Thursday 17th July 2025
Blog Page 1588

Union opens its doors to Assange

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Coverage of the protest outside the Union (published 24-1-13)

 

JULIAN ASSANGE appeared at the Oxford Union via video link on Wednesday night to speak to a packed chamber as part of the Sam Adams Awards. 

Downplaying a protest that had gathered outside the Union, he used his 20-minute talk to criticise The Fifth Estate, Hollywood’s attempt to dramatise the WikiLeaks saga. Claiming that he had acquired a script of the film, which stars Benedict Cumberbatch as its lead, the Australian fugitive branded the film “a propaganda attack against WikiLeaks and my staff.” Its characterisation of the organisation, he told the 400-strong audience, is “a lie upon a lie.” 

A half-hour question and answer session followed the talk. Lizzie Porter, a fourth-year linguist at St John’s, asked Assange how much longer he planned to stay in the Ecuadorian Embassy. “We will see. Who knows?” he said with a smile. The WikiLeaks leader is now into his seventh month inside the embassy, from where he is evading Swedish prosecutors amidst allegations of serious sexual assault. 

Rachel Savage, a PPE finalist at Lincoln, made Assange wince for the first time that evening: “What would you say to the protesters outside who say your appearance tonight diminishes the seriousness of rape and sexual assault?” 

“I heard there was a protest,” he acknowledged, “But we sent our cameras out there before joining you tonight and there were 28 supporters of me and of no one else.” 

However, general sentiment at the protest was critical of Assange. At its peak, 70 protesters gathered on St Michael’s Street outside the Union. They chanted, “Oxford Union you should know, no means no means no means no.” 

However, one student, who lives near the Union and wished to remain anonymous, observed that the protest was “much smaller than expected.” Ciaron O’Reilly, an Australian campaigner and ‘Christian anarchist’ told Cherwell that the protestors were merely “echoing the US government.” 

Cherwell’s correspondent asked Tom Fingar, the award’s recipient, whether he had any warm words for Assange. In his speech he had offered the former US State Department official words of praise, but Fingar only wished Assange “good luck.” Fingar has previously sought to “disassociate” himself from Wikileaks. In an email to the protest’s organiser Simone Webb last week, Fingar ex plained, “I am appalled by the theft and distribution of US government documents because it violates the law, personal obligations, and professional ethics.” 

Fingar continued, “Moreover, the charges against him are serious and the evidence apparently sufficiently compelling to persuade judicial officials in two countries that he should answer them.” 

The award recognises intelligence professionals or ‘whistleblowers’ willing to take risks to honour the public’s need to know, and is judged by the Sam Adams Associates for Integrity in Intelligence, a group of retired CIA officers. 

This week, more college JCRs passed motions expressing their opposition to the Union’s decision to host Assange. 

Following a debate, the president of Corpus Christi College JCR, Patricia Stephenson, wrote a letter to the Union, saying that “Corpuscles feel that by allowing Assange to speak at the Union it suggests that the institution in itself does not condemn those who are fleeing criminal charges and refusing to face trial for a criminal offence.” She added that to host Mr Assange suggested that the Union did not respect the criminal justice system. 

She went on to say, “Given the mistaken perception that the Oxford Union is affiliated with Oxford University as a whole, the Union’s invitation to Assange has the potential to negatively impact the public perception of all students at Oxford.” 

Balliol College JCR also supported OUSU’s motion condemning the Union’s decision to give Assange a platform. All three of its OUSU delegate votes went in favour of the motion condemning the invitation. 

Number of Oxford firsts increases at slower rate

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Reports recently released by the Higher Education Statistics Agency show the number of firsts and upper-second-class degrees awarded have substantially risen in all universities except Oxford and Cambridge.

The number of firsts awarded between 1999 and 2012 trebled from 20,700 to 61,605. The rise in firsts achieved in Oxford has been disproportionate to the national figures, with 20% being awarded in 2000 and rising to only 29% in 2011. The increase has been even smaller in Cambridge, rising from 21% to 24% over the same period.

Bahram Bekhradnia, director of the Higher Education Policy Institute in Oxford, said, “We do not know why more students have been getting firsts. It could be that they are working harder or it could be that they are better taught than in the past. It could be that, as the nature of assessment has changed with a greater emphasis on coursework and less on a single summative exam, it has allowed harder working students to do better. Or it could be that marking is less rigorous. I suspect it is probably a combination of these factors.”

Professor Joseph Farrell, formerly of the University of Strathclyde, commented, “It used to be that any Honours degree was of value, including a third. Now virtually no one gets a third, since it is as welcome as a diagnosis of the plague. The 2:2 is going the same way. Many employers will only engage people with a 2:1 or above. A 2:2 is now regarded as of little value.

“The fundamental point is how to interpret the rise in the number…does this rise represent an improvement in quality in student knowledge and understanding, or does it represent a fall in marking standards? There is an optimistic answer and a pessimistic answer. I see no reason for optimism.”

Universities control their courses and the awarding of degrees. A spokesperson for the Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education said, “Higher education institutions are responsible for ensuring that policies – including those that guide grading and award classification – are fair. Our review teams check how they meet their responsibilities, but do not second-guess decisions made about the achievements of individual students.”

One Oxford student, who achieved a first at Prelims, commented, “Because Oxford still sticks by its approach of evaluating essays as individual points of views as opposed to a checklist of right answers, it makes it harder to know for sure how one can get a First. A lot is therefore left as guesswork and luck, which is hard for any student to prepare for.”

A student at Jesus College claimed the slower rise in the number of firsts is reflective of the increased difficulty of attending Oxford and Cambridge. “I went home exhausted, and told my parents I was scraping a 2:1 despite working harder than I ever had,” he said.

“My sister on the other hand returned home bright-eyed and bushy-tailed and declared she was working at a first quite easily, while still having more free time than she could productively fill. She spent the vac socialising and occasionally revising for multiple choice exams.”

In his blog for the Telegraph, Toby Young commented: “In the end it’s today’s best students I feel sorry for… their firsts can only be worth half as much to them as mine was to me since they’re now twice as easy to get. The problem with the all-must-win-prizes philosophy is that no prize is worth winning.”

A spokesperson for Oxford University stated, “The pursuit of academic excellence is one of the key aims of the University of Oxford and this is reflected in the standards expected of the University’s staff and the students.”

Oxford bucks admissions trend

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Half of the UK’s top universities took on fewer students last year following the government’s decision to raise undergraduate fees to a potential £9,000. 

Recently published data by UCAS reveals that ten out of 24 Russell Group institutions had fewer accepted applicants in 2012. 

The statistics also show that a number of other universities saw a dramatic drop in student numbers, including London Metropolitan University, which experienced a shortfall of more than 3,000 applications in the past year compared with previous years. Likewise, Cumbria has seen an 18 per cent reduction in the number of full-time students because of fewer applications. 

The Marketing and Communications Manager of the University of Cumbria Student Union said, “Some people have been deterred by the higher fees, and the economic climate may also have deterred people. With the fees and the graduate jobs situation the way it is, I think some people may be asking whether it is worthwhile going to university. Judging by the figures, some may decide it would be better to study part-time while working as well.” 

The UCAS data expose that among the Russell Group universities, Birmingham, Imperial College London, Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester, Nottingham, Queen Mary, Sheffield, Southampton and Warwick all accepted fewer students last autumn, compared with 2011. 

Sheffield saw a seven per cent fall in applications in 2012, but the applications for 2013 look more promising with an application increase of 13 per cent. More applications have been made than before the Government overhaul. 

A representative of Sheffield Admissions said, “The university’s current position is also more positive than the national admissions picture.” 

She continued, “We believe this reflects an increasing recognition of the value of a degree from an excellent research-led university such as Sheffield.” 

Despite the national fall of 50,000 applications in England alone, Oxford student places have remained consistent throughout. According to University statistics, Oxford has had almost the same number of places available each year for undergraduates (around 3,200) while applications have remained steady at around 17,000 applications over the past three years. 

A spokesman from the University Press Office commented, “While numbers fluctuate slightly from year to year, the University has not been expanding, nor is it planning to expand its undergraduate student numbers. 

“We believe applicants recognise the world-class education Oxford provides and the great benefits of the collegiate system. We believe that the steady applications over the last two rounds reflect an understanding that, in the new fees regime, Oxford is outstanding value, is no more expensive than any other university, and offers an exceptionally generous financial support package for lower-income students.” 

A second-year historian agreed with this, commenting, “University education has been turned into a commodity; the calibre of education people associate with Oxford means that more young people are opting for an education they expect to be better value for money.” 

The financial package Oxford offers for low-income students is the most generous of any other university in the country, and includes both fee waivers and bursaries for living costs. 

Currently one in ten of Oxford’s UK undergraduates comes from households with incomes below £16,000, the threshold for Free School Meals eligibility and for Oxford’s most generous financial assistance. 

One college access representative said, “Oxford has long been known for its substantial support packages, and I think now more than ever this has become a key consideration for students making applications.”

HIV breakthrough discovered

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RESEARCH PUBLISHED last Thursday has revealed a new breakthrough in the early treatment of the HIV infection. 

The study shows that when taken in the early stages of infection, a 48-week course of antiretroviral medication slows damage to the immune system and delays the need for long-term treatment. 

The research also suggests that the treatment lowers the amount of virus in the blood for up to 60 weeks after it is stopped, potentially reducing the risk of onward transmission. The scientists found no evidence that treatment within the first six months of infection led to an increased virus resistance, or damage to the immune system. 

Professor Rodney Phillips said, “Analysis of this material, coordinated by Dr John Frater, has yielded highly novel insights into the interaction between HIV, the human immune system and anti-HIV drugs.” 

The randomised controlled trial, the largest of its kind, took place over five years, and involved 366 adults. The research into early treatment of HIV began in Oxford in the late 1990s, headed by Professor Phillips. He then coordinated with researchers Imperial College London and the Medical Research Council’s Clinical Trials Unit, and gained funding from the Wellcome Trust. 

A second year Medic said, “This research highlights how vital early recognition of HIV is, and the importance of regular sexual health check ups. Any development at all in the fight against the infection is brilliant, and it’s great to see Oxford’s involvement.” 

Joke JCR motion passed to provide lube

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A “joke” motion, in which two students asked for the provision of lube, was passed in a Pembroke JCR meeting last Sunday. The motion was recognised by its proposers to be moot, as lube is already provided for free at Pembroke. However, the request for lube seems to have been made solely in order that the proposers could include a plethora of scatological puns.

The meeting at which the motion aired was the first of term, and also on the agenda were eight charity motions, self-defence classes for women and constitutional reform. The girlfriend and boyfriend team, Jessica Kempner and Michael Smith, who respectively proposed and seconded the motion, asked to have lube “readily available at all times via the contraception box.” The motion then went on to imply that the lube being asked for would be needed for anal sex through the use of puns. Cherwell has counted at least 10 anus-related puns in total in the motion.

According to the proposition, lube should be provided ‘by the back door’ of Pembroke JCR. ‘Without being too anal’ it continues ‘this JCR should be bending over backwards to get to the bottom of why the needs of some of its more adventurous members have not been consistently accommodated for.’

‘This JCR resolves to not turn the other cheek butt be certain that no other member of this JCR need ever have reason to ars-ke themselves why their needs have not rear-ly been addressed. And to the naysayers this JCR says, poo poo!’

The motion was sent out in a pre-meeting email containing proposed motions by JCR secretary, Ella St George Carey. Following the listing of the motion, Carey told Pembroke “There are no words”. However, a lack of verbosity didn’t seem to be an issue the girlfriend-boyfriend team faced, as they flaunted both their flair for the literary conceit and sexual proclivities in the flatulently pun-tastic motion.

Jessica Kempner and Michael Smith told Cherwell: “…one night last week we found ourselves in a dark, dark hole, bummed out to discover a scary lack of lube in the college contraceptive box. Not wanting to beat around the bush, we turned to the only man we knew might be able to help – Kris Blake, Welfare Rep extraordinaire…The motion we proposed was to prevent future sexual visionaries from having their efforts thwarted by finding Kris either absent from his room, or worse, having used all the lube himself.”

During the JCR meeting, the Kempner admitted that it was not a serious request:  minutes from the meeting record her saying “Basically, we’ve since come to realise that the situation has been rectified, we just wanted a funny email.” The motion passed nonetheless.

However, not everyone was amused. The only “no vote” came from Jack Kinnersley, who commented “I am strongly against this kind of “joke” motion…. [which] threatens to undermine the serious job that the JCR provides in representing students, and believe these kind of joke motions distract from the real issues. I did not find the motion funny, instead I found it predictable and immature. I would also wish for the 2 students who proposed the motion to exercise their egos elsewhere in the future.”

He also added: “On the title of the motion I do not believe that every hole should be considered a goal, although I do not wish to be drawn in on which specific holes can be considered goals.”

Kris Blake and Annie Smith, the JCR Welfare Officers at Pembroke, commented “…clearly Pembroke is just an adventurous college. Overall it was a light-hearted motion that got a fair few laughs.” They also added that the motion “didn’t leave a (w)hole lot up to the imagination..”

David White, Pembroke JCR President, when asked his opinion of ‘joke’ motions, remarked “‘Joke’ motions are fine in moderation, although if they are discussed too regularly they can become a bit of a pain-in-the-arse.”

 

 

 

Carbon Rod runs for NUS President

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An inanimate carbon rod has announced its candidacy for the presidency of the National Union of Students.

The Rod appears to have been inspired to run for office after the success of another inanimate carbon rod in a recent episode of The Simpsons in which, among other achievements, the Rod beats Homer to the position of Worker of the Week.

The Rod’s online manifesto page declares “as President, I will represent all students, regardless of politics, and without sarcasm or aggression or inaccessible language and behaviour, because as an inanimate rod, I am incapable of having or displaying emotions.”

“Place your trust in Rod, and I believe, together, we can build a student movement, and a workers bomb to define a generation.”

The Carbon Rod is also running with the more radical policy of building a bomb to destroy “the parasitic classes that are destroying our society and our Student Union.”

It argues that “only through dynamic and efficient construction of this bomb can we return control of Student Unions to their students, and workplaces to their workers.”

David J Townsend, OUSU President, told Cherwell “I think I.C. Rod has a lot going for him: strong, hardy, reliable, a hero of the Space Programme and a prominent guest star on The Simpsons.

“Truth be told, I see a lot of myself in him: it’s a little known fact that I’m 18% carbon by mass.  In these crazy silicon chip times, it’s nice to see a candidate that brings us back to good old fashioned carbon-based values- ROD 2013!”

He denied that the Rod’s candidacy is a criticism of student unions: “it’s a sign that students, even in the far remove of the NUS, have a sense of humour about themselves.

“Oxford is unusual in not having more jest and zest in its student union elections: at most universities you would at the very least have someone in a gorilla suit running to be president.”

However, Oxford undergraduates were more critical of the role played by the Students Union in Oxford.

Shirley Halse, a second year English student commented “the only thing they’re useful for is discounts; they’re like the union but not quite as bad.”

Raph Torrance told the paper “an inanimate carbon rod has more personality than the average NUS candidate.”

Michael Zhang, a physicist from Lincoln, expressed his support for the Rod: “I think the Carbon Rod will make a big difference, it would be a lot better than the other guys.”

Endeavour being filmed in Oxford

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The TV series Endeavour was being filmed at various locations across Oxford earlier this week. 

An Inspector Morse prequel, Endeavour is set in the mid-1960s, with Shaun Evans playing the lead role. 

Filming took place at Keble College on Sunday and Monday, at Holywell Street and New College Lane on Tuesday, and around the Radcliffe Camera and Hertford on Wednesday. 

Roger Boden, the Bursar of Keble College, said, “The episode will, I believe, be the first time Keble has featured in the Morse saga.”

Somerville and New face building problems

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STUDENTS AT SOMERVILLE and New Colleges have been angered by accommodation problems at their respective colleges due to extensive renovations.

New College’s kitchens, buttery and beer cellar are being refurbished from the end of Hilary Term 2013 to the end of Michaelmas Term 2014. 

The bursar of New College told Cherwell, “There will be temporary kitchens and hall seating for around 150 students and the SCR in Holywell Quad.”

These are the first major refurbishments at New College since the 1960s and the loss of space means the college’s commemoration ball this year has been reduced from 1000 tickets to 925.

One student at New described the work as a “necessary evil.”

New College students are also facing a separate accommodation crisis, as more third year students than ever will be forced to live out of college in their final year. The current housing system arranged by the JCR guarantees rooms for first, second and fourth years. Those students who do poorly in their second year ballot are eligible to remain in college as finalists.

According to the bursar, “The whole student accommodation policy is to be reviewed. Fewer third years can be accommodated next year since more fourth years seem to want to live in.”

JCR President Ellie Davidson has called for an emergency meeting on Friday evening in which students will decide whether to maintain the current ballot system, which the JCR claims is “basically defunct”. A motion to change the system, making second years live out of college, instead of third years, will also be discussed.

At Somerville, the renovation works taking place at the Wolfson Building are coming to an end, having been extended beyond their initial deadline, causing serious problems for a number of students. There have been numerous complaints over noise issues, as well as concerns that the renovation was taking far longer than expected.

Somerville JCR President Marsha Sudar was supportive of the actions taken by her college in order to minimise the impact on student life. “There have been some problems with the length of the Wolfson project and disruption that it has caused to some students. However, college has been most helpful in efforts to improve communication regarding the works. The need for this project has been balanced with the importance of providing students with an effective working environment. Students were presented with the option of changing rooms and those most affected have been offered a rent rebate.”

Andrew Parker, a spokesperson for the college, told Cherwell, “A rent rebate was given to those affected in the final two weeks of last term, and last week and this weekend we have offered alternative accommodation to those directly affected. Nobody chose to take that up. We have been sending out regular updates to everybody affected so that they knew about what was happening, when and why.” He added that, “The investment is to increase and enhance facilities within the college, and just to make the point the first event in the new extension will be a student bop, this Saturday.” 

However, one student pointed out that, “We haven’t had a bop in there since last Trinity, it’s been extremely upsetting.” The same student added, “There was a lot of anger over the noise and disruption, for students living in Wolfson, as well as in Park and Penrose, the buildings on either side.

“We were being told that the works would be mostly done over the summer – but they were nowhere near done at the beginning of Michaelmas. People have had workmen walking around on the roof outside their first floor window all year. College said they would definitely be finished by this term but when I arrived back in 0th week, they weren’t done.”

Somerville votes in favour of new tortoise

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SOMERVILLE COLLEGE’S JCR has voted to purchase a tortoise, with the motion passing by a vote of 17 to 7 at Sunday evening’s JCR meeting. 

The motion also calls for the creation of two elected tortoise keeper positions, who “will be responsible for feeding, cleaning, poking and general interaction with the tortoise.” The initial cost is expected to be £350. 

William Truefitt, second-year English student at Somerville, commented, “Who doesn’t love tortoises? They’re dynamic, charming, and give great chat. My only problem is that I feel tortoises are being somewhat sidelined as a species. They’re capable of so much more than just being semi-ironic JCR motions and pets. I’m sure that in Oxford, of all places, there must be some sort of ‘tortoise upwards mobility front’. They should get involved.” 

The tortoise’s name is set to be decided by a future JCR vote. Somerville undergraduate Ella Waldman suggested a name: “Although Somerville may well choose a female tortoise, in keeping with our strong female history, according to my extensive experience of reptile gender identification I don’t think there should be too much problem in calling the tortoise Stuart. It’s a good, honest name.” 

Somerville considered a range of animals before deciding on a tortoise, including a parrot, fish, cat, and wallabies. JCR Vice-President & Treasurer Zoe Fannon revealed, “We did consider whether a polar bear might be more appropriate to Somerville’s northern location.” 

The timing of the JCR vote gave pause to one student. “Is it somewhat worrying that we’ve passed a college motion welcoming slow-moving tortoise flesh the same night that a long-standing discussion of introducing meat-free mondays was resoundingly rejected by the MCR?” 

Somerville may see fit to enter their tortoise into Oxford’s traditional tortoise races. Harriet Soper, a third year English student at Corpus, said, “Foxe and Oldham, Corpus’s beloved tortoises, are quivering in their tiny shells. We wish their JCR luck.” 

Meanwhile, former Corpus tortoise-keeper Alexander Coupe commented, “We see this as an aggressive move from Somerville College – as if giving the world Margaret Thatcher wasn’t enough.” 

However, it may be some time before Somerville poses a challenge in the race; the baby tortoise is a couple of years away from growing into racing size. 

Last year’s race was won by Zoom! of Worcester. Past winners include Jesus’ Tilly and Foxe of Corpus. Other members of the Testudinidae family residing in Oxford include Mr. T (Brasenose), Foxe and Oldham (Corpus), Percy (Univ), Frederick (Lincoln), Mackie (Regent’s Park), and Turtle (Christ Church). Wadham voted to purchase a tortoise last Michaelmas; its name is yet to be announced. 

Nostalgia just isn’t what it used to be

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Period drama is no new phenomenon: us Brits have a serious nostalgic streak, especially if it involves outrageously rich characters (we don’t ever worry about where the money comes from) with preposterously large houses.

However, the huge financial success of the increasingly ridiculous Downton Abbey has sparked demand for the genre, and we’re not in short supply: while some are just a tired combination of bustles and boredom, several offer decent plots alongside the covetable costumes and mansions, as well as dialogue that doesn’t make you laugh for all the wrong reasons. 

But what is it we’re so desperate to ‘remember’ about the British character and history? 

Golly Gosh what Female Solidarity in the 1950s:

Call the Midwife ensemble drama about an eclectic group of nuns and  nurses working as midwives, based on Jennifer Worth’s memoirs. Naturally the subject matter entails a lot of babies – probably too many for all but the broodiest of tastes – and too much umbilical cord for anyone’s taste. But if you can stomach this and the almost equally nauseating voice-over that ends each episode it’s well worth a watch. Set in the East End, it’s a far cry from the glamour of most recent period dramas, and focuses on new recruit Jenny’s struggle to come to terms with the poverty and squalor surrounding her. The show is genuinely moving in its portrayal of the damage inflicted by the cruelty of the workhouses, it’s also genuinely funny – largely due to Miranda Hart’s show-stealing turn as ‘Chummy’.

Gadzukes aren’t Brits ‘endearingly’ stuck-up:

Mr Selfridge is ITV’s new Sunday evening offering (taking the vacated Downton slot) and it certainly seems as though they have high hopes of flogging this one to the Americans as well. The opening episode is obsessed with the American retail entrepreneur charging about London shaking up the stiff-collared and snobby Brits with his shockingly progressive ways: trying to get a shopgirl to get the gloves out on the counter is just one of his heinous crimes (for which he is, naturally, ejected from the establishment). I think we’re supposed to find Mr Selfridge terribly dashing and debonair but he’s actually incredibly irritating, with his tendency to indulge in selfaggrandizing speeches and generally behave as if he’s curing cancer rather than flogging socks. Nevertheless the attention to detail in the sets, costumes and props is impressive and maybe the characterisation will pick up in time. It’s on Sundays at 9pm if you want to find out.

By Jove the Victorians were Dark and Twisty:

Hunderby is the latest offering from the remarkable Julia Davis (Nighty Night, Gavin and Stacey): a bizarre, highly original, twisted Gothic comedy with strong Du Maurier influences, set in the 1830s. It’s fantastically filthy and contains some of the most horrendous sex scenes known to man, prefaced by such tempting invitations as the curate’s “Come bride, ‘tis a quarter after ten, we shall intercourse until a 30 after”. The writing is inspired and there’s been no expense spared on the production values: extensive period details and stunning exterior locations all accentuate the absurd and tastelessness of the characters and plots. I can’t promise you’ll love it, but I can promise you will never have seen anything like it and that you might even like it. 

Jiminy Cricket – look at our British tradition of wonderful eccentricity:

Blandings is adapted from P.G. Wodehouse’s series of novels and short stories. The problem with adapting Wodehouse is that it is flawless in the original: one should never attempt to improve on the words of a man who can write that “she looked like she’d been poured into her clothes and forgotten to say when.” Unfortunately this adaptation strays a little too far from the original and at times relies on crude slapstick rather than letting Wodehouse’s words get the laughs they so deserve.