still struggling to process.The perfect read for thosewho love their crime novelsand mysteries.Retired journalist for The Sunday TelegraphandThe Spectator,James Delingpole hasexpressed his thoughtsarticulately and amusingly,on everythingfrom politics to popularmusic, from schoolsports days to spliffs.In this A-Z of brief essays,he turns his livelymind to modern societygone mad. Can’tunderstand what’swrong with muchlovedfeet and inches?Don’t believe theglobal-warming hype?Wondering whatever happened to good, oldfashioneduniversities? Pouring scorn on theBANGOR SPORTS TEAMSBREAKING RECORDS ONBUSA TABLESUniversity Played Won Draw Lost Points1 Bangor University 1st 6 5 0 1 152 University of Liverpool 3rd 5 4 0 2 123 Keele University 1st 6 2 1 3 7University Played Won Draw Lost Points1 Manchester Met University 1st 6 5 0 1 122 Bangor University 1st 7 6 0 1 123 MMU Cheshire 1st 6 2 1 3 5Seren - Christmas Issue 2007This novel is still at the top of thebest sellers list, with such romance,passion and sadness this book is amust read for all those who are in need of awarm passionate tale about two lovers andthe world around them. This would makea perfect stocking filler for all those whoenjoy their romance novels and even thosewho want a novel with a twist at the end.An excellent read for all for Christmas.The newest release from the internationallybestselling novelist JamesPatterson is a creepy thriller thatwill even scare those who are used to thismastermind. For Karen Burns, a talentedyoung photographer, it was only naturalto go to New York to chase her dreams.And it was only normal, just to pay therent while she waited for her big chance,to work as a nanny for a New York youngpower couple, an attorney and his socialitewife, looking after their two children. Butfor all the promise, the thrills, and the glitter,there are temptations and deadly dangersthat come with life among the rich andpowerful. Get ready for the Nanny Diariesfrom Hell. This is the perfect read for thosewho love the early books by Patterson.17The newest instalment of the nakedchef ’s famous recipes is a musthave for those who love to cookand experiment with the finer things thatthey can grow in their own back yard.With suggestions to make your own vegetablepatch and do a lot of the cookingDIY this is a perfect present for those diehard cooking fans, and the baked pearswith a wine and a scrumptious cake, thisis a must have.University Played Won Draw Lost Points1 Liverpool JM University 2nd 7 6 0 1 182 Bangor University 1st 7 6 0 1 183 University of Salford 1st 6 4 1 1 13BUSA Tennis - Northern Conference Men’s 3A 2007/08 BUSA Fencing - Northern Conference Men’s 1A 2007/08BUSA Rugby League North West 2007/08The Bad Bride’s Taleby Polly WilliamsThis hilarious romantic comedy is perfectfor those who want to curl up witha good book that will make you laugh,cry and want to read it again and again. Thischeeky, upbeat, chick romp com is about lovingthe man of your dreams, marriage, betrayaland babies. With a warm hearted maincharacter and funny moments that you will remember,including the want for relationshipsand a life lesso r d i n a r y ,this book isa must havefor all thosem o t h e r s ,d au g hters,sisters, wivesand friendswho are inneed of agood bookthat willmake thembetter.How To Be Rightby James Delingpolestate of Britain after ten years under Brownand Blair, “How ToBe Right” couldn’thave come along ata more appropriatetime. Prepareto foam and splutter,and to be seriouslyentertained.This collections ofamusing essays willkeep you amusedfor hours and hoursdue to Delingpoles’diverse thinkingand offensive attitudetowards thosewho he classes as‘the deserving few’.FORTHCOMING SPORTING MATCHESTuesday 11th December• Basketball Men’s 1st vs. MMU CheshireMen’s 2nd, Home• Basketball Women’s 1st vs. Universityof Manchester Women’s 1st, HomeWednesday 12th December• Badminton Women’s 1st vs. University ofSheffield Women’s 1st, Home.• Badminton Men’s 1st vs. Lancaster UniversityMen’s 2nd, HomeCHRISTMAS BUYSThe top buys for this Christmas:What to get your book loving friendsRomance Lovers -Atonementby Ian McEwenCrime Lovers -You’ve Been Warnedby James Patterson• Football Men’s 1st vs. Liverpool HopeUniversity College Men’s 2nd, Away• Football Men’s 2nd vs. Manchester MetropolitanUniversity Men’s 3rd, Home• Football Men’s 3rd vs. University of ChesterMen’s 4th, Home• Golf 1st vs. Lancaster University 1st,AwayCookery Lovers -Jamie Oliver:At HomeComedy Lovers -Uglier Than AMonkeys Armpitby Dr RobertVanderPlankThis essential collection of rathercolourful range of insults in everylanguage imaginable to man is anexcellent read for all those who wouldlove to know how to say ‘You look likethe Mona Lisa after a spanking’ in Czech.Dr Robert VanderPlank has scoured theworld to find all interesting, memorableand hilarious phrases and sayings in overforty different languages to amuse the restof us. This is a perfect present for all thosewho love their insults.• Hockey Men’s 1st vs. Edge Hill CollegeMen’s 1st, Away• Hockey Women’s 1st vs. University ofCumbria Women’s 1st, Home• Rugby Union Men’s 1st vs. University ofLiverpool Men’s 3rd, Home• Tennis Women’s 1st vs. University of LiverpoolWomen’s 1st, HomeBUSA Netball - Northern Conference Women’s 4A 2007/08University Played Won Draw Lost Points1 University of Manchester 1st 5 5 0 0 152 Bangor University 1st 5 4 0 1 123 Lancaster University 1st 5 3 0 2 9BUSA Football - Northern Conference Men’s 7A 2007/08University Played Won Draw Lost Points1 Bangor University 3rd 6 4 1 1 162 University of Chester 4th 6 5 1 0 163 MMU Cheshire 7 5 0 2 15

18 Seren - Christmas Issue 2007EXCITING TIMES AHEADFOR ROWING TEAMThe new look Rowing squads startedtheir season of competition with impressiveperformances at a very challengingevent. The club presented two crewsfor the Trafford Head on Manchester’s BridgewaterCanal. The club entered a slimmeddown line up, consisting of a Novice Womens8+ and a Senior Mens 8+. The canal was ascene far removed from the open expanse ofthe Menai Straits, so the coxes had a huge challengekeeping the boats straight and centredthrough bridges and tight corners, while keepingthe crews motivated and rowing hard.The club hoped for a good result for theMens 8+, they were experienced and raceready, hopes were high as they boated on thecanal first. The M8+ performed well; keepingcomposure and racing perceptively fast downthe 3,200m course. Pulling hard through allthe corners and bridges, keeping boat speedhigh as they raced down the last 1km, mood inthe boat was high as they crossed the finish.However the stopwatch didn’t favour theMen, but they still came third in their division.They were beaten by two very fast, seniorBUSA crews from Manchester and SalfordUniversities. The Men pulled an impressivetime of 11.14mins; this placed them just outsidethe top three, as a respectable fourth fastestout of sixty five crews.The men were expected to pull a goodtime, as their Senior status indicated, but thewomen were racing at Novice. The vast majorityof the women had only been rowingsince the start of term. The W8+ boated inthe second division of the day, facing oppositionfrom Salford and Manchester. They had atough debut, mainly due to the nature of thecourse and the demands of competition. Howeverthey kept going through the race, andcompleted the course in 15.26mins, placingthem 57th overall. The experience of the dayis sure to improve the crews as they face theirnext challenge, the Head of the Float.The Head of the Float is going to be ourbiggest event in recent memory. There willbe thirty four people competing, and six supportingmembers helping out. The captainsRUGBY LEAGUE REPORTSBY WILL VARLEYBANGOR RUGBY LEAGUE HITS THE TOPManchester Metropolitan 1-10 Bangor University.On November 28th Bangor saved theirbest performance of the season tocrush their top of the table rivals.Manchester, commanding first place beforekick off, trieddesperatelythroughoutthe match tobreach theBangor linebut eventuallybecamethe first clubin Bangor’shistory notto score a tryin a matchagainst themand ultimatelygive uptheir place atthe top of theNorth WestLeague.Early Manchester pressure saw them bizarrelyopt for a one point drop goal when itlooked like they would go for the try. It musthave been on their minds to grab whateveropportunities they could as it was clear thatchances would be slim in a very physical encounter.Bangor sustained this pressure andscored two tries before the break. James Flemingburrowed his way over from close rangeat dummy half and Danny Wright seemed toshake off half of the Manchester team to eventuallytouch down. Tom Bradfield added oneconversion to make it 1-10 at the break.The second half, although scoreless, wasperhaps Bangor’s greatest ever half of rugby.Manchester, chasing the game, threw everythingthey possibly had at the visitor’s defensiveline andfailed to succeed.Manof the matchLucas Ashworthwasoutstandingin both attackand defenceand helpedthe forwardsout withsome bigruns whenrequired todo so. LukeD o n o v a nmade a welcomereturnfrom injury, showing plenty of the aggressionneeded to win a game of this physicality.Every player gave their all for Bangorshowing a fantastic team effort. The backsscooted the ball away from their line on countlessoccasions so that when the forwards didreceive the ball, they were already well clearof their own try line. Tom Bradfield controlledthe game with his boot, forcing Manchesterto begin possession often deep in their halfwhich by the time their main attacks had beenabsorbed and there was no easy way back upfield.have selected four racing crews of eight, withthe Mens Senior 8 attempting to beat the clubrecord at the event of 6.28mins for the 1400mdouble sprint.Another exciting event for the club is theupcoming sponsored indoor row, 13 hourson 13th December at Patrick’s Bar. The collectionand competitions will be in aid of theLeukaemia & Lymphoma Society and for vitalfunds for the club as we grow to our biggestin decades. Please come and support us and avery worthy charity throughout the day from12midday to 1am, we’ll need it!Thanks to all the people that make the cluba success when racing, and all the membersthat support the club daily.For more info on the club, from joiningto training schedules, check out www.undeb.bangor.ac.uk/rowing or email the club at rowingclub@undeb.bangor.ac.ukPaul JohnsonThursday 22nd November saw studentsand locals descend on The Menai inUpper Bangor, to compete in a charitypool competition in aid of Hope House hospice.28 people entered representing a healthymix of locals and students to create a great atmospherethroughout the evening.The two tables saw much action throughoutthe night with close games galore andrivalries between the last few players and ofcourse, the odd fluke shot here or there. Thefinal few games lasted into the early part ofFriday morning, with the final not finisheduntil well after quarter past 12, when Menairegular and pool team member SnowyThatcher was crowned champion after a 3-1thriller of a final against Club Treasurer ElliasJafari. Another pub team member DaniOn 26 October 10 intrepid explorersfrom UMWC set out on a greatadventure to the deep, dark mysticallands that are the Yorkshire Dales. Ok, soperhaps that’s a little over the top but it turnsout there’s more to the Dales than Emmerdale.We arrived at the campsite about half 10 in abangor-esque drizzle, and 3 of us 1st years hadto put up a club tentwe had never seenbefore and it took usa while to just to figureout where to putthe poles (the insideof the flysheet?).Once we had finallygot it up we foundthere was aboutenough room foran American child.Our plan for day 1was to conquer themighty Whernside,the highest peak inthe area at a whopping736m. The walk had......some added interest in the impressiveRibbledale railway viaduct. Believe it or notwe did actually have to do some uphill to getto the summit, although we did make it ingood time. Finding ourselves with extra timeto play with we extended the walk in the hopeof finding some shake holes as nobody wasquite sure exactly what they were. It turnedout they were just sunken circles of land. Werolled into the post-hike pub at the slightly ridiculouslyearly time of 3.30pm, however wewere all happy to get out of the rain and intoan establishment selling alcohol/hot drinks.In the evening we decided against campsitecooking and trying to get a trangia to workso headed to the nearest village to find a pub.However the first one we found unceremoniouslyturfed us out as they only had “room” for8. So back to the minibus to head into Ingletonwhere we found a nice reasonably pricedCHARITY POOLTOURNAMENTALL IN A DALES WORKBurns came in third after a playoff againststudent Rob Laing.Both the Snooker and Pool Club and TheMenai would like to thank the many patronswho dipped into their pockets along with allcompetitors and supporters who helped usraise an impressive £125 for Hope House.If anyone is interested in joining theSnooker and Pool Club drop us an email at:snookerandpool@undeb.bangor.ac.uk or popinto The Menai any Sunday after 7pm.Thanks once again to all those who helpedand contributed to an extremely enjoyableand successful evening and look out in thenew year for details of the next charity knockoutcompetition.Chris Samuelsplace. I didn’t have it but the Yorkshire puddinglooked good.Saturday night we were battered by windand rain with our tent getting a bit flooded dueto a pegging mishap and so Sunday morningdid not hold too many prospects. Neverthelesswe headed out optimistic. Soon we cameacross some caves that were self-proclaimedas the “bestshowcaves inBritain”. Wethen passedt h r o u g h“ G a p i n gGill”, beforefinding agreat undergroundwaterfall. Ageographer’sp a r a d i s e !After yesterday’sdisappointingshakeItalian“Football Ace”played for BangorCity F.C!hole,we found a proper one and found it worthyof an early lunch break. Climbing, we encounteredmore cloud, however it started lifting toreveal an almost clear top, cue trig point photofun. On the way back we encountered moregeological fantasticness in a huge limestonepavement.So all there was left to do was for our wearysouls to return to Bangor, our sleepy state wasconfounded by the sound of the entire gladiatorsoundtrack, complete with dialogue extracts.As much as I think gladiator is a greatfilm, experiencing it through the medium ofsound is an all together quite different experience.While I didn’t hold particular highexpectations for the weekend I came awayhaving had a really good time and would recommendany future trips the club organises.Joe FirthWell not really! BBC Three recentlyscreened a “Football Fake” programmeabout the tale of a conmanwho posed as an international footballer.Unfortunately it was our very own BangorCity that the rogue ‘footballer’ contacted.Alessandro Zarelli (at least he soundedlike a good player) contacted Welsh clubsclaiming he was on an exchange visit arrangedby the Italian FA. The twenty twoyear old told Bangor in July 2005 that he wasa former Italy youth player who had also runout for Sheffield Wednesday, Rangers andLeeds.Bangor’s club secretary Alun Griffithssaid that Zarelli had used “official-lookingfaxes” to introduce himself. But when Bangormanager Peter Davenport contactedsomeone he knew at Sheffield Wednesday,they said they’d never heard of him. As it was,Zarelli only took part in one warm up sessionfor Bangor. “He was only here for abouta week to ten days,” said Mr.Davenport. “Inthat time I checked a bit into his backgroundand it didn’t add up.”With Zarelli’s scam rumbled he left totry elsewhere, but not before running upan unpaid hotel bill. He tried to con fellowNorth Wales club Connahs Quay Nomadsand also a team from Ireland before vanishing.Journalist Jez Hemmings, posing asan agent, finally tracked down Zarelli at aLondon hotel in which he secretly filmed.Zarelli confessed that he’d told a pack of lies“because I always wanted to play football.”Apparently Zarelli said the player he wasmost like was Joe Cole. I say stick him in theEngland midfield!Will Varley.

It seems that every year the issue surroundingkeeping Wednesday afternoonsfree is raised and then dealt with withoutsuccess. Although I have written about thisbefore concerning the effect this has on sportsclubs, in that teams have to lose players whoattend lectures, participation in other areasapart from sport is also restricted.BUSA (British Universities Sports Association)has membership from 151 Universitiesand Institutes of Higher Education. Thisalone shows the popularity of sport amongststudents today and it’s unbelievable that studentsare denied the chance to participate. InBangor it’s only the Sports Science departmentthat keeps Wednesday afternoons free for studentsso it comes as a big shock to Freshersonce they realise that they’ll have to make sacrificesin order to play. I’m sure other teamshave similar problems, but out of the rugbyleague squad of around thirty, eleven playershave to miss lectures to play and sometimesthis isn’t an option. However it isn’t just Bangorthat finds itself in this situation.Bath Spa University, according to theirwebsite, “is one of the few top Universities inthe UK that doesn’t allow Wednesday afternoonsfree for social and academic interactionto take place.” Its campaign is set to benefit allstudents as it is “not just a clubs and societiescampaign.” Aberwystryth University and theUniversity of Hull are also actively campaigning.One solution that is suggested on Hull’swebsite is to have taped lectures available topart-time students. This could be a solution tostudents who cannot attend lectures becauseof other commitments. The Psychology departmentin Bangor has audio lectures availablefor students on the intranet, so why nothave all lectures recorded this way?As the issue is tackled further, it’s apparentthat Wednesday afternoons for otherneeds are important, as well as sport. Maturestudents, who struggle to get free time in theevenings would benefit greatly from havingone specific afternoon off a week to spendsocialising or participating in extra curricularactivities. NEWI in Wrexham has shownthat it is possible to have periods of study offfor students. However, at the moment NEWIhas implemented a timetable that keeps Fridaysfree, supposedly to give students longSeren - Christmas Issue 2007ANOTHER TERM OFMISSED OPPORTUNITIESLETS GO FLY A KITEOn the weekend of 24 th and 25 th Novemberan event was planned by boththe Kitesports Club and the PhotographySociety. The idea was to promote linksbetween clubs and gain some promotionalmaterial for the newly formed KitesportsClub, whilst at the same time giving the PhotographySociety members a chance to takephotos in line with this month’s best picturecompetition theme of“sport in action”.After lots of checkingof the tides andweather, the timesand beaches were confirmed.Unfortunatelyon Saturday the windwas perfect but it wasraining and so thedifficult decision wasmade to cancel witheveryone extremelyhopeful about the betterweather predicted for Sunday.Sunday morning came and everyone metat the Students’ Union at 10.30am with a fairfew hangovers from the Saturday night partying(Did anyone see banana man? That wasme). We set off eager for a good day at thebeach and that was exactly what we got. Aftera quick welcome and safety brief the kiteswere unpacked with a good range of kitersfrom most disciplines out. Unfortunately thewind though wasn’t right for our kite surfersso they didn’t make the trip or landboardedinstead.A good few hours were spent with theKitesports Club members showing off a varietyof impressive moves and tricks and in generalgiving the photographers plenty of goodmaterial. At about4pm the wind startedto drop and dueto the light slowlydropping and everyonestarting tofeel the cold everyonedecided to seekwarmth at home.All in all a greattime was had by allwho attended withsome fantastic photosproduced. Weare hoping to plan another bigger event likethis when the weather gets warmer. If you areinterested in joining either clubs please emailkitesports@undeb.bangor.ac.uk or photography@undeb.bangor.ac.ukor come and see usat Serendipity 2.Liam Watsonweekends. The result of that has been thatWrexham’s weekend student population hasplummeted. Is this new idea merely an excusefor lecturers to have a long weekend off themselves?The NPC (National Postgraduate Committee)argues that unlike undergraduate educationthere is not a great deal to sell in termsof student life, and many postgraduates findthe experience disappointing when they arriveat the institution. The availability of Wednesdayafternoons is a vital aspect for makingaccess to student life possible. The timetableunit in Bangor say that they are sympatheticto students’ needs but unfortunately currentdemands and restraints prevent Wednesdaysbeing made free at the moment. It is not downto the timetable unit to put right the problem.That power lies with the higher authoritieswithin the University and it should be ourright as students to have free time for socialand other academic events. Watch this spacefor more news on the matter.Will VarleyBADMINTONCLUB BATTLINGHARDNovember 7 th results: Women lostagain 7-1 to Sheffield. Some veryclose doubles games, so hopefullywe will fair better when we play them herein Bangor.Men’s 1st won 6-2 against LancasterMen’s 2nds drew 4-4 with Cumbria.November 14 th results:All 3 teams lost 6-2 last week.Women lost to Manchester - although therewere some very hard fought games in thedoubles, so we are hoping to fair better inthe second leg next year.Men’s 1st lost to Central Lancashire.Men’s 2nd lost to Manchester Met.November 21 st results: The Women’s teamlost 5-3 in a close game against Lancaster.Men’s 1st lost 6-2 against LiverpoolJohn Moores.Men’s 2nds lost 7-1 against Chester.Laura Reilly19THERE IS BIKING INBANGORFrom the first biking social sprung thechallenge; to make the gruelling ascentof Snowdonia’s highest peak. Startingat 8am on a cold and wet Saturday morning,six membersof Bangor’snew bikinggrouptook it uponthemselvesto make itreality. Ascendinganddescendingthe Llanberispath,it took abouttwo and ahalf hoursto bike/pushup and toolittle timeto relish the fantastic rocky downhill that followed.As quoted ‘the most important thingis having a bike that stops’! However, strongwinds proved the main problem, especially atthe top when assuming the victory pose (seephoto). Following the epic, the group appreciatedhard-earned nourishment in the formINTERFAITH FOOTBALLTOURNAMENT“How good and how pleasant it is forbrothers to dwell together in unity.[Psalms 133:1]”In order to bring the Religious Societies inthe University together, a five-a-side Footballtournament was organized by the Catholic Society(CathSoc) on Saturday 10th November,2007.The purpose of this event was to convey thesimple message of unity and harmony to all,especially among nations in conflicts over religions.Credence or belief on something distinctis achieved only by strong ‘Faith’ and thewillingness to guard and preserve it.This social event carried out in Maes Glas,Bangor, brought CathSoc, AngSoc, Earth Religionsand a mix of Christian & Hindu (Outrageousteam) students (men and women),together to participate in the Football Tournament.Two teams (A and B) represented Cath-Soc and Outrageous and all teams were had atleast two of each gender playing for them.The Teams were pooled into two groupsand the winners and runners up in each groupAMERICAN FOOTBALL IN WALES?Are you interested in American football?Have you ever played before?Would you like to? Whether you’reexperienced or not, if you have a passion forthe game or just want to try something new,then we’re the club for you!We are currently in the process of settingup a team to play as North Wales’ onlyAmerican football team andwith the current increasein popularityof the gamein the UKof a Pete’s Eats breakfast, exchanged somefriendly banter and returned back to Bangor,content with their day’s efforts.If you like the sound of this, there’s moreto come! Butthere’s evenmoreprogressed through to the Semi-Finals. Aftera defeat for both CathSoc teams in the Semi-Finals CathSoc ‘A’ played against CathSoc ‘B’for third place. The final was between Outrageous‘A’ and Outrageous ‘B’. Outrageous Bwere the victors and the final standings wereas follows:1. Outrageous B2. Outrageous A3. CathSoc B4. CathSoc A5. AngSoc6. Earth ReligionsThe winners were presented with the BangorUniversity Interfaith Football TournamentSnow Globe trophy, which will be broughtback in late February for the Second InterfaithFootball Tournament. Any religious societywithin the University is invited to participate.Please e-mail cathsoc@undeb.bangor.ac.uk ifyou wish to compete, and keep a look out forfurther details on University Notice boardsJeremy Murrayafter the highly successful NFL game betweenthe New York Giants and Miami Dolphins wasplayed at Wembley a few weeks ago, this is anopportunity not to be missed.Chris Hilderbrandthanthat….socialstake place atthe Nelson pubon Tuesdays at8.30pm. This iswhere rides areplanned and canbe tailor-madeto suit anybodyand everybody!It’s a chance tomeet other peoplewho enjoygetting out ontwo wheels, beit on or off-road. There’s a facebook group tojoin, an intranet board for message-postingand you can email Rob Samuel at peu28e formore details too. There’s no membership fee tobe part of the fun, so get involved!Becki LawWe meet e v e r ySunday at 2pm in Varsityas well as at 6pm in The Yellowto watch an NFL game.If you are interested call/text:07910058672Or email:bangorbritons@hotmail.com