The Feeling’s first album, Twelve Stops and Home, came with certain social conditions attached – or I felt it did at least. Chief amongst these was that under no circumstances could you tell your male (gangster rap-loving) friends that you’d even listened to it, let alone owned it. The Feeling, in musical terms, were the definitive ‘guilty-pleasure’.But it was good, and it sold. The simplicity of the arrangements, the charming voice of Dan Gillespie-Sells, some intelligent (if quirky) lyrics, and all the while a quite prevalent, though not superficial, emotive backdrop. You felt the album did have ‘feeling’ to it.Not so with this new album. Simply, Join With Us is not that good. There are some of the trademark hooks, which will stick in your head for days. But in this album, they’re hidden between some points of daftness. Ditto with the touching messages. Take the title track – it has the most terrific pre-chorus. And then spoils it with a hideous chorus and the lyric ‘the world is in your hands’ set to a really mad, peculiar beat. It actually makes you feel ill. Loneliness has such a memorable refrain that my roommate (who, in the interests of his general popularity, shall remain nameless) starting singing along. But then somehow the actual verses are shockingly bad.
There is some good stuff – the best track is ‘Spare Me’. The reason – it’s simple. Piano, nice lyrics, the odd harmony; and none of the annoyance you get elsewhere. My conclusion – The Feeling were given lots of money to make their new album, and they spent too much on orchestras, and ‘big’ production. They’ve ended up with an album that is just far too ambitious. There are some great moments, some fragments of borderline genius, but it’s almost lost amongst the daftness – there was actually a baby’s voice at one point. Much of it, in truth, would not be out of place in the score for a pantomime. And that’s not The Feeling I remembered.Three stars.– By Nick Coxon

The Glitches this Saturday became the first student band to headline the Carling Academy, and they deserved it. Rocking through their short set, the band satisfied the crowded room with a danceable energy and professional intensity at the same time. The biggest student band for the Academy, and also the biggest gig to date for the band. ‘We played a couple of balls before but they weren’t really our gigs’ says Robbie, the lead singer. ‘I felt my nerves of steel starting to crack’, concedes Ben, the band’s huge bassist. ‘There was no promotion from the Academy at all either’ says Robbie. The website didn’t even work, leading to a Canadian Christian rock band. It wouldn’t make much difference anyway, Ben admits, ‘we only have seventy friends on myspace’. Not a bad achievement then to fill up the Academy.The four finalists came together at the start of their second year. ‘Robbie gave me an EP of his old band and it was shit’ says Mike, the guitarist. Robbie laughs. ‘We decided to give him a chance though’, said Mike, grinning. ‘Mike and I were already in a Wadham band’, chips in Ben. ‘We started playing in what is now The Glitches in secret without telling the old band. We cheated on our last band to start this one – The reaction when he found out was kinda the same’. The band began life as The Cheltenham Average, morphing into The Glitches during the summer and improving ever since. ‘We had a natural aversion to getting involved with Imsoc’, says Robbie. ‘It’s all a bit inbred’, agreed Ben. ‘A lot of bands like being an Oxford band, but we don’t want to be an Oxford band, we want to be a UK band’, says Robbie. The band certainly are ambitious: they’ve signed a fifteen-month contract which will see them devoting next year to the band, recording and touring.Able support for the band tonight was provided by Figment, another band with Wadham connections and the potential to go far. Hailing from Bristol, they played an energetic punky kind of electric indie that got the crowd going for the main event. The Glitches set was dominated by driving pop rhythms, not dissimilar from mainstream indie bands but executed with skill and feeling. My personal favourite was the more mellow ‘January to June’, but guitarist Mike cited the hilariously titled ‘Papua New Guinea’s got a brand new bag’ as a favorite, and the band agreed on its seminal significance for them. Our interview was cut short by the entry of drummer, James, furious after being left outside by his bandmates. Meeting the band after their biggest triumph to date only the confirmed the impression gained in the audience: this is band that’ll go much further than Oxford.– By Michael Bennett

 Student's Valentine's plans get too hot to handleA steamy Valentine’s night ended in disaster for one Keble student last Thursday after a fire broke out during a candle-lit date in his room.

Second year Modern History and Politics student George Warren looks set to be faced with a bill of £1,000 after being asked to pay damages by Keble College authorities.

The fire started after Warren, who had planned for a romantic evening in with his girlfriend, placed candles next to some curtains by his window.

Describing the incident, Warren said, “In order to save some money, I decided to cook my girlfriend a meal so I lit some candles to create the right atmosphere. Stupidly I placed them on the windowsill.

“After we ate, things started getting steamy and she suggested I close the curtains. I did and minutes after we sat down to take a breather, the curtains went up in flames. I ran over, ripped the curtains down and threw them out of the window.”

By this time the fire had already damaged the window, and before he threw the curtains out onto the concrete the flames had spread to the carpet and the wardrobe. “The window cracked from the heat and my carpet and wardrobe were also caught by the flames,” Warren said.

JCR President John Maher lives next door to Warren on staircase P4, but had left his room for the evening to give him some privacy.  He said, “The walls are very thin in Keble and obviously I didn’t want to hear whatever George got up to so I tried to avoid my room for the evening by hanging around the post area.”

On hearing shouts that there was a fire, Maher called 999 and quickly alerted people by knocking on doors.
He said, “I knocked on as many doors as I could because we have a lot of fire drills at Keble and it was important that people took notice that this was a real fire.”

A student living on the floor below George was woken up by the fire alarm and said, “There was so much smoke that I thought my room would suffer from smoke damage. The porter was running around panicking but a fire engine came quickly and everyone was evacuated from the building and carted into the JCR.”

Students were kept waiting for two hours while the fire crew dealt with the flames.  Warren’s girlfriend, who is not a member of Keble, was left among the JCR wearing only a dressing gown.

One eyewitness said, “She must have been really embarrassed because she didn’t know any of us.
“When we were allowed back into the building, all we saw on the ground was a pathetic lump of burnt, charred curtain.”

Warren, who is currently directing Night of the Iguana at Keble’s O’Reilly, was not seriously hurt in the incident but did suffer burns on his hand as he battled with the curtains. He claims he has learnt from his mistake, saying, “I now know that putting candles next to curtains is obviously a silly thing to do. I was fairly contrite about the whole thing because it could have been worse, I’m lucky that no-one was seriously hurt.”

Keble College Bursar, Roger Boden, said, “We have not yet had estimates for repairs to the room but they are unlikely to come in at less than £1,000.  Obviously the College will have to seek recovery of all costs.

“The College Handbook clearly states: “Lighted candles and burning incense in College rooms constitute a fire hazard and are expressly forbidden.”  The prohibition is there for a reason, as this incident illustrates.”

Action was taken the next morning with cleaners inspecting College rooms and emptying them of candles and other fire hazards.

In an email to the JCR, Senior Dean Dr Rogers said, “The room will be uninhabitable until next term. It could have been much worse, and the College is thankful for the prompt and decisive action of the Porter and for the co-operation of those residents who evacuated the staircase.”

Dr Rogers added, “The episode underscores the importance of regular fire safety drills. These may not be popular, but they are essential. You are expected to evacuate your room within 3 minutes in the event of an alarm. The penalty for failing to do so is a fine of £25.”

Following a meeting with College authorities this week, Warren has been temporarily re-housed in a small room that Keble students call the ‘linen cupboard’. He has been asked to pay £1000 for the damage to his room. Warren said, “I’m not refusing to pay it but it does seem a bit much. They’re going to add up the costs and get back to me for another meeting.”

Maher claims some good has come out of the incident: “In an attempt to quench the fires of his passion, George has sparked new life into the slow-burning debate about fire safety.”by Omotola Akerele, Deputy News Editor

Police are investigating an Oxford student’s claims that he was attacked by a bouncer outside Filth after being ejected from the club.

Charlie Moore, a first year Brasenose student, claims that he was left with a bloody nose after the incident, which he says took place in the early hours of Friday morning.

Speaking about what he claims took place Moore said, “For no reason that I can remember I was picked up and thrown out of the club by a bouncer and then physically thrown onto the floor outside Filth. I got up and naturally wanted to go back inside. But when I approached the bouncer and asked if I could go back in he told me to ‘fuck off’. Then he head butted me in the nose so hard that I had blood gushing everywhere. I went back over to my friends and another guy called the police.”

Whilst admitting he was rather drunk at the time, Moore claims that had the bouncer insisted on him leaving he “would have been happy to do so.”

While the police took statements Moore says that he spoke to the management at Filth. “They said that the reason I had been thrown out was because I had been touching the fire exit. But that does not give the bouncers the right to manhandle me.”

The management of Filth claim that they have subsequently checked CCTV footage of the evening and could not find anything to corroborate the claim of the attack.  Filth owner Stuart Kerley said that Moore was thrown out for pulling down drapes on the club’s dancefloor. He denied that any of the club’s bouncers could have been involved, insisting that they were inside the bar at the time of the alleged attack.

“It’s a bit of a mystery,” said Kerley. “As far as we’re concerned we’ve done an internal investigation and there is no evidence of anything at all.”

Louise Randall, Vice President (Welfare and Equal Opportunities) of OUSU said, “All students deserve to have fun and feel safe at every club night they attend. If clubs and their promoters are going to provide an environment for students to have fun and have a drink in they need to take some responsibility for maintaining a safe atmosphere; the door staff are there to help with that, and if this allegation is true then something has clearly gone wrong down at Filth.”

Moore was more philosophical, saying simply “I think I will be giving Filth a wide berth, for this term at least.”by Katherine Hall, Deputy News Editor

What's on in the coming week…Friday 22ndFilm
Be Kind Rewind (12A) Odeon Magdalen St. 1300, 1530, 1800, 2030
The Big Lebowski (18) Ultimate Picture Palace 2330
The Bucket List (12A) Odeon George St. 1245, 1815
Cloverfield (15) Odeon George St. 1430, 1645, 1900, 2115
Definitely Maybe (12A) Odeon George St. 1415, 1715, 2015
I’m Not There (15) Ultimate Picture Palace 2045
Jumper (12A) Odeon Magdalen St. 1300, 1530, 1800, 2030
Juno (12A) Odeon George St 1330, 1600, 1830, 2100 The Kite Runner (12A) Ultimate Picture Palace 1800
My Blueberry Nights (12A) Phoenix Picture House 1300, 1500, 1700, 1900, 2110
National Treasure 2: Book of Secrets (PG) Odeon George St. 1115, 1400, 1700, 2000
No Country for Old Men (15) Odeon Magdalen St. 1400, 1700, 2000
Penelope (U) Odeon George St 1145
Sweeney Todd (18) Odeon George St. 1500, 2045
There Will Be Blood (15) Phoenix 1345, 1700, 2015
The Water Horse (PG) Odeon George St 1200
Music
The 1810 Generation Mendelssohn, Chopin, Schumann, Liszt J du P 2000
Tenebrae Facyae Sunt The Marian Consort New College Chapel 2030
OU String Ensemble Elgar, Mozart, Howells, Dowland Wesley Memorial Church 2000
The Allegri String Quartet Mozart, Britten, Beethoven Holywell Music Room 2000
Nouvelle Vague New Wave Zodiac 1830
Get Cape Wear Cape Fly & Emmy the Great Folk Academy 1830
Fuse featuring Audio Bullys Zodiac 1930
Alvin Roy Swing/jazz Old Orleans Bar 2030
D-Blockers Music Wheatsheaf 2000
South Central Heroes Punk/metal Jericho Tavern 2000
Vatican Cellars Folk/country QI 2000
Stage
Madama Butterfly Puccini New Theatre 1930
The Night of the Iguana O’Reilly, Keble 1930
Now and Only OUDS New Writing Festival Burton Taylor 2130
Patience Gilbert & Sullivan Merton College Chapel 1930
Quills OFS 1930
Spies Frayn Playhouse 2000
Three Sons OUDS New Writing Festival Burton Taylor 1930
‘Tis Pity She’s a Whore Moser Theatre, Wadham 1930
Turn of the Screw Oxford Opera Company Hertford College Chapel 2000
Other
Cockerell’s Ashmolean Lunchtime gallery talk Randolph Gallery, Ashmolean 1315
The Boer War: Letters of a Great Uncle Cecillie Swaisland Okinaga Rm, Wadham 2000

Saturday 23rd
Film
Be Kind Rewind (12A) Odeon Magdalen St. 1300, 1530, 1800, 2030
The Big Lebowski (18) Ultimate Picture Palace 2330
The Bucket List (12A) Odeon George St. 1245, 1815
Cloverfield (15) Odeon George St. 1430, 1645, 1900, 2115
Definitely Maybe (12A) Odeon George St. 1415, 1715, 2015
Future Shorts (12A) Phoenix Picture House 2330
Jumper (12A) Odeon Magdalen St. 1300, 1530, 1800, 2030
Juno (12A) Odeon George St 1330, 1600, 1830, 2100 The Kite Runner (12A) Ultimate Picture Palace 1545, 2100
My Blueberry Nights (12A) Phoenix Picture House 1515, 1715, 1915, 2125
National Treasure 2: Book of Secrets (PG) Odeon George St. 1115, 1400, 1700, 2000
No Country for Old Men (15) Odeon Magdalen St. 1400, 1700, 2000
Penelope (U) Odeon George St 1145
Sigur Ros: Heima (15) Phoenix Picture House 1130
Sweeney Todd (18) Odeon George St. 1500, 2045
There Will Be Blood (15) Phoenix 1345, 1700, 2015
The Water Horse (PG) Odeon George St 1200
Music
Queen’s College Recital Queen’s College Chapel 1315
A Concert of 8s with OMO Schubert, Dvorak Sheldonian 2000
Ralph Vaughan Williams OSO High Sheriff of Oxfordshire’s Concert Merton College Chapel 1930
Oxford Music Network Oxford Lieder Holywell Music Room 2000
The Allegri String Quartet Brahms Holywell Music Room 1230
OU Wind Orchestra Maslanka, Whitacre, Tichell University Church of St Mary 2000
Dolittle Music Wheatsheaf 2000
The Long Insiders Pop/rock Jericho Tavern 2030
Dog Show Electro Cellar 2000
Vampire Weekend Indie/afrobeat pioneers Zodiac 1930
The Kooks Sold out (in all senses) Academy 1900
Stage
A Couple of Cold Ones OUDS New Writing Festival Burton Taylor 2130
Madama Butterfly Puccini New Theatre 1930
The Night of the Iguana O’Reilly, Keble 1530, 1930
Now and Only OUDS New Writing Festival Burton Taylor 1630
Patience Gilbert & Sullivan Merton College Chapel 1430, 1930
Quills OFS 1430, 1930
Spies Frayn Playhouse 1430, 2000
Three Sons OUDS New Writing Festival Burton Taylor 1430
‘Tis Pity She’s a Whore Moser Theatre, Wadham 1930
Tom’s a-cold OUDS New Writing Festival Burton Taylor 1930 Sunday 24th Film
Azur & Asmar: The Princes’ Quest (U) Phoenix Picture House 1100, 1430
Be Kind Rewind (12A) Odeon Magdalen St. 1300, 1530, 1800, 2030
The Big Lebowski (18) Ultimate Picture Palace 1100
The Bucket List (12A) Odeon George St. 1245, 1815
Cloverfield (15) Odeon George St. 1430, 1645, 1900, 2115
Definitely Maybe (12A) Odeon George St. 1415, 1715, 2015
I’m Not There (15) Ultimate Picture Palace 2015
Jumper (12A) Odeon Magdalen St. 1300, 1530, 1800, 2030
Juno (12A) Odeon George St 1330, 1600, 1830, 2100
Kings of the Road (15) Phoenix Picture House 1100
The Kite Runner (12A) Ultimate Picture Palace 1730
My Blueberry Nights (12A) Phoenix Picture House 1300, 1500, 1700, 1900, 2110
National Treasure 2: Book of Secrets (PG) Odeon George St. 1115, 1400, 1700, 2000
No Country for Old Men (15) Odeon Magdalen St. 1400, 1700, 2000
Penelope (U) Odeon George St 1145
Sweeney Todd (18) Odeon George St. 1500, 2045
There Will Be Blood (15) Phoenix 1700, 2015
Three Colours: Red (15) Ultimate Picture Palace 1515
The Water Horse (PG) Odeon George St 1200
Music
Sacconi & Navara String Quartets Brahms, Mendelssohn Holywell Music Room 1115
Electric Six Take me to the… Academy 1900
David Gray Singer/songwriter New Theatre 1900
Go Faster Jericho Tavern 2000
Baby Gravy Alt. Punk Purple Turtle 2100
Stage
The Ministry of Mirth Wheatsheaf 2000
Frühlings Erwachen in German Moser Theatre, Wadham 1700
Other
God: Reality or Delusion? Christian Science Church 1400

Monday 25th

Film
Be Kind Rewind (12A) Odeon Magdalen St. 1300, 1530, 1800, 2030
The Big Lebowski (18) Ultimate Picture Palace 2300
The Bucket List (12A) Odeon George St. 1245, 1815
Cloverfield (15) Odeon George St. 1430, 1645, 1900, 2115
Definitely Maybe (12A) Odeon George St. 1415, 1715, 2015
Jumper (12A) Odeon Magdalen St. 1300, 1530, 1800, 2030
Juno (12A) Odeon George St 1330, 1600, 1830, 2100
The Kite Runner (12A) Ultimate Picture Palace 1600
My Blueberry Nights (12A) Phoenix Picture House 1300, 1500, 1700, 1900, 2110
National Treasure 2: Book of Secrets (PG) Odeon George St. 1400, 1700, 2000
No Country for Old Men (15) Odeon Magdalen St. 1400, 1700, 2000
Sweeney Todd (18) Odeon George St. 1500, 2045
There Will Be Blood (15) Phoenix 1345, 1700, 2015
Three Colours: Red (15) Ultimate Picture Palace 1900, 2100
Music
The Oxford Gargoyles Fundraising J du P 2000
Klaxons Day-glo annoyance-pop Academy 1930
Stage
The Oxford Imps Improvised comedy. Wheatsheaf 2000
Free Beer Show Norman Lovett Cellar Bar 2115
Spies Frayn Playhouse 1930
La Voix humaine & Le Livre blanc Telephonic opera Merton College Chapel 2030

Tuesday 26th

Film
Be Kind Rewind (12A) Odeon Magdalen St. 1300, 1530, 1800, 2030
The Bucket List (12A) Odeon George St. 1245, 1815
Cloverfield (15) Odeon George St. 1430, 1645, 1900, 2115
Definitely Maybe (12A) Odeon George St. 1415, 1715, 2015
In the Shadow of the Moon (U) Odeon Magdalen St. 2000
Jumper (12A) Odeon Magdalen St. 1300, 1530, 1800, 2030
Juno (12A) Odeon George St 1330, 1600, 1830, 2100
The Kite Runner (12A) Ultimate Picture Palace 1800
My Blueberry Nights (12A) Phoenix Picture House 1300, 1500, 1700, 1900, 2110
National Treasure 2: Book of Secrets (PG) Odeon George St. 1400, 1700, 2000
No Country for Old Men (15) Odeon Magdalen St. 1400, 1700, 2000
Rescue Dawn (12A) Ultimate Picture Palace 2100
Sweeney Todd (18) Odeon George St. 1500, 2045
There Will Be Blood (15) Phoenix 1345, 1700, 2015
Music
Reel Big Fish Ska legends Academy 1900
Stage
Debris Burton Taylor 1930
Dolores Wears the Stares Burton Taylor 2130
Frühlings Erwachen in German Moser Theatre, Wadham 1930
Oxford Revue Wheatsheaf 2000
Spies Frayn Playhouse 1930
La Voix humaine & Le Livre blanc Telephonic opera Merton College Chapel 2030
Other
Derek Acorah TV “spirit medium” New Theatre 1930
Clarendon Lectures: Yeats and the Measure of Violence Professor Michael Wood St Cross 1700
Mostly Men Lunchtime Gallery Talks Ashmolean 1315
Freedom From Oil David Sandalow University Museum of Natural History 1700
Celebrating Franco Musically Enrique Sacau-Ferreira Denis Arnold Hall, Music Faculty 1715 Wednesday 27th
Film
Be Kind Rewind (12A) Odeon Magdalen St. 1300, 1530, 1800, 2030
The Bucket List (12A) Odeon George St. 1245, 1815
Cloverfield (15) Odeon George St. 1430, 1645, 1900, 2115
Definitely Maybe (12A) Odeon George St. 1415, 1715, 2015
I’m Not There (15) Ultimate Picture Palace 2100
Jumper (12A) Odeon Magdalen St. 1300, 1530, 1800, 2030
Juno (12A) Odeon George St 1330, 1600, 1830, 2100
The Kite Runner (12A) Ultimate Picture Palace 1800
My Blueberry Nights (12A) Phoenix Picture House 1500, 1700, 1900, 2110
National Treasure 2: Book of Secrets (PG) Odeon George St. 1400, 1700, 2000
No Country for Old Men (15) Odeon Magdalen St. 1400, 1700, 2000
Sweeney Todd (18) Odeon George St. 1500, 2045
There Will Be Blood (15) Phoenix 1345, 1700, 2015
Music
Queen’s College Organ Recital Queen’s College Chapel 1310
St Hilda’s Music Society Recital Piano J du P 1315
One Night Only ‘Rock’ Zodiac 1900
Montjoys Jacket Acoustic sessions Purple Turtle 1900
Stage
Debris Burton Taylor 1930
Dolores Wears the Stares Burton Taylor 2130
Fanshen O’Reilly, Keble 2000
Spies Frayn Playhouse 1930
Other
Role of the Art School in the 21st Century Panel discussion Modern Art Oxford 1830
Film
Be Kind Rewind (12A) Odeon Magdalen St. 1300, 1530, 1800, 2030
The Bank Job (15) Odeon George St. 2045
The Bucket List (12A) Odeon George St. 1245, 1815
Cloverfield (15) Odeon George St. 1430, 1645, 1900, 2115
Definitely Maybe (12A) Odeon George St. 1415, 1715, 2015
Jumper (12A) Odeon Magdalen St. 1300, 1530, 1800, 2030
Juno (12A) Odeon George St 1330, 1600, 1830, 2100
The Kite Runner (12A) Ultimate Picture Palace 1800
My Blueberry Nights (12A) Phoenix Picture House 1300, 1500, 1700, 1900, 2110
National Treasure 2: Book of Secrets (PG) Odeon George St. 1400, 1700, 2000
No Country for Old Men (15) Odeon Magdalen St. 1400, 1700, 2000
Rescue Dawn (12A) Ultimate Picture Palace 2100
Sweeney Todd (18) Odeon George St. 1500
There Will Be Blood (15) Phoenix 1345, 1700, 2015Thursday 28th Music
Queen’s College Choir & London Handel Orchestra Bach Queen’s College Chapel 2015
OU Philharmonia Elgar, Rachmaninoff Sheldonian 1930
Tony Kofi Sax Spin @ The Wheatsheaf 2100
Pama International Ska Academy 1900
Off The Radar Album release party Jericho Tavern 2000
Stage
Debris Burton Taylor 1930
Dolores Wears the Stares Burton Taylor 2130
Fanshen O’Reilly, Keble 2000
Frühlings Erwachen in German Moser Theatre, Wadham 1930
Spies Frayn Playhouse 1430, 1930
Other
The Temptations of form Clarendon Lectures: Yeats and the Measure of Violence, Prof Michael Wood St Cross Building 1700
Islamic persuasions: pathways to change in Islamic norms John R Bowen Exam Schools 1700

Thomas Barrett interviews Dev Hynes aka Lightspeed Champion 'Who?' seemed to be the general reaction from my friends when I told them that I’d be interviewing Lightspeed Champion. Even less people know his actual name, Dev Hynes. Yet here is someone who’s had a massive effect on modern British music. At the age of 17 he was the guitarist of the Test Icicles, generally thought to be the band that started nu-rave. After developing a strong following, the band decided that they didn’t actually like their own music and split up. I suppose you can’t really have a better reason, can you? Perhaps, without Dev there’s be no Klaxons, no “rah-ve”, and none of those god awful pink “Save The Rave” T-shirts in Primark. In spite of all that, you’ve got to love him. How many people do you know who can carry off big furry hats with such abandon? Now, to general surprise, he has reappeared under the guise of Lightspeed Champion, this time with a folksy, Americana-style tilt to his music.When I meet him, Dev seems uncomfortable with his return to fame. He fidgets slightly as he tells me, ‘I really didn’t think this album would get any attention. It’s got me questioning myself’. What surprised me most is how modest and self-deprecating he is. Given that he’s spent years as a performing musician, I thought he would ooze self-confidence. But he says, ‘I’ve always found playing live a weird concept … something I’ve had battles with over the last few years’. For him it seems that music is a personal thing. While he find playing live awkward, his attitude to music itself is vastly different, ‘I love music, it’s natural, like breathing. I just do it’. He adds, ‘I feel like I can write a song whenever I want to’.Inevitably, the Test Icicles come up. I ask if he sees the whole experience as a good thing. He thinks and then says ‘I don’t regret anything I ever do … I see everything as a learning experience’. But Dev is surprisingly unwilling to take any credit for his band’s influence. He says: ‘I never want to admit that I had an influence on something’. We move on to Lightspeed Champion. It is, he says, ‘just me by myself. I wouldn’t want to call it my name, because then people would assume it’s the real me.’ But then he comments that ‘it’ll always exist, unless I die.’ He surprises me by adding ‘but then it would probably be better’. Lordy.Dev’s apparent lack of faith in his abilities disappears on stage. After performing bass duties for support act Semifinalists, he confidently takes to the stage. He plays brilliantly, engaging well with the crowd and delivering a great set. Dev always seems to be several years ahead of himself – the next album is already written. He plays several of these new songs, showing that we have much to look forward to in the future.

 When announcing its sudden closure last year the Capuchin Order stated that it was shutting Greyfriars due to a lack of friars and financial problems. In a statement, Brother James Boner said, “We have had to consider the implications of the reduced number of Friars available to be involved in the work of the Hall and also, as with every area of our ministry, future financial obligations.”

But the most recent accounts, which have not been made public, show that the Capuchin Order was taking in more money from Greyfriars than it was spending, making a surplus of around £80,000 in 2005, and £20,000 in 2006.

Hudd said that the Capuchins hadn’t accounted for the 2007 financial year when the decision to close the Hall was made, but that the Order expected to make a loss, and that the figures in the accounts did not take into consideration other costs incurred to the Order, including maintaining student accommodation. “There was a very high level of hidden subsidy,” he said, and adding that “the decision to close was essentially due to dwindling numbers of friars.”

There has also been anger at how the friars revealed the Hall was to close. Last October, they announced their decision to a joint meeting of undergraduates, graduates and fellows. “It’s completely absurd that the fellows should find out at the same time as the undergraduates,” David Cochrane said. “It’s pretty underhand that this was done without the knowledge of the fellows.”

The Hall’s first years had been at Greyfriars for less than a month when it was announced that they would have to leave.

Many students have been left unhappy about having to join Regent’s Park, which is a Baptist institution, having applied to Greyfriars due to its Catholic traditions. Ellaine Gelman, a second-year law student and former JCR President, said, “A lot of people are angry about this, they’re not going to take this lying down.”
Letter from Rupert Abbott,  Deputy Director of the Greyfriars Society to the Hall's studentsDear all,I write further to my email of 30 October, to provide an update about the decision to close Greyfriars.After updating you and receiving your messages of support, I wrote to the Capuchin Order and University on behalf of the Greyfriars Society to express the alumni’s dissatisfaction with the way in which the decision to close Greyfriars was made without consultation with Fellows, students or alumni. The Order has stated that it has no obligation to consult. The University has blamed time constraints and a lack of access to alumni lists for its failure to consult (I have rejected these excuses), though states that it was the Order and not the University that made the decision. […] The only way that Greyfriars can continue is if the Order retains its licence, though I understand that their involvement in a new Greyfriars would only need to be minimal.The reason for my lack of correspondence since my last email is that the Order agreed to consider a proposal which is in place to save Greyfriars and secure a wonderful future. This proposal includes significant investment, a relocation to the former site of Greyfriars, and a focus on providing opportunities to the underprivileged. However, in hindsight it seems that the Order’s assurances were a stalling tactic. The Order led the Fellows to believe that the alternative proposal to closure would be considered, and then disregarded these assurances to the extent of denying that they had ever been made.Last weekend, the Order was given an ultimatum, on behalf of students, Fellows and alumni, which gave it until last Tuesday to reverse its decision and provide time for consultation and consideration of alternative proposals to ensure that the decision on Greyfriars’ future is made properly.The Order has agreed (again) to consider the alternative proposal at a meeting of the Difinitory on 10-12 December. The Order’s assurances may of course be another stalling tactic.[…]Students, Fellows and alumni I have spoken to are united in their desire to fight the Order’s decision to close Greyfriars. We have sought the assistance of influential contacts to put pressure on the Order and University. Please note that if the Order fails to reverse its decision, legal action will be brought (in the form of an application for judicial review of the way in which the decision to close was made). The media will then be told of everything that has happened (recently and in the past) and of the wonderful opportunity which has been ignored.I am sure that many of you will be amazed at how the Order has behaved. On this note, I must inform you that there is much opposition to the decision from within the Order itself. One influential member refers to the “scandal”, and another blesses the proposed action outlined above. I understand that one member is considering leaving the Order due to the events of the last few weeks.I must also inform you that the Greyfriars Secretary and law tutor Maggie Faulkner, who has done so much for the students of Greyfriars over the last few years and who helped to organise the wonderful 50th Anniversary Celebrations, has resigned over this matter.[…]Kind regards as ever,
Rupertby David Matthews, Deputy Editor

A government initiative to curb freshers’ week drinking has been met with scepticism by Oxford JCRs.

After taking part in a Downing Street seminar on the levels of binge drinking among British students, Gordon Brown and his policy team are investigating whether the Higher Education Funding Council can use its powers to ban universities from encouraging excessive drinking on their campuses. Freshers’ weeks across Oxford could be affected if the government pushes through plans universities on the matter.

Professor Oliver James, a liver disease specialist and head of the medical faculty at Newcastle University, told Gordon Brown about the levels of excessive drinking he had seen at his own campus.

He said, “I was concerned and appalled by the level of drinking which goes on in Freshers’ Week, not just at Newcastle but at every university in the country. This kind of thing just gratifies the binge drinking culture. The induction period is no longer just a week too, at many universities it can last for two or even three weeks.”

However, both JCR presidents and other groups in Oxford expressed their doubts as to whether such bans would be effective. In response to the news Louise Randall, OUSU Vice President for Welfare, said, “Many students choose to celebrate their new found freedom with a few drinks in Fresher’s week. However, many also make the choice not to drink, either because they choose not to, or because they cannot.

“Any attempt to actively discourage drinking during Fresher’s week will simply lead to student drinking being pushed underground, with potentially dangerous consequences.”

Tom Callard, JCR President at Oriel College, said, “We are always careful not to bias the Freshers’ timetable in favour of drinkers and there are always plenty of non-alcoholic activities. On our timetable we actually have no scheduled club nights – we organize things like bus tours, paint-ball and films, and if  people want to go out in the evenings then it is up to them.” He pointed out, “I don’t think we’d have to change anything if this new legislation came in – we already abide by it.”

The proposal for a clampdown will be discussed at Downing Street in spring with contributions from organisations such as the Portman Group, which promote responsible drinking. by Katherine Hall, Deputy News Editor

 Tough Panel favours idea to benefit hospital hygieneTwo Oxford teams have been awarded £4,500 each after jointly winning Ideal Idol, the Oxford Entrepreneurs competition for business innovation.

On Tuesday night six teams of Oxford students battled it out to impress a panel of ruthless and business-savvy judges, including millionaire Deborah Meaden, a frequent panellist on the BBC’s Dragon’s Den.

Alex Oshmyansky, a 23 year-old St Cross DPhil student, and Dan Nicolau, a DPhil student from Balliol, made up a pair that won both the £4,500 first prize and the People’s Choice award for a further £500, which was decided by the audience on the night.

Their winning idea was a proposition to combat the spread of infections in hospitals. They came up with a design for door handles that release antiseptic onto the hands of people who use them. By increasing the number of times hospital workers and visitors disinfect their hands, they hope that their invention will reduce the numbers hospital-acquired infections, including the superbug MRSA.

“Twelve people in this room will die from hospital-acquired infections,” began Alex Oshmyansky, addressing a 300-strong audience on Tuesday night. He went on to say that 120,000 people die each year in the UK and USA from hospital-acquired infections and in the UK alone they cost the NHS one billion pounds annually.

Oshymyansky said, “Use of our product will dramatically lower transmission rates and save and improve lives, while tapping into an enormous and unexplored market.”

Sebastian Grigg, a senior investment banker at Credit Suisse and one of the competition judges, was full of praise for the idea. He said, “This was an exceptionally well-presented idea, and had a transparent social benefit.”

The other winner was Alistair Hann, a DPhil student at New, who also went home with a cheque for £4,500. His idea was Zoombu, an internet-based travel search engine that will search every permutation of coach, rail, air, sea and car travel between two locations in Europe.

The judges queried whether he would actually be able to design a computer program to do this. Hann replied with confidence, “I’m a smart guy. I know other smart guys and I’ll have a good team around me.”

All of the six finalists were male. Jenny Tsim, who coordinated the event, said that the quality of the ideas was more important than the gender of the inventors. She said, “When we got down to the last few candidates to make the final we had to ask: do you choose a girl to go through as a token girl, or do you go on the quality of the idea? The competition is about ideas, so we chose the best ones.”

But Reshma Sohoni, another judge, said that the male dominance of entrepreneurship is a trend that needs to change. “It’s a problem that’s rife, particularly in Europe. We just need to encourage more women,” she said.
In last year’s competition the judges decided to invest their own money, giving the winning idea an effectively blank cheque, marked ‘whatever it takes.’ This year, however, no judge was willing to take such a gamble. Deborah Meaden said, “I came here thinking that I could have done, but none of the businesses in the final were in an area that I have a speciality in.”

However, she would nonetheless advise the winners of the competition to seek expert advice. “I think anybody starting up should seek guidance and assistance,” she said.

She added, “They shouldn’t be afraid of seeking it out. After all, I still need help.”by Jack Farchy, Deputy News Editor