TBT: 'Bouncing Back', a Birthday Unsurprise and the N Word

It has indeed been a while. And it's funny (haha) because NOW it's even more of a while, as this post was originally written in MARCH, but I just rediscovered it in December and had to post it...

I suppose I should start with the obligatory apology regarding my absence. I do unfortunately have the expected shabby excuses of commitment to other projects, and also no longer possess a camera. Or, as of a few months ago, a decent phone. I'm unsure why I got so behind with it as I genuinely loved blogging. I considered starting a completely new blog, but frankly I'm far too attached to this blog and a lot of the posts on here - some of which have been retweeted by the likes of Alexandra Shulman and Ian Rankin, the Vogue editor being a particular anecdote I find myself refraining from embellishing my CV with far too often.

So I am 'bouncing back', yes, in the blogging sense, but this is not the only mild epiphany I've had recently (...or, as I'm re-editing this in December, in the last year... aha). After experiencing my first major bomb out of an essay, I had one of the academic kind which, somehow, resulted in my flinging myself into every opportunity possible instead of actually buckling down and studying. Regardless, this is good, and led to me having one of the busiest (and definitely most media-related) weeks of my life...

Monday:

11am The Journal's News Writing Workshop with Nick Eardley, News Editor of The Scotsman

A very insightful talk that's actually made me further consider news journalism as opposed to features and reviews. The main thing I took away from it, besides stylistic advice, was that ever important N word: networking, a word that influenced not just the rest of my week but my mindset. Nick's main advice was to keep a contacts book (physical, non-iPhone reliant, couldn't possibly be stolen book) and bring it everywhere with you, telling us that the key to a good news story is good sources. Simply write down the email address/number of anyone you meet who you think could be of any possible use in the future, whether it's the head of university security, someone at the police press office or the box office manager at the theatre. Nick also advised, unsurprisingly, to be ballsy and put yourself out there, stating that most newspaper or magazine editors would, after some persistent emailing, give you half an hour of their precious time for you to pick their brains.

Misc: flat viewing, French literature essay submitted, numerous calls to Santander trying to sort out my not having a debit card at the mo... Having to rely on banks to get money out is not ideal, bank opening times are SO inconsiderate.

Tuesday:

12:15pm A lunch with the culture section of the student newspaper. So culture. Wowe. Etc. It was at Bristo Bar and Grill, in George Square as I'm sure any Edinburgh reader is aware, which I cannot recommend enough - only slightly more expensive than Teviot and a far more tasteful menu (not that I don't love the nachos as much as your next 1-3pm library breaker). On the lunch menu you can have one of their sandwich, baguettes and bagels with fries and salad for a fiver - and I'm talking halloumi, smoked salmon, brie, steak. Despite the ket den its exterior resembles, the food is varied and tasty. (edit: wow, this was so long ago that Bristo Bar is no longer and has been taken over by the fabulous Paradise Palms, a verrry cool self-proclaimed 'dive bar' with dimmed lights and jazz-spinning DJs)

Once everyone had finished, the editors announced the articles they had to give out that week, one of which I considered but declined because of a supposed DJ set my flatmate wanted me to go to on the same night... (I promise this is going somewhere).

4pm The third and final meeting for a media award I'm currently completing, run by the university, which will basically go on my extra-curricular scroll when I graduate, as well as allowing me to see some great guest speakers. The speaker of this session was Lara Moloney, the head of sales and marketing at The Skinny, whose job involves going to press nights, networking and promoting The Skinny for financial backing and to widen readership and awareness. Another influential talk, heavily based on the importance of networking. As she was saying how important events like press nights can be, I realised I should definitely take the theatre review as it was a press night (which, besides obviously being great to meet people, would have a free bar). Thus, I immediately snapped open my laptop and emailed to ask if I could still take the piece. (still gradually going somewhere)

6pm RAG Meeting, starting to discuss April's charity hitch hike 'Race 2 Berlin', which I am competing in and which coincidentally starts on the same day as my birthday... Meaning I probably won't be spending my birthday in Berlin, but on a rainy road in Scotland trying to beg for a lift while joyfully holding up a 'Help us get to Berlin, it is my birthday' whiteboard sign.

Misc Cancelled flat viewing, PANCAKES!!! (breakfast and dinner, the only way to do pancake day)

Soooo I got home after RAG, opened my emails to see that the theatre editor had replied to my late request to review the show with a resounding yes. Gleeful in my state of new-found inspiration, I chattered away to my flatmates explaining how the media talk had made me decide to take the show so, alas, I wouldn't be able to make it to this very mysterious DJ set happening a train ride away that there had literally been nothing revealed about, apart from that some older friends had said 'it's going to be good'. Both flatmates' faces absolutely dropped as I was, for some unknown reason, stared at in shock. They then revealed to me a verrry exciting prospect which provoked me to immediately email back and re-reject the theatre show for the following night...

Wednesday:

1-4pm: Creative, Cultural, Careers Festival: Media. This event was set up by the careers department and actually had a great lineup of speakers, with whom there was the opportunity to network. 

Tom Churchill, Content Producer, BBC.

Chris Deerin, Partner, Charlotte Street Partners, former Political Editor of the Daily Record, former Executive Editor of Scotland on Sunday and former Head of Comment for The Telegraph. 

Neil Dunwoodie, Executive Producer, Sky News.

Gillian McCormack, Managing Director, PR & Events Agency Material_UK. 
Peter Murray, Community Outreach Manager Scotland, Media Trust, the UK’s leading communications charity.

8pm: DISCLOSURE @ CORN EXCHANGE.

Who would've thought?!?! Despite my ruining of the surprise element (which they'd kept under wraps for MONTHS!) it was still a brilliant night and a great gift.

(terrible terrible temp phone camera quality)

Thursday:

The quietest day of the week. Until...

8:30pm Murder mystery dinner party. 10 friends. 10 accents. 3 courses. 1 batch of slutty brownies. 1 cheesy charity shop-bought murder mystery DVD. 6 clues read aloud. Too many bottles of wine to count. Yes it's a seemingly very refined way to fritter away an evening and may sound like hell, but add alcohol to the mix and things get simply hilarious. The drunker we got, the stronger our characters' accents got, and the more ferocious our accusations became. I cannot stress how good a night this is, we've done two and both have been two of the best nights of uni so far - but only if you take it seriously.

For the long awaited 3 course meal, one flat provided our starter: feta and mushroom-stuffed red peppers. Another, the main: a safer option, spag bol. And finally us, who provided the well applauded dessert: slutty brownies, courtesy of The Londoner.

Us as our various stereotyped characters: the bumbling archaeologist, the glamorous film star, the serious business woman and the airy French artist (me)

She doesn't even need glasses

Friday:

10am: Flat viewing. Ran late. Flat wasn't great. Ended up having restorative brunch at the très chic Montpelier's Bar & Brasserie, just off the road we were looking at in Bruntsfield.

Just a note to anyone else currently experiencing the highs and lows of flat hunting (mainly all lows... apart from the one high being the flat you actually get lucky with), is it just me or is it a rather expensive process?! Pre-booked taxis for the ruthless head-to-head race to the estate agents after a group viewing, which can often be likened to drag racing, and then commiseratery brunches and coffees after having failed to obtain the flat. Or having left the house too late to have breakfast and feeling kinda hungry...

2pm: Job interview. No word here yet unfortunately...

4pm: 2nd flat viewing. I'll cut a long story short here: we liked it but decided not to get it 5 mins before the estate agents closed, after having just fully confirmed we were going to pay the deposit and to tell the other group wanting it that it had been taken. Lol.

Friday night: Amazing. Ordered a banging Chinese and all watched A Series of Unfortunate Events, which although it totally ripped off the books, remains one of the most underrated children's comedies OF all time.

Saturday:

2pm: Attended a production day at The Journal, having been invited after putting my name down on Monday's workshop. Basically sub-editing (checking over grammar, style etc) the articles for their next issue. Not exactly riotous fon but good experience all the same.

11pm: Disco themed, 70s flat party, possibly the best I've ever been to. That is all.

Misc: Saturday morning lounging with coffee and blog catching-up.

Sunday:

5am: Walking home from said party, the sky was getting light and birds were atweeting. Summer has to be on the way.

1pm: Oh nope. While literally every other city in the UK Instagrams beer gardens, selfies donning sunglasses and the classic legs-on-sunlounger-possibly-with-beer, Edinburgh is shrouded in fog and occasionally rains.

Misc: Did not get changed. Restorative bacon and egg toastie. Watched old school Gossip Girl episodes. Ate half a box of dry bran flakes in bed.

...sooo that was a general week waaay back in March. It's now December. Despite my best efforts, I just always seem to fall behind with blogging. This semester (I'm now in my second year at uni) I've become more involved in RAG by taking on the events manager position, so have supervised/organised/helped with a LOT of things including going to Paris to track hitch-hikers on our Race2Paris, an annual charity hitch-hike from Edinburgh to Paris. I've also collaborated with a few other charities on various fundraising efforts which has been great, and I also now (finally) have a job. However, one of my main new years resolutions (eek) is to restart the blog... so here goes.

Edinburgh Charity Fashion Show 2014 Review: ECFS Brings it Back Home

Bouncing back for its 13^th year as the most successful student-run charity fashion show in Europe, Edinburgh Charity Fashion Show (ECFS) this year reigns in patriotic prestige, far from the fashion week glamour of London, Paris, New York and Milan.

Image: Edinburgh Charity Fashion Show

This year the ECFS team decided to choose a theme close to home, with the concept throughout being ‘This Is Edinburgh’, drawing upon its history, architecture and weather (yes, the choice to honour WaterAid as this year’s charity was no coincidence).

Few venues could be more fitting, then, than the National Museum of Scotland – the securing of which easily being the show’s biggest feat yet. Ticket-holders flooded in to the sold-out show, held in the museum’s Grand Gallery with elegant overarching white pillars and high windows shrouded in violet light, perfectly setting the tone of elegance for the evening. 

The show itself moulds completely into the museum, for instance the extensive catwalk space encasing the Gallery’s centrepiece, a regal green cast iron drinking fountain, perfectly. A live band provides upbeat background music while guests chatter and laugh melodically amongst themselves, before chairwoman Safoora Biglari is welcomed onto the stage by the evening’s charismatic presenter, and we are all shown videos reminding us why we are here, reminding us of all the amazing work WaterAid do.

And the clothes? As one might assume, given the theme, the spectacular show kicked off with what is arguably the most recognisable and classic Scottish fashion: tartan.

Indeed, the first male outfit we see is a classic red tartan kilt, and the first female ensemble a spidery, gothic grey dress worn with a veil. This gothic theme continues to be prominent in the first half, as a symbol of perhaps a more ‘classic’ Edinburgh, but is quickly contrasted with the bright, summery clothes that follow – cobalt blues and daffodil yellows are brought together in androgynous masculine suit ensembles worn by the female models, including a particularly memorable yellow blazer and cropped ruched trouser combination. This is presented alongside bright blue t-shirt dresses, always keeping the clothes from becoming too feminine.

Then, however, comes the lace. Continuing the block colour theme in a more feminine fashion, the audience cast their eyes over delicate but loose floor length dresses with baggy t-shirt sleeves, bright pink lace kimonos, apple green blouses and orange football shirt-style dresses.

The more classic theme then returns towards the end of the first half, showcasing the male models in tweed suits, deftly posing with books at the end of the runway while being cheered on by fellow students. 

Image: Kirstin Macleod

Timeless tweed is given a contemporary update with backpacks and bright pops of colour peeking from underneath. Female models go business-like in brilliant white suits with plummeting necklines, contrasting black and white broderie anglaise style shirts and Vogue-office-suitable blazers, many of which teamed with bright red tartan socks poking out over white or translucent shoes, constantly reminding us of the show’s theme and Edinburgh’s influence.

After the ruthless auction has been completed in the interval and many spectators have had a glass of restorative champagne, we return to the show. 

Given the focus on Edinburgh’s weather, it is no surprise that the second half got very wet, featuring models making a splash in contemporary chic black and white swimwear teamed with oversized tote bags and two-pieces bearing loud statements such as ‘OVER’ emblazoned on the back of a pair of cotton shorts. 

The long hair of the models is damp and natural, making for a true laid-back, surfer look – this may seem an unrealistic inclusion for a theme based around Edinburgh, but we are reminded to think of Edinburgh’s beautiful beaches.

The boys aren’t quite as bold, bringing a Hilfiger-esque vibe to the end of the show in neutral loose crisp shirts, aviators, preppy, navy sailor like blazers and equally as oversized totes as the ladies. 

After a few more plunging swimsuits and over-the-shoulder sweaters, the show ends on a summery note, with models showcasing the final sundresses and sweater-shorts combinations, before erupting into an on-catwalk party, pulling up members of the audience to Luther Vandross – Never Too Much; an apt choice for Edinburgh’s one charity event that the public just can’t get enough of.

Edinburgh Charity Fashion Show is so much more than a mere fashion show, showcasing trends – it’s a fashion show, a charity fundraiser and a great night out all in one. A true triple threat of an event that will only be moving onto to even bigger, even better things.

Riona Doherty

@rionadoherty

Written for The Student

Review: The Mystery of Edwin Drood at Pleasance Theatre

The Mystery of Edwin Drood
Savoy Opera Group
Pleasance Theatre

★ ★ ★ ★ ★


The familiarity of the Pleasance Theatre is completely forgotten upon entry as one becomes completely submerged into Dickens’ 18th century world, where characters are already milling around the audience, picking on individuals and charming us with their tongue in cheek humour. The University’s very own Savoy Opera Group presents the first out of their three annual plays, Dickens’ final and unfinished mystery murder novel: The Mystery of Edwin Drood.


Indeed, the incompleteness of the novel lends itself to its ‘Whodunnit’ genre, as we never find out the identity of Drood’s murderer. The story itself follows the characters’ intertwined lives rather than an actual plot, focusing on Drood’s uncle, choirmaster John Jasper, who is enamoured with his pupil Rosa Bud: Drood’s fiancée and also the object of fiery-tempered Neville Landless’ affections, whom Drood immediately takes a disliking to. The fourth wall is not just broken but utterly obliterated as the first electric musical number leads into the captivating, omnipresent narrator openly making jokes about Dickens’ death. The narrator acts as an eloquent master of ceremonies, wittingly acquainting the audience with each character on their debut.


The play succeeds in containing strong elements of pantomime without being cringe worthy, including not just audience participation but Drood being played by a woman and, at times, introduces realist theatre aspects such as using the real actors’ names – all of these aspects provoking consistent laughter and participation from the audience. However, there are also abstract ballet dance scenes, most notably to represent Jasper’s opium-caused inebriation. These contrast to the Narrator and Jasper’s dance duo, which is deliberately messy and becomes a hilarious entire group performance. The performance keeps us hooked throughout with a constant flow of one liners and surprises, such as the entire cast suddenly parading down the aisle.

The operatic skill of the cast simply cannot be faulted as each character silences the entire theatre, especially quiet for an enchanting harmony between Rosa and Drood, but equally the case for all characters, from wonderfully pompous, snarling Jasper to cockney Angela, a loveable opium pusher who makes individuals squirm with her sharp, tongue in cheek humour and simultaneously sympathise with her through a biographical solo. However, the pitch perfect tones does not put the acting to shame at all, as we are often left wondering if an action is a genuine slip that’s been expertly improvised or just extremely well executed humour.


The production ends with a spin, as the characters all stop talking at the exact point Dickens put down his pen, and leave it to us to decide the ending – of which there are over 400 possibilities. Once we vote numbers and cheer competitively for our desired Detector and Murderer of Drood, we can then choose a pair of lovers unrelated to the plot, which saw, for this particular showing, rough around the edges Angela being paired with Mr Phillips and his loveable weediness. All the craziness and fun is then rounded off with some tap dancing, just for good measure, to show this is a true triple-threat of a cast.


Riona Doherty
The Student

Review: Mansfield Park at King's Theatre

Mansfield Park

King’s Theatre

A Theatre Royal Bury St Edmunds Production

★★★

The plushness of King’s Theatre is enough to transport anyone back in time, positioning us perfectly for Tim Luscombe’s adaptation of Jane Austen’s third novel, often cited as her most overlooked, Mansfield Park. Director Colin Blumenau ensures Austen’s idiosyncratic wit is not lost in its transition from page to stage, nor its classicism as we realise Austenian teenage problems are not all that different to our own.

Perhaps the reason Mansfield Park is overlooked is due to its introverted heroine Fanny Price (played by Ffion Jolly), whose journey we follow from modest beginnings to an aristocratic lifestyle at Mansfield Park with her wealthy aunt and uncle. Whilst we watch steadfast Fanny navigate her way through Elizabethan rich kid problems, messy love triangles and a play she is forced to perform in, it becomes evident that the underlying theme is the natural ability to understand oneself. A small but versatile cast features eight actors playing sixteen characters; Geoff Arnold particularly stands out, whose portrayal of the blunderingly inept Mr Rushworth is an admirable professional debut. Austen’s humour is kept alive on stage through not only Rushworth but Fanny’s sarcastic, narcissistic cousin Maria Bertram (played by Leonie Spilsbury) whose sheer brashness keeps us entertained. Jolly has to be praised for her gradual transition of meek ‘I cannot act’ Fanny from Act I to Act II’s bolder heroine who lights up once her brother returns from the Navy. However, as such an inward heroine, one would expect Fanny’s lack of dialogue to be more than justified by her almost constant presence on stage, but Jolly’s depiction could be much more alluring and definitely more emotive; her crying seems more pantomimical than period drama.

The costuming, though well suited to the characters’ personalities, was not as impressive or authentic as it should have been. The open plan arched set is simple but effective, remaining untouched throughout and allowing characters to be simultaneously inside and outside, as well as helping to change scenes by a simple walk through the framing; though, had more attention to detail been paid, the set and the use of more props could have given the performance more of a historical feel. Intimate duologues are highlighted perfectly by a single spotlight and the lighting generally works well, matching the tone of the performance. Overall, the performance is akin to the novel, even featuring some of the same dialogue, and though we can still appreciate Austen’s humour, the emotion and intimacies of the novel are trampled over by vanity. Blumenau doesn’t entirely lose the game, but if he did, it wouldn’t be from lack of striving for it.


Riona Doherty
The Student

TV Stars in Theatre: The Cons

A ‘night at the theatre’ has long been considered a refined, middle class way to fritter away an evening. And whilst nowadays lots of theatres seem to be attempting to combat this stereotype by featuring ‘special appearances’ which you’d more likely suspect from your own mum before ever guessing the long forgotten reality TV star they’ve actually tracked down, are these appearances really all that special or exclusive?

Cons:

Are they really the best trained theatre actors? Obviously, the runner-up of the third series of I’m A Celeb/former Sugababe/washed up Neighbours star will have taken some form of theatre performance class to prepare themselves for their big meritable debut, but there are thousands of drama school-trained graduates wasting away on the streets of London regretting chasing their ‘Rent’ dreams, who could most probably do a better job. Is it any wonder that Drama is often branded the degree that produces the most unemployed grads when directors are more interested in the Old Big Thing than the New Big Thing?

Attracting people to the show for the wrong reason? More so a concern of the theatre-goers themselves rather than the theatre running the show who would presumably be most concerned with revenue. Someone who attends a performance wholly to see Gareth Gates’ acting debut may not fully appreciate the other actors or director’s intent – and if they’re unhappy with what they view as the pinnacle of the show, this inevitably taints their overall impression. In reviews especially, the use of a television star can detract from the attention paid to the rest of the cast. This matter of being enticed by (possibly) false pretences could result in the viewer’s not enjoying the show and simply being a waste of money.

Is it cheapening the theatre experience? The reason the theatre is so popular is because one can simply lose themselves in a different century/country/world for an evening – a quality hard to achieve when the poster boy of everything the stereotypical theatre-goer detests about populist society is playing the leading role.
So, special appearances. In pantomimes at Christmas? Sure. Featuring a high end Hollywood actor (that sells out instantly)? Slightly more inclined. But in my opinion, special appearances from on screen actors just aren’t the right way to bring in an audience.


Riona Doherty
The Student

Cambridge's 'Capostrophe'

A feature I wrote for The Student:

Grammar enthusiasts nationwide have recently been enraged after hearing of Cambridge City Council’s decision to abolish apostrophes on all existing and new street signs, their reasoning being that apostrophes could potentially be misleading to drivers. Naturally, this has caused what could be deemed The Cambridge Riots: proud and very angry grammarians with hand-made signs and, as the Cambridge News has reported, carrying around marker pens to personally adjust any apostrophe misplacement. This entire episode has sparked a great grammatical debate – why exactly are we so passionate about grammar? Are standards really failing or just changing?

You wouldn’t be totally wrong to assume that people simply don’t care about grammar anymore, or just aren’t as thorough with it. Whilst, yes, I personally have been guilty of tweeting the odd photo of a hairdresser window’s spelling mistake and various (self-denying tabloid) publications’ grammar faux pas, one cannot deny that there have never been more influences affecting our grammar. Simply cite our social networking addictions and, as mentioned, our reliance on less than reputable online publications. Even some teachers nowadays struggle to give thirty children the correct spelling to copy down into their workbooks. The headmaster of Brighton College, which recently scored 54th place in The Telegraph’s Top 100 Secondary Schools by GCSE Results, has complained that out of 30 CVs and covering letters for a teaching post, 12 were “semi-literate.” How can children be expected to become literate, apostrophe-aware adults (an apparently crucial asset nowadays) when the adults supposedly teaching them these rules aren’t even sure themselves? Relating to Cambridge’s capostrophe, there is the pertinent argument that perhaps the removal of the apostrophes wouldn’t be hindering other people’s grammar (nor causing such a fuss) if they were well educated on them in the first place.

The correct position of apostrophes, much like, for example, the elusive Oxford Comma, seems no longer a simple matter of language but a ferocious cult. As a self-proclaimed Grammar Nazi I can totally understand the outrage at this incident involving some of Cambridge’s most historic roads. Why are we so passionate about grammar? The fraction of us who still get some sort of sad thrill out of finding a misuse of there/their/they’re would argue that incorrect grammar can not only hinder communication but also show unprofessionalism in marketing. With this in mind, CVs and cover letters are scrutinised by employers, with some even enforcing fines for grammatical mistakes (or, for example, repetition of ‘like’) in the office, as Sue Shellenbarger investigated in 2012 for The Wall Street Journal – even for what we might consider minor errors, such as confusion of ‘there is’ and ‘there are’. Professional point of view aside, are some obnoxious people simply trying to appear intellectual? This is certainly not out of the question; it’s an intellect boost that makes us feel slightly superior. Or are we simply being traditionalists? We live in a fast-paced society and people want new, not old. Is our clinging onto correct grammar just our yearning for ‘the good old days’?
On the other hand, maybe our standards are not declining but simply evolving. If you were unaware, ‘twerk’ is now in the Oxford Dictionary. Times are most definitely a changing. It’s inevitable that words will, over time, change their meaning, pronunciation and spelling. Many grammarians (often of the obnoxious type) seem to have some sort of misconception that before recent years, the English language was that of high formalities – a stark contrast with today’s modern, casual slang used by most people, in most situations. They are mistaken: our language is constantly in transition. With this frame of mind, one can see why people get irked about others getting irked about “youths” commenting and writing in their own slang. Surely the fact that most of the time it is fairly clear what they’re saying simply shows that this is the overtaking language in our society? It’s hardly as if it’s some sort of abstract code. I’m sure every English Literature student is currently feeling similar emotions towards the ‘Medieval’ section of the course – to us it’s completely foreign, but as one point it was the norm. Perhaps we are simply unwilling to accept change. Our grammar is
constantly changing, and the extent to which English grammar has been simplified has provoked debate over whether it could be even further simplified. It has been suggested by linguists that eventually we may dispense of ‘these’ and ‘those’, not to mention possibly dropping the ‘S’ in the third person of the present tense. Other, perhaps more innovative, linguists are currently yearning for fresh material, suggesting new pronouns for the third person in indirect speech and there’s even talk of a completely new pronoun of common gender and singular number to replace ‘everyone’ and ‘each’ in order to abolish the annoyance of having to specify ‘each did his or her best’ or ‘everyone did what they wanted’. Is our society’s disregard for apostrophes just natural grammar evolution and the way forward?

Out of interest on how correct the grammar of fellow students is, I used website Grammar Monster’s apostrophe test (featuring options such as ‘Each month accrues an extra day's / days' leave.’) on 12 students across different subjects. 8 scored full marks, 2 scored 6 and a further 2 ranked at the bottom with 5s. This only touched on basic apostrophic rules but shows that, as young people, our grammar ain’t that bad. What adults don’t tend to understand is that, for the vast majority of us, how we may text and Facebook our friends (though with iPhones and autocorrect, it’s now far less effort to type ‘properly’ anyway) is not actually how we would genuinely write an answer in an exam, apply for a job with or send emails with. This divides opinion: on one hand, if you know when to ‘turn on’ correct spelling and grammar, for when it really matters, then what’s the problem? Is a lack of public apostrophes really going to worsen this? On the other, one can easily get out of practice and confuse the two language arenas – so why not just type the Queen’s English all the time to maintain standards and rid this reputation?

Personally, I empathise with the Cambridge protestors and general outrage – yes language is evolving rapidly, as always, but something as instrumental as the placing of an apostrophe, a placement which can easily alter the meaning of a sentence, should stay set. Abandon language snobbery by all means; people who say our language is deteriorating clearly have trouble accepting change. However, this said, I can’t quite see myself proclaiming how happy I am to have bought a new set of pens whose sole purpose will be to essentially graffiti grammatical corrections over Cambridge street signs (a genuine quote from the Cambridge News). Finally, yes, in my opinion it’s a grammatical disgrace anywhere, but in Cambridge of all places? Pleez.

Riona Doherty
The Student

Dark Road @ the Royal Lyceum Theatre

Dark Road
The Royal Lyceum Theatre
Ian Rankin
28/09/13
★★★★

Exhibiting his script writing skills for the first time, Scottish crime writer Ian Rankin, best known for his Inspector Rebus novels, launches The Lyceum Theatre’s Autumn season with gripping psychological thriller Dark Road. Inspired by director Mark Thomson’s initial pitch “Why do we never see detective stories on the stage?”, Rankin ensures the “detective story” plays out far more thrillingly on stage than what we so often see in books and on television – and his transition from novel to stage writing only strengthens his flair for suspense.

Maureen Beattie plays Scotland’s first female Chief Superintendent Isobel McArthur, a powerful protagonist who struggles to balance her commitment to her demanding career with her equally demanding daughter Alex. What at first seems a supportive and inspiring relationship rapidly becomes a ruthless career race when both mother and daughter find themselves fighting for the chance to profit from psychotic and infamous murderer Alfred Chalmers who, though jailed for twenty-five years, is believed to be innocent by both women. However, the digging up of the long buried trial of his supposedly murdering four young girls infects the McArthur household like a virus, pushing Alex to run away and Isobel to self-destruction.

Beattie simply cannot be faulted as the lead, simultaneously portraying strong career woman, a pushover of a mother, and nervous wreck. Philip Whitchurch’s portrayal of Chalmers is chillingly unhinged, with dialogue always perfectly located between a desperate plea and a snarling warning; it is impossible to take your eyes off of him on stage, almost out of fear. Sara Vickers’ depiction of eighteen year old Alex seems confused between focused student and sex-obsessed train wreck – the latter being the less believable and, whilst declaring her love for sex so impudently to her mother provokes much laughter, these outbursts sometimes seem out of character. However, her character brings a lightness and also makes the play more appealing to younger audience members. Likewise, Isobel’s co-worker and old flame Frank Bowman (played by Robert Gwilym) causes hysterics with witty one liners and engages us with how he challenges Isobel.

Aesthetically comparable to the West End, the production is set in three rooms allowing designers to employ a rotating stage set. This allows the stage to be split at various points, most prominently in the final scene – a simple but striking moment featuring both mother and daughter on the receiving end of life-endangering threats. Even between scene changes, we are constantly kept on the edge of our seats with eerie background music and explicit newspaper clippings of Chalmers’ victims projected onto the stage.   Much suspense, laughter, and jaw-dropping shock make Dark Road the perfect night at the theatre, but despite all of this, nothing can prepare the audience for the finale’s shocking twist – one of the many reasons for the four rounds of gracious bows taken at the end.

Riona Doherty

A 7 Hour Car Journey, Innumerable Hangovers and 2 1/2 Weeks Later...

I am fully aware that after not having blogged for over a month I am officially the most inconsistent blogger ever. Especially because I haven't even blogged about a rather huge bombshell - after a stressful and emotionally draining results day, I got into the University of Edinburgh!!! So as of 2 weeks ago, I officially live in Edinburgh - on the Cowgate, pretty much as central as you can get.

Studying French and English Literature, I can't think of anywhere else in the UK more suited to my degree course - Edinburgh is brimming with culture, history and grandeur, with an active L'Institut Français D’Écosse and a strong emphasis on French theatre.

So yes, apologies about my absence but after a stupidly busy August, I suddenly now have hundreds of things to write about. Here are just a few photos from the last two weeks in Scotland's cosmopolitan capital...

Block 7's finest... Our surrogate flatmate Aimee, Emily, me and Catherine - both flatmates.

5am walks home

The almighty BRASS MONKEY. This pub definitely deserves its own post...

Brunching at one of Edinburgh's many independent cafes, The Black Medicine Coffee Company.

The beautifully open plan National Museum of Scotland, a five minute walk from my flat.

Nicolson Street at night

Southside Books - a trusty independent bookshop with a stupidly intelligent owner who seems to have read most of the shop's contents. Almost certain to overhear hyper-intelligent conversations about Oscar Wilde's short stories between the owner and a literature student.

In other news, now a writer for the Culture section of the student newspaper (The Student), Friday night saw me take myself to the Traverse Theatre to review The Collection, which I'll post shortly.

So, unlike the last time I posted, I am now officially no longer an inhabitant of Luton: a statement I have wanted to say for so so long. Edinburgh has so many things to write about, I'm sure I won't be stuck for inspiration.

Bises,

Riona

FREEDOM!

Apologies for my absence as of late but I'm sure it comes as no surprise to you that A Level exams are currently ongoing, and I finished mine last Friday! My last one was French, which thankfully didn't go too badly. 

But anyway, after being a sleep-deprived hermit for the last two months, we hit the ground running and headed straight to sunny Oxford Street on Friday afternoon to one of my favourite haunts, Meat Liquor (previously blogged about here). As it was also Hannah's 18th birthday the day before, there was no excuse (except possibly money...) not to have as many cocktails as possible.

Two Grogs and a Henrietta Fizz 

As far as first legal drinks go, I think Hannah did pretty well...

FOOD. Dirty chicken burgers and the Philly Cheesesteak...

More cocktails... I had the jam jarred Louisiana Jam, made with Southern Comfort and apricot jam.

We then found ourselves wandering towards Carnaby Street in grease induced comas in search of more drinks. 

After having heard a flyer-giver on the street advertising half price cocktails, we followed his lead and ended up in a very chic little bar called Zebrano's which did not disappoint...

A 4 hour happy hour on Fridays and Saturdays?!?!

I didn't think proper cocktails for £4.25 existed in central London, but they do here. I definitely recommend.

 On Saturday we flocked to Hannah's garden for ice cream cupcakes and mojitos from teacups...

And champagne from teacups because we're classaayy.

A good way to end exams? I think so.

Bises,

Riona

First University Offer!

Hello non-existent readers!

I got my first University offer today! I've been checking my emails as if my life depends on it for the last few weeks in hope of good news and finally I've received a conditional offer from Royal Holloway, University of London! (to study French and English Literature)

How gorgeous is that building? Seriously reminiscent of Hogwarts, the University was originally a women-only institution (love a bit of feminism) and was officially opened in 1886 by Queen Victoria.

The University also has good links with the Sorbonne (University of Paris) which is where I plan to spend six months studying at in my year abroad. Yes, the main reason I want to go there is because it's been mentioned in Gossip Girl so many times.

Very excited for what the future holds.

Bises,

Riona

ZUT ALORS! ¡Qué lástima! Mamma Mia! 不得了!

Know any of those? Not many British people do (Mamma Mia doesn’t count). It’s official – English students are officially the language dunces of Europe. In June, a survey taken by the European Commission revealed that we are at the bottom of the language league for reading, writing and listening.  As for speaking, only 9% of 14 and 15 year olds can hold a conversation in French – comparing to an average of 42% across Europe. So what (or who) is to blame for this total lack of enthusiasm for language? And with the economy as bleak as it currently is (although, when is it ever good?) why are we knowingly disabling ourselves for the ever looming World Of Work?

Well, this sudden decline followed the Labour government’s decision to make foreign languages optional to learn (way back in 2002) once children made their GCSE choices – resulting in the number sitting a modern language falling by more than 200,000 between 2002 and 2010. So now it’s optional, why does learning a foreign language appeal to so little teenagers? There’s the obvious – ‘too much effort.’ True. Truth is, learning a foreign language is far easier said than done – you have to learn about tenses you never even knew existed in English (pluperfect anyone?), not to mention an accent with pronunciations completely opposite to English and the irregular verb conjugations that often seem like a cruel joke just to test you. Oh yes, do not underestimate the commitment to fluency of a language.

Furthermore, there’s the ignorant ‘two beers please’ attitude that surrounds the subject of foreign languages in England - that English people don’t have to learn another language. To be fair, the statistics seem to suggest this too – after all, English is the official language of the European Union.

So why should we learn languages? Personally, I believe sticking to our native tongue is not fulfilling our human potential – our brains are incredible things and too many people aren’t using them to their full advantage. In addition, and you can only understand this once you’ve had a proper conversation with a foreigner in their own tongue, there is the extreme gratification of learning a language and then putting it into practice with a native – and they actually understand you.

Don’t have the time to dedicate to becoming fluent in a language? You don't need to be fluent in a second-tongue to boost your chances in the job market. The Confederation of British Industry (CBI) found that 74% of employers recruit applicants with conversational ability rather than those who are word perfect. They believe this can "help break the ice, deepen cultural understanding, and open business access to new markets."

So why not give it a go?! There are always evening language classes but if you’re still too busy for them, the Internet can be pretty good to improve (or learn from scratch) conversational abilities. Try out www.hellomylo.com for Spanish, French, German and Chinese…

Bises, Riona