Monday 14th July 2025
Blog Page 2009

What happened between Putney and Mortlake

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It took Cambridge 17 minutes 35 seconds to see off Oxford’s challenge, in what was a heavily contested race in light of recent years.

Cherwell’s photographers were out in force to capture the moments that decided who would win a battle that began months before in the early mornings, in the gym and on the water.

In the early afternoon the crowds begin to gather at the Putney boat houses.

Oxford’s Chief Coach Sean Bowden and President Sjoerd Hamburger exchange a few words on the balcony of the Westminster boat house.

Dark Blue cox Adam Barhamand soaking up the buzzing atmosphere and getting in the zone.

Hamburger inspects the Penny Farthing that will be used to decide what side each university will start from.

And is joined by Cambridge President Deaglan McEachern of the USA.

Isis is Oxford’s much forgotten reserve boat, who race Cambridge’s Goldie before the Blues take on one another. They win their toss and choose the more favoured Surrey station.

Amongst the crowds are many Old Boys, including Olympic champion Matthew Pinsent who rowed in the Dark Blue boat in the early 1990s.

Both crews line up for the press.

Isis boat first and head off in the direction of Putney bridge to warm up. Stroke man Alec Dent is one of two returning members of Oxford’s 2009 squad.

16:00 Isis explode off the start against Cambridge’s Goldie and infront of growing crowds.

Goldie finish just over a length ahead of Isis. Photo: Shaun Thein

Attention now draws to the Blue boats, who rower emerging from their respective boat house one by one. Above: Oxford’s 2 man Martin Walsh of Green Templeton College.

Spectators on Putney Bridge, look down on the start line. Gloomy clouds make way for light blue skies, but will the rivers run Dark Blue?

Crews settle on the start line. Coxes raise their hands to signal they are not ready for the ‘Go.’

The first half of the race and there is little to separate the two crews.

Umpire issues a warning for Cambridge to stay on their station.

By Hammersmith Bridge Oxford have a slight advantage.

And are cheered on by supporters who have found all manner of viewing spots. Photo: Sonali Campion

Cambridge begin to close the gap in the second half of the Surrey bend, keeping the stroke rate high they extend to a gap of a length as the river bends to their advantage.

Delighted Old Boy Tabs cheer on from the following launches.

As Cambridge cross the finish line first, Tab cox Ted Randolph kneels up in celebration.

The hurting of the Oxford boat is plain for all to see, as the cheers from the Cambridge boat echo in the arches of Chiswick Bridge.

The Cambridge victory was no easy feat. Tactical chunder Mr. President?

The day comes to a close as Cambridge lift the trophy. Photo: Shaun Thein

And their cox gets a soaking. Photo: Shaun Thein

The result brings the overall statistics to 80 victories to Cambridge and 75 to Oxford. So whilst the Dark Blues went away with no victories this year, we’re certain that the crowds will gather again next year to see the clash of these intellectual Titans.

 

Is the Pope a Catholic?

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I’m starting to believe that the Papacy is actually being run by Richard Dawkins. No other explanation for the succession of public relations disasters surrounding the current Catholic leadership seems to make sense.

I’ve been scouring Google for previous Popes with a worse idea of public relations than Pope Benedict XVI. I was very disappointed to find that the stories I had never looked up for fear that they were false were indeed so; unfortunately, neither a horse, nor a pregnant woman, has (probably) ever been Pope, although it serves me right for getting my historical information from Blackadder. It’s also probably not true that the Pope had to expose his balls to Cardinals; and not once was the expression “Testiculos habet et bene pendentes” (“He has testicles, and they hang well”) uttered. I feel like a kid who’s just been told Santa’s not real.

It appears that, historically, in order to become Pope, you had to be about the most corrupt person they could find. This is unsurprising, given the amount of grisly stuff the job often involved. Sergius III is a particular favourite. His corrupt actions include: having two of his papal predecessors strangled to death, and knocking up a prominent noblewoman with the future Pope John XI.

‘Historically, in order to become Pope, you had to be about the most corrupt person they could find’

However, in a time when TV subscriptions weren’t high, he could perhaps get away with a bit more than he would now. Pope Benedict, however, doesn’t seem to understand that the media, and ideas about responsibility of authority have changed. While he is nowhere near as bad as most historical Popes, he appears to be out of touch with the expectations of religious leaders in the modern world.

There is a hitherto unwritten list of things not to be accused of when leader in any capacity of anything ever. It reads like this: Things Not To Be Accused Of, And To Take Really Bloody Seriously If You Are (in reverse order): Paedophilia, Nazi Paedophilia, and Unrepentant Nazi Paedophilia.

While I don’t for a second believe the Pope is a paedophile or a Nazi, his belittling of accusations of paedophilia as ‘petty gossip’, and his preacher’s comparison of anger at the Catholic Church with anti-Semitism, play into the hands of those who wish to see the news in black and white.

The accusations of the Pope’s own inaction over the abuse of several deaf children by Rev. Lawrence Murphy in America are damaging, and need to be dealt with in some way. That way is not to blame the press, who have finally exposed the abuses that for so long went unpunished. It is certainly also not to dismiss such accusations as unimportant. Doing so has merely further highlighted something they wanted to quickly move on from.

The anti-Semitism comparison was not itself anti-Semitic, although it was tactless. The problem is that it brings to public attention a string of PR disasters that could very easily be perceived as being so. The push to beatify Pope Pius XII, accused of indirect complicity by not speaking out against the Nazis as Pope during the Second World War, and the decision to lift the ex-communication of holocaust-denier Richard Williamson were politically unwise, and morally dubious, moves.

‘A Nazi Pope is just a James Bond villain/Dan Brown book waiting to happen’

In addition to this, Pope Benedict appointed as Bishop of Linz, in Austria, a man who claimed that Hurricane Katrina was punishment from God for tolerance of homosexuality, and famously made enemies within the Islamic faith by publicly quoting a Byzantine emperor, accusing Islam of being “evil and inhuman”.

All of this will be worsened in the eyes of the public by the Pope’s obligatory membership of Hitler Youth as a German child during World War Two. While all evidence shows that he didn’t particularly enjoy the ‘Hitler Youth’ experience, a Nazi Pope is just a James Bond villain/Dan Brown book waiting to happen, and the public always prefers a good story to reality.

All of this together suggests to me that there must be some underhanded play going on. You would think the leaders of the Catholic Church would be a smart bunch; they wouldn’t needlessly insult other religions, then bring these insults back into focus when dealing with other problems; they would want to minimise any risk of accusations of papal anti-Semitism given Benedict’s Hitler Youth past; they would never belittle accusations of paedophilia, and in apology would be humble and clear in their condemnation of paedophilia and those who cover for it.

Yet none of these obvious actions has been taken. Rather, they have gone out of their way to insult other religions, and to ostentatiously defend their own to the point of dismissing accusations of sexual abuse as gossip.

Only one man so boldly described religion as what the Catholic Church appears to be advertising itself as. Only one man painted religion so crudely and unilaterally as abusive, tribal groups fighting it out between each other, protecting their own and abusing others unrepentantly: a man who has disappeared from public view recently, and who has been oddly quiet about the whole debacle; a man who, I wager, has never been seen in the same room as the Pope.

So watch out for Dawkins’ new bestseller All Religious Leaders Are Unrepentant Nazi Paedophiles. You heard it here first.

The Boat Race

Riverside coverage from Putney, as Oxford and Cambridge compete in the 156th Boat Race.

 

Cambridge defy the odds to win

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Despite Oxford being tipped as 2/5 favourites to win the 156th boat race, Cambridge came from behind to win one of the most enthralling races in recent history in a time of 17 minutes and 35 seconds.

Thousands of people lined the banks of the river Thames from Putney to Mortlake on Saturday afternoon, to try and catch a glimpse of the fantastic spectacle that was the 156th Varsity Boat Race. The general public, media and present and past students of both universities vociferously supported their crews.

An hour and 45 minutes before the race, the Oxford Boat Club president Sjoerd Hamburger won the historically important toss and chose to race from the Surrey Station, giving Oxford the advantage on the long Surrey bend in the middle of the race.

Given that 39 of the last 64 races have been won by the boat at the Surrey station, everything seemed to be going to plan for the hotly tipped Oxford boat.

The powerful Oxford crew made a blistering start to the race, with a good rhythm giving them a ¼ of a length lead on Cambridge after only a minute gone. The early exchanges of the race then all seemed to go to the Oxford crew, who despite being on the outside of the first bend, managed to take a ¾ of a length lead at the first mile post.

Having without a doubt set off hard in order to nullify Cambridge’s advantage at the first bend, Oxford reached the mile post in a time of 3 minutes 37 seconds, just six seconds behind the record time.

However, the impressive Cambridge cox Ted Randolph steered the light Blues very close to Oxford around the Surrey bend, so lessening the dark blues advantage of the inside of the bend.

After half of Oxford’s Surrey bend at Hammersmith Bridge, Cambridge managed to creep to within half a length of Oxford, keeping them in the race. This valiant rowing from Cambridge seemed to affect the Oxford crew who, perhaps worrying that they had not created a substantial enough lead with their advantage, began to look a little laboured. It was at this point that Cambridge clearly called a push and upped the stroke rate, gaining almost ¾ of a length against the bend which is supposedly worth ¾ of a length to Oxford.

Despite this exchange, coming up to the last bend in the race, the two crews were dead level and it was still anybody’s race. However, here Cambridge began to push on and with Oxford’s cox Adam Barhamand having to use more rudder than his counterpart in order to keep the right line, Oxford seemed to slow. The light blues, buoyed by the fact that it was they who now held the advantage of the inside bend, began to pull away, opening up a half a length lead as they passed Barnes Bridge.

In the entire history of the Boat Race, only two crews have ever come back from a losing position at this point to win and yet this year, the race was still in the balance and one felt that with one last push Oxford just might clinch it. But the uplifted Cambridge crew pushed hard for the finish line and with a minute to go, upped their stroke rate to 40 and pushed away towards victory.

They crossed the line officially 1 and a 1/3 lengths up on Oxford, taking the total tally of wins to 80 for Cambridge and 75 to Oxford, with one dead heat.

Before Saturday both the Oxford blue boat and the Isis crew were looking to seal a hat trick of victories over their tab counterparts and they were both hotly tipped to do so. Yet it was Cambridge who ended up taking both exchanges; ending Oxford’s recent dominance in the events.

 

Scenic View: Malaysia

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The Republic of Malaysia likes to brand itself as “Truly Asia”, a veritable smorgasbord of different cosmopolitan cultures and communities mixing together in coherent unity. To my surprise, the country seems to live up to its slick branding. From the orchestrated chaos of capital city Kuala Lumpur, to the peaceful northern Cameron Highlands, to the sand-swept beaches of biologically rich Borneo, the country offers an absorbing plethora of different opportunities to the average (and cash-strapped) nature enthusiast or culture junkie. On a week-long break from a brief research project in Singapore, I was eager to sample all that this mysterious country had to offer.

Given my proclivity for natural areas and innate tendency towards avoiding clogged urban sprawls, I was surprised by how much I enjoyed the clean metropolis of Kuala Lumpur. Whether it was a visit to one of the many parks dotted around the city, a ride on the embarrassingly fun indoor roller coaster at the sprawling Times Square shopping centre, or a tour of the famous Petronas Towers, there is no shortage of interesting activities within the city limits. In addition, the nearby National Zoo offers the opportunity to see some of Malaysia’s endangered biodiversity up close, including the mythical Malayan tiger and the quirky Malayan tapir.

However, the most striking feature of all is the food. Anywhere one travels in Malaysia, the incredible variety of different food-stuffs will be on full display. In particular, the region south of Kuala Lumpur provides some of the most amazing dishes on the planet. Spice aficionados will crave the aromatic blending of different flavours in the various Malay dishes, while those who seek fare from neighboring ASEAN countries will not be disappointed by the selection. As an added bonus, food is often made from scratch, with wholesome, unprocessed ingredients. What more could a perpetually starving twenty-something ask for?

Malaysia is a cool country. It still lags far behind the proximate prosperous island of Singapore in terms of purchasing power and GDP, and is justifiably considered a newly industrializing country. It brims with potential, offering universal health care, flexible capital markets, and a relatively stable political situation. I enjoyed my time here and look forward to returning soon.

 

Oxford blue as Cambridge come from behind to win Boat Race

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Oxford University Boat Club have had their hopes of a Boat Race hat-trick denied today. 

Thousands lined the shores of the River Thames to see Cambridge come from behind and claim victory in the 156th Annual Boat Race.

Despite being the bookies’ favourites to win, having two Olympic veterans in the crew, and rowing on the preferred Surrey side, Oxford failed to clinch their third title in three years. Their strong start propelled them into an early lead, which at one point saw them 3/4 of a length in front of the light-blue boat, and lasted for most of the race.

However Cambridge pushed hard to catch up after the Hammersmith bridge, raised their stroke rate and crossed the finish line with Oxford trailing by at least a length and a half.

Cambridge lead Oxford in the overall rankings by 80 wins to 75, with one dead heat.

More to follow.

Review: Ellie Goulding at the O2 Academy

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Ellie Goulding walked onto the stage of the Oxford O2 to a wildly supportive, chanting crowd. Fans continued to proudly, fervently sing along to every song. The effect of the fame machine of the major record labels is evident on her growth in popularity. The worry with such accelerated performers is that they will lose their artistic integrity.

Ellie, however, has the makings of a superb musician. Her voice is as individual as it is captivating; she sings with startling detail and expression. She told me before the gig, ‘I’ve never been taught how to sing, although I used to pretend to sing opera a lot when I was younger’. Very few artists with ‘top ten’ singles sound better singing live than on their recordings, but Ellie is one refreshingly quirky vocalist. Even her speaking voice is silky smooth, which was sometimes a hindrance, as it proved very difficult for the audience to hear what she was saying between songs, thanks to a poor microphone set-up. Charlie Atlantic, of local band Inlight, insisted however, that the sound of her voice was ‘exceedingly pleasant to listen to, regardless’.

On stage Ellie plays the acoustic guitar, the instrument she grew up with. But with the full band she’s able to have her own percussion set up. Whilst she’s mostly relatively static, locked to her microphone and guitar, her own drums on stage allow her to occasionally add significant dynamism to her performance. Playing drums, she moves for the music and not for the crowd. She is very comfortable on a stage. ‘I don’t get nervous before shows anymore; that idea is so alien to me now. I only really get nervous when I’m on the television’.

As might be expected from a tour based on a first album, the gig slightly lulled in the middle, with chunky brackets of hits at either end of the performance. Most important to the show was the encore, which featured a compacted trio of songs which illustrated her rise to fame. Ellie seemed especially emotionally involved with the final set, which started with the poignant fully acoustic ‘Wish I Stayed’, followed by her new-age cover of Midlake’s ‘Roscoe’ with stripped down band, condluding with her big new single ‘Starry Eyed’ with full band and electro-pop backing track.

Many music fans will turn their nose up at Ellie Goulding, put off by her seemingly artificially rapid rise to fame and glossy publicity, but there’s such quality there, in both compositional skill and lyrical ability. ‘So we burst into colours and carousels / Fall head first, like paper planes in playground games’ is not the type of lyric that you’d expect to hear from a ‘manufactured artist’, and the way that her words are presented live, makes it very clear that they are her own. Her first album has been a significant move towards the mainstream, and though she definitely has the talent and potential for appreciable longevity in the music industry, she will perhaps soon need to take a step back from Starsmith, successful as they may have been together, to ensure that she preserves her own individual style.

Interview: Ellie Goulding

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It’s very easy to dismiss Ellie Goulding as another artist manufactured by the major record labels. But this is a girl who, before a major record deal was even on the horizon, was driven to drop out of a successful degree to pursue a career in music. This is a girl who has gigged every week for years at Kent University and at home in Hereford, juggling two jobs while developing her style and waiting to be noticed.

It’s been a rapid few months of growth, culminating in her first studio album, which went straight to number one following its release in early March. Ellie’s style has since undergone huge transformation, from her fully acoustic iTunes Single of The Week ‘Wish I Stayed’ in late December, to the electro-pop reworked tang of her album, Lights.

Responding to criticism of transition in style, she says that she’s ‘written acoustic music for a long time, but always wanted to do something more exciting’. Soon after leaving Kent University, Ellie met the producer Finlay Dow-Smith (Starsmith). Both of them had been individually influenced and inspired by Frankmusik, and together they began working on Ellie’s new sound. The pair are now close friends, and each contributed significantly to both the composition and production of Lights. ‘We work very well together, and we agree on a lot’, Ellie claims. ‘Fin and I really connect, and the songs are now how I always wanted them to sound.’

Ellie, now 23, maintains that it’s very important for her to feel academically alive. ‘I was very engaged with my degree, and now I sometimes worry that I’m lacking stimulation’. The singer claims a steering hunger for what she’s passionate about, and a fixation on her goals and interests, perhaps explaining her courageous move away from university. ‘I get very into single artists. I have listened to the Noah & The Whale album almost every day since it was released’. Ellie says that nowadays, she and Starsmith write a lot during the recording process, sometimes writing, producing and completing songs within the space of three days. ‘Sometimes you get very caught up in the song that you’re writing, and it comes very easily’.

Ellie is not controlled by her manager or label. She insists that she has total musical freedom, despite criticism of Universal Music Group for frequently pushing young artists in a ‘more sellable’ direction. She adds, speaking genuinely, ‘Polydor are the best label in the world’. Her management are, on the most part, in awe of her musical drive: ‘the success is all down to Ellie’, said one of her promoters for gigs in the south. Ellie intends to keep writing with Starsmith in the near future, but hinted at perhaps also collaborating with band-mate Max Cooke, lead singer of the now defunct four-piece Goodbooks. Max is currently joining Ellie on tour to play keys and synths.

The songwriter thinks that she communicates significantly more effectively through music and performance, and sometimes worries that she comes across as tame in media interviews. Ellie is a very positive, friendly and down-to-earth girl; character which is evident in her attitude to where she is going with her career: ‘I don’t really think about the consequences; I just like writing songs’. If Ellie weren’t doing music, she’d like to be ‘a fitness instructor or a teacher: I love to give advice’, and hopes that life will one day lead her to having her own chicken farm in Powys. Were there to be an Ellie Goulding Machine, baring the Ellie Goulding seal of approval, it would not only ‘recommend books and films’, but would, like most important machines, ‘dispense Percy Pigs and fresh smoothies’, and perhaps ‘lend a full body workout from time to time’.


Read Cherwell‘s review of Ellie’s gig in Oxford last week.

Swot Shop: Belle Of The Ball

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Ball season may not be kicking off in earnest until Trinity but every savvy fashionista worth her Louboutins knows that you need to hunt down that all-important dress before the covetable ones become extinct and you’re stranded in a fashion desert with the vultures of bridesmaid frumpery and drag queen bling circling ever closer. The metaphor may be extreme but if I see one more shapeless lilac silk sack-clad maid of honour or wannabe Strictly contestant across a moonlit quad then I am going to commit fashion suicide.

With a little help from your fairy godmother here at Cherwell you are going to look and feel fabulous on your special night (without having to secretly remortgage your parents’ house for some Dior couture). I am going to show you how to rock the single hardest item of clothing to get right, the floor length gown. Compulsary wear for those of you lucky enough to have begged, borrowed or stolen tickets to the white tie Commemoration Ball, and a real style statement for any black tie event, the perfect dress can have a truly transformative effect and elevate your style to the A list.

You shall go to the ball!

Elita One Shoulder Maxi Dress, £150, Coast
The draping cleverly cinches in your waist in this figure-flattering asymmetric design.

 

Diamante Hoop Split Front Maxi Dress £45, asos.com
Try this Asos gown for an astonishingly inexpensive alternative that also comes in coral and an incredible shade of teal.

 


Reagan Swarovski Maxi Dress, £209 (was £310), Gorgeouscouture.com

Still on the asymmetric theme but with a Grecian twist, this dress is a real summer show-stealer. Gorgeous Couture is an undiscovered goldmine (or rather Swarovski crystal mine) of red carpet-worthy dresses. Handy videos mean that you can see how a dress fits and moves when you walk, purchases arrive in luxe packaging to make your shopping experience just that bit more special, and they have a free couture customising service so if you love a dress but fancy it in a different shade or with extra bling, they’ll make your gown truly unique.

 

 

I will be wearing the Bosworth Maxi dress, £189 down from £299, Gorgeous Couture

French Connection plait front maxi dress, £110, asos.com.
Feeling this season’s obsession with all things utility? Unleash your inner urban goddess.

 

T Bags Halter-neck jersey maxi dress, £195, netaporter.com
Think netaporter.com is beyond your budget? They have some highly affordable pieces like this simple yet stunning dress by T Bags- glam it up with some fabulous statement accessories. Their outlet site, theoutnet.com, is definitely worth a look for you avid designer bargain-hunters. 

 

 

Allepo maxi dress, £180, Monsoon.
Give a nod to the trend for burnished metallics, stunning with a tan if the sun smiles on us this Trinity!

 

Now you have the dress – just the shoes, bag and earrings to go. NB: we do not recommend glass slippers.

 

Infamous animal activist on trial again

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The notorious Oxford animal rights activist Mel Broughton will stand trial once again for the alleged firebomb attacks against the University in 2006 and 2007.

Broughton, age 48, appeared at Oxford Crown Court on Monday. He denied  charges of conspiracy to commit arson and possession of articles with intent to destroy property.

These charges relate to a fire in the Queen’s College sports pavilion in November 2006 and the explosive devices found in Templeton College in February 2007.

Broughton was granted by bail by Judge Julian Hall, who imposed “stringent conditions” on his bail application. Broughton is banned from entering Oxfordshire or from conducting any animal rights activities. Further bail conditions were not revealed to the public.

The re-trial is set for 15th June 2010. This will be the third time that Broughton has been tried for the attacks. This comes after Lord Justice Thomas quashed Broughton’s previous conviction last Wednesday in the Court of Appeal.

The first trial collapsed in November 2008 when the jury were unable to come to a verdict.

Broughton was sentenced to ten years in prison in February 2009. He was told he must serve at least five years before being eligible for release.

However, Lord Justice Thomas ruled that an error in the way the trial judge had summated the evidence to the jury meant his conviction was “unsafe”.