By Hazel Ravu December 1st was World AIDS Day and it brought to light on how HIV and AIDS are still not as widely discussed or destigmatised as they could be in 2020. HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) is a virus that attacks the immune system, resulting in vulnerability to other infections and diseases. It is spread by contact with certain bodily fluids, mostly during unprotected … Continue reading HIV and AIDS – The Forgotten Pandemic?
Image by Maggie Gannon Frankfurt Weihnachtsmarkt (Christmas Market), Germany – words by Maggie Gannon Germany is certainly well-known for its annual Christmas markets, so much so that English cities across the UK such as Birmingham and Manchester aim to give the same festive experience across the sea year on year. Unfortunately, this year restrictions in Germany meant the wooden stalls would not be able to … Continue reading The Worlds Most Wonderful Christmas Markets
by Lottie Ennis When I watched Contagion during the first England lockdown, I was shocked at the similarities between the film and the real life ongoing pandemic. Contagion features a mystery illness which spreads around the world causing absolute chaos. The illness in Contagion is spread through respiratory droplets and fomites as is Covid- 19 and also brings the world to a halt. The virus … Continue reading Is 2020 The Worst Dystopian Film?
A French Christmas By Scarlet Charles Christmas back home in France was always about food, drink, and the friends and family who’d join us. There, Christmas starts on the 24th, mostly because of religious reasons. France, despite being a secular country, has a history of Catholicism, and celebrates a midnight mass on the 24th and another mass on Christmas morning. Very few people actually attend these, … Continue reading Christmas cuisine from around the world
Words by Katie Waits, Pui Kuan Cheah, Georgia Glenn, Abi Edwards, Emma Williams and Alex Payne Image courtesy of 5Bam Management December Song – George Michael WeÔÇÖre all probably very familiar with Wham!ÔÇÖs iconic festive tune, Last Christmas. In fact, itÔÇÖs often difficult to escape it at this time of year. However, this isnÔÇÖt the only Christmas song that features George MichaelÔÇÖs famous voice. Last … Continue reading Rocking Around the Christmas Tree: The Best Alternative Christmas Songs
By Lewis Empson and Marcus Yeatman-Crouch In this seemingly endless year there’s been a massive amount of games released, including triple A blockbusters, sleeper hits and derailed hype train disasters. If you read last week’s article, you already saw our thoughts on the official Game Awards winners of this year, but we decided to do our own spin on the awards, with some different winners … Continue reading Download’s Game Awards
Digimon Adventure by Alex Daud Briggs For years Digimon has been accused of being a knock-off of Pok├®mon and yet the 1st Digimon Anime: Digimon Adventure far exceeds any of Pok├®monÔÇÖs animated attempts. The story is simple; seven kids in summer camp are transported to an alternate world inhabited by strange creatures called Digimon. Each child gets a partner Digimon and must fulfil a prophecy … Continue reading The Asian Silver Screen: Anime
Words by Indi Scott Whitehouse Illustration by Sian Hopkins Last month, Scotland became the first country in the world to provide free access to period products. After a 4-year campaign led by Scottish Health spokesperson Monica Lennon, councils in Scotland will legally have to provide sanitary products to anyone who needs access to them. This is a fantastic move towards a more understanding and inclusive … Continue reading Period Poverty and the Tampon Tax
MaeÔÇÖr Nadolig yn gyfnod arbennig i nifer fawr ohonom am nifer fawr o resymau gwahanol, boed er mwyn treulio amser efoÔÇÖr teulu (cofiwch i wneud hynnyÔÇÖn ddiogel ÔÇÿleni!) yfed siocled poeth, prynu a rhoi anrhegion… neu gwrando ar gerddoriaeth Nadoligaidd. Un o fy hoff bethau i am y cyfnod yma oÔÇÖr flwyddyn yw gwrando ar gerddoriaeth Nadoligaidd. Yn enwedig cerddoriaeth Cymraeg gan rhai oÔÇÖn hartistiaid … Continue reading Hoff ganeuon Nadolig Cymraeg.
Words by Suraya Kazzuz, Header Illustration by Shafia Motaleb Following the release of the fourth season of The Crown, there has been quite a lot of backlash directed at the royal family, specifically surrounding Charles, Prince of Wales, and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall. The show depicts the troubling drama of CharlesÔÇÖ relationship with his first wife, Diana, Princess of Wales. The show riled up feelings … Continue reading Netflix VS The Crown
By Caitlin Parr *TW – Sexual harassment and assault: This piece contains discussion and information about public sexual harassment and sexual assault that may be triggering for some readers and survivors* With so many national initiatives this year to spread kindness, support small businesses, and share love for key workers it is disappointing to see that a larger percentage of people than ‘normal’ obviously did … Continue reading #CrimeNotCompliment Campaign: How Plan International UK Are Planning to Make Our Streets Safer
By Nicole Rees-Williams Since the most recent instalment of NetflixÔÇÖs The Crown a new generation has been introduced to the peopleÔÇÖs princess. The Princess of Wales has a glowing reputation. She was (and still is) loved by the many for her kindness and humanitarian work. However, in a Vanity Fair article Eleri Lynn (curator of ÔÇÿDiana: Her Fashion StoryÔÇÖ) highlighted an all-important fact; ÔÇÿIt is … Continue reading Princess Diana: Best Fashion Moments
by Alex Daud Briggs Throughout our childhood there were a number of books that were pushed on us to read and appreciate, stories that have supposedly shaped society and revolutionised the culture we see today. Unfortunately, thereÔÇÖs often a chance that upon actually reading through these, they may seem just a bit dull. But why is that? These are some of the best works of … Continue reading Why Do We Find Classics So Boring?
By Suraya Kazzuz In light of the current political climate, it seems that Barack ObamaÔÇÖs newly published memoir, A Promised Land, couldnÔÇÖt have come at a better time. After a tumultuous four years following Obamas precedency, it is refreshing to reminisce or discover a time which was, if not necessarily better than the times we live in now, certainly more hopeful and less erratic. Barack ObamaÔÇÖs eloquent … Continue reading Review: A Promised Land by Barack Obama
Image by Sabrina Ripke (via Pixabay) Christmas wouldnÔÇÖt be Christmas without food being the star of the show, and itÔÇÖs not complete with a cake to celebrate. The traditional Christmas cake began as Twelfth cakes, which were eaten at Twelfth Night parties. But over time, itÔÇÖs evolved as being a larger cake, decorated with marzipan and either fondant or royal icing. After the year weÔÇÖve … Continue reading Fed Up With Fruitcake? Here’s our Favourite Christmas Cake Alternatives to Celebrate the Festive Season in Style!
Image by David Billings Lost in Translation Words by Charlotte Leung Whenever you travel to a whole new city that has a different culture to where you are from, it is always a bit of a challenge. It can be understood that you will feel loneliness, especially when you are travelling alone in an environment that you donÔÇÖt know and a place where you canÔÇÖt … Continue reading Must-see Travel Films
Word by Georgina HookwayImage courtesy of WWF With this yearÔÇÖs Spotify Wrapped recently being released, all the focus has been on streaming services. An app which can store and download all your music onto your phone, as well as give you statistics to share on your Instagram story at the end of the year may seem ideal, but streaming services may not be the ideal … Continue reading The Environmental Impact of Streaming
Photo by Eaters Collective on Unsplash It would be fair to say that pasta ranks highly in the average university studentÔÇÖs food consumption. I know students that would eat pasta on a daily basis, cooking a huge portion of Bolognese at the beginning of the week and slowly working their way through it before repeating the process. I know students that jump back and forth … Continue reading The Pasta Shape Review
By Lewis Empson Geoff Keighly graced our screens and warmed our hearts once again this year with a celebration of this year of gaming alongside a plethora of A-list guest stars and some exciting new announcements; hereÔÇÖs what I thought of The Game Awards 2020. The Awards Competition was fierce this year with Sony duking itself out between The Last Of Us Part II with … Continue reading Thoughts On: The Game Awards 2020
by Suraya Kazzuz The racist backlash in response to a SainsburyÔÇÖs advert that was recently released has become the topic of conversation around Britain for the past few weeks. The advert, which is the first of three parts, focuses on a Black family and their Christmas traditions ÔÇô displaying photos and home videos of the familyÔÇÖs Christmas dinner while a phone call plays over the scenes … Continue reading Retail Against Racism: The Racist Responses to the Sainsbury’s Christmas Advert
