Friday 15th August 2025
Blog Page 463

Students review their favourite audiobooks

Cherwell Books
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Students review their favourite audiobooks

‘Good Omens’ by Terry Pratchet and Neil Gaiman, read by Martin Jarvis
I love the idea of audiobooks but often struggle to find one I like enough to finish. Good Omens was the first audiobook that I had no trouble sticking to. Neil Gailman and Terry Pratchet’s modern fantasy is comedy gold, thanks to both their witticisms and the sheer absurdity of the plot — the antichrist has been born, the four bikers of apocalypse have arrived, and the angel Aziraphale and the demon Cowley team up to prevent Armageddon. At the same time, the book opens up interesting questions about our perception of religion, with its portrayal of both Hell and Heaven riddled with middle management. Martin Jarvis’ voice acting is stellar, with a bizarre combination of gravitas and fantastic comic timing that really works. If you watched the Good Omens TV series on Amazon Prime last year and loved it, then I would definitely recommend picking up the audiobook and giving it a go.
Grace Horder, Third Year English, St. Anne’s College.

‘A Little History of Philosophy’ by Nigel Warburton, read by Kris Dyer
Always accessible, yet never patronising, Nigel Warburton’s A Little History of Philosophy achieves something I thought impossible from a lay-man’s philosophy book. Warburton summarises the most compelling arguments of all the great Western philosophers, from antiquity to the modern day, without evoking the boredom or confusion typically associated with entry-level philosophy. Each chapter is dedicated to one philosopher, with 40 chapters spanning from Socrates to Kierkegaard to Peter Singer. If I’d seen this contents page in a printed edition, I may have felt too intimidated to continue reading. But as an audiobook, this concise and punchy overview really triumphs. Averaging at 10 minutes each, the chapters are more approachable than they immediately appear, and contain just the right amount of humour and amusing biographical details about these famously idiosyncratic thinkers. The audiobook’s narrator, Kris Dyer, masterfully projects Warburton’s cheerful and relaxed approach to even the most complex of ideas. If, like me, you’ve taken up jogging for the first time, this offers a great alternative to a podcast for accompanying your pavement-pounding. But it works equally well for lazy afternoons, when lockdown has you pondering the BIG questions.
Fliss Miles, Masters in English (650-1550), Balliol College

‘Just William’ by Richmal Crompton, read by Martin Jarvis
The inevitable lockdown induced room-tidy upon which I embarked recently saw the rediscovery of a treasured childhood possession – my CD collection of Martin Jarvis reading Richmal Crompton’s Just William stories. The tales of 11-year-old schoolboy William’s ridiculous antics, are, I think, a welcome escape from the current climate. To dive back into mid-20th century Kent and hear about a band of boys entertaining themselves by playing in woods, putting on plays and generally getting into all sorts of trouble is an appreciated release from an increasingly online and dull existence.  Martin Jarvis’ unabridged narration is phenomenal – his distinctive voices for each character are at once exceedingly impressive and consistently hilarious. The lisping-whining voice of entitled child Violet-Elizabeth Bott was a personal highlight. Oh, to live in William’s world, where the most pressing concern is learning how to make the perfect whistle or the latest scheme to source half a crown.
Rachael Moule, Second Year English, Trinity College.

‘Mythos: The Greek Myths Retold’ by Stephen Fry, read by Stephen Fry
A delightfully bizarre blend of the old and the new, with a hint of Fry’s whit and endearing charm thrown in for good measure. If mysterious stories, heroic battles, and fearful creatures get your heart racing that little bit faster (and let’s face it, how wouldn’t they) then this audiobook will be music to your ears. Spoken word is Fry’s great strength, and his witty personality shines through his retelling of these Greek classics, bringing Greek Gods and Goddesses into dialogue with modern day readers all around the globe. He pulls no punches (at one point telling of how the Greek God of War Ares was “monumentally dense”) and this gives his work a brutal, but utterly charming edge. Fry’s moving mission, to keep the beauty of the ancient Greeks alive in the modern day, is an admirable one, and I would urge anyone intrigued by this culture of mystery and wonder to take up his invitation. He will not disappoint.
Harry Twohig, First Year History, Mansfield College

‘A Perfect Sound Whatever’ by James Acaster, read by James Acaster
Basically, James Acaster being as witty and loveable as ever for 6 hours. He talks about 2017, which was an objectively sh*t year for the comic, what with a break-up, his agent quitting and struggles with mental health. His coping strategy was to download as much music as he could from the previous year of 2016, which in his own words was “a mild distraction [which] gradually grew into an obsession that ultimately changed my life”. In total he bought 366 albums from 2016, ranging from mainstream Beyonce’s Lemonade to obscure Ethiopian folk-rock. The breadth of knowledge and insight with which he describes each artist and their album is truly fascinating. The book is emotionally honest, really interesting, but also full of hilarious anecdotes so the narrative never gets too heavy. In my opinion, the book is enhanced in audio format, as James’ reading of his own story is much more funny and real.
Bridget Stuart, Second Year Psychology, St. John’s College

‘The Iliad’ translated by Ian Johnston, read by Anton Lesser
Alright, you caught me – I’m a classics student. But what’s not to love about the tense, vaguely upper-class breathiness of an Anton Lesser narration to one of the greatest works of literature (that no one actually has time to read)? Ian Johnston’s 2000 translation is clean and direct; though it’s not quite as sharp as Stephen Mitchell’s recent abridged version, it’s a perfect way to get into the meat of the story and all its quirks without trying to drag yourself through impenetrable 20th-century prose. Highlights include any time there’s a dramatic speech, the spicy Homeric insults, and Anton Lesser’s emotional delivery of all the sad parts (money back if you don’t get misty-eyed at the end). I’d recommend this one to anyone wanting to break into the classics, who (like me) lacks the actual motivation to sit down and read them. In quarantine, it’s been ideal for dramatic solitary walks in the countryside or for some proper escapism while enjoying the pseudo-Mediterranean sunshine.
Jemima Sinclair, Second Year Classics, New College

‘Call Me by Your Name’ by Andre Aciman, read by Armie Hammer
If any readers have ever done a stint as a retail worker over winter holidays, they will be familiar with the utter lack of festive cheer I experienced on my early commute, alone with my thoughts that ran to the effect of; god this is grim. I wish I was anywhere but on this bus in the West of Scotland. Christmas is cancelled. And so on. But it must be said that, having downloaded my first audiobook to counter-act this, the exquisite summer romance of Aciman’s Call Me by Your Name did a pretty good job of transporting me to the sun-soaked cobbles of Northern Italy instead. I’d always held a vaguelly snobbish prejudice that audiobooks were a soft-touch substitute for the ‘proper’ way to read; on the contrary, oral story-telling proved a gorgeously immersive way to put forward a narrative. Especially for a novel like this which consists of a stream of consciousness of the protagonist, the already powerful depiction of bright and brief first love becomes more immediate and overwhelming. And although certain moments – you know which – were just a bit indecent for public transport, I cannot overstate the restorative properties that come with the experience of Armie Hammer whispering sweet nothings into your ear at the end of a high-stress day.
Jess Curry, Second Year Classics, St. Hugh’s College

‘No One Is Too Small to Make a Difference’ by Greta Thunburg, read by Greta Thunburg
“Our lives are in your hands”.  Greta Thunberg sends a bold and unflinching message in her book No One Is Too Small to Make a Difference. Read by the Swedish activist herself, it collates her most poignant speeches from the last two years and is proof that dystopian writing in the 21st century is often non-fiction. Throughout the concise hour-long runtime Thunberg paints a bleak picture of our planet’s future without immediate and all-encompassing measures to counter climate change. With eloquent but angry calls for greater awareness and accountability, you are forced to reflect on your personal role in the impending environmental crisis and what you can do to stop it. Short, powerful and pleading, No One Is Too Small shows the uncomfortable truth about our short-sighted policies and unsustainable lifestyle. Whether climate change denier or Extinction Rebellion member, it is impossible not to be affected by a child’s voice begging for their future.
Lizzie Harvey, History and French, Hertford College

Review: The 1975’s ‘Notes on a Conditional Form’

Pauline Gümpel
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Review: The 1975’s ‘Notes on a Conditional Form’

Notes on a Conditional Form, the fourth studio album by The 1975, has created its own chaotic history even before its release. The band’s latest record is the second part of a release cycle of two albums along with the title Music for Cars and has seen its release date pushed back two times. It was leaked online three days before the intended release and has seen a change of name, having been previously announced under the title Drive Like I Do, one of the many names of the band before their rise to prominence. Its cover art was changed twice before they finally settled on one version for digital and another one for physical releases. Seven of the twenty-two tracks have been released as singles over a period of nine months prior to the album’s release, excluding the record’s first track ‘The 1975’, released in July 2019 as a teaser. The Music for Cars title given to this “era” of the band, as they call it, has also been the name of an EP released in 2013 ahead of their self-titled debut album, thus prompting expectations of some sort of connection to The 1975’s earlier work.

The new album itself has stayed true to the band’s unique and personal sound and yet shows a development, instrumentally and vocally. Like their previous albums, its sounds range from guitar-dominated to electronic, to atmospheric orchestral songs. The album has more experimental vocals than their earlier work, and seems to continue the eagerness to try new things that came across in A Brief Inquiry into Online Relationships. After releasing a song that entirely limits its vocals to a story read out by an automated voice (‘The Man Who Married A Robot / Love Theme’) on their 2018 album, on NOACF they continue to surprise listeners; the opening track, for example, features a snippet from a speech by Greta Thunberg as its only vocal element.

Many songs on NOACF build on the band’s previous style and success. Listeners who liked The 1975 for upbeat pop-rock songs like ‘Chocolate’ and ‘Girls’ will definitely find some new favourites on this album, like ‘Me & You Together Song’ and ‘If You’re Too Shy (Let Me Know)’. ‘Frail State of Mind’ will resonate with fans who enjoyed the electronic, rhythmic, deconstructed sounds in ‘TOOTIMETOOTIMETOOTIME’ or ‘M.O.N.E.Y’. Anyone who felt the vibe from tracks like ‘A Change of Heart’ and ‘Nana’ from the band’s 2016 album was missing in the first part of Music for Cars will be excited by ‘Jesus Christ 2005 God Bless America’. Rather plain and mostly based on acoustic guitar, this ballad is beautifully vulnerable and emotional. It also stands out as one of the few collaborative songs, featuring guest vocals from American indie rock singer Phoebe Bridgers. Apart from these vocal collaborations, fans are also treated to two songs in a slightly different style to that we’ve come to expect from The 1975. More laidback, mid-tempo and – thanks to a banjo – almost with a country feel to it, ‘The Birthday Party’ and ‘Roadkill’ bring new stylistic features to the band’s development; I personally felt reminded of ‘Superman’ by Lazlo Bane when listening to the two songs. In my opinion, this style suits the band very well and represents a positive surprise for their listeners.

NOACF is a varied record with many strong songs that allow The 1975 to show their full range of musical expression and potential as a band. Many songs from Notes on a Conditional Form deserve to be among the top songs of 2020 and to be remembered beyond this year. However, it must be said that the band have not succeeded in rendering their idea for a release cycle of two albums into a coherent project. The chaotic release history of the cycle’s second album particularly supports the impression that this endeavour was a little too ambitious for The 1975. What might have been intended as a close link with the fan community resulted in a cluster of misinformation and insecurity surrounding the process of compiling an album of the magnitude of NOACF. Both albums from the Music for Cars cycle could have profited from being released as deluxe versions. A standard version excluding many of the electronic instrumentals would have allowed NOACF to feel more pertinent and made it easier to listen to. To the majority of their mainstream listeners, the seven singles which preceded the album release have already carried the core of The 1975’s sound for 2020 and do not leave much else to discover. To anyone who is not a fan and/or particularly interested in the evolution of the band, the album itself holds no appeal and might even be off-putting simply because of its intimidating 22 songs, of which many feel like filling material. Nevertheless, with an improved album structure and approach to PR The 1975 might well reach the sorts of new heights their single releases have so often promised.

Historical Opera: A Primer

Cecilia Wang
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Historical Opera: A Primer

The ancient Greeks were so moved by music that in their mythological conception, the father of songs, Orpheus, could move even the rocks. In less fanciful terms, the New Scientist has informed its readers that a loss of endorphin-generation from physical intimacies can be addressed with more music and dancing in the Covid-19 lockdown. Opera may seem intimidating upon first encounter, but the demands of singing and the need to stay in tune with the flow of the music have actually meant that words are uttered at a much slower pace than in other mediums, such as theatre or movies. The music creates a more immersive environment in which to be moved and to understand, and together with the singing it represents the perfect channel for the expression and entertainment of epic historical dramas.

Gaetano Donizetti’s ‘Three Tudor Queens’

Amongst the gifts bequeathed by Italians to the world are an imperial empire, a traditional society dominated by the everlasting feuds between its ruling families, hearty cuisine, and sensual indulgences, to name just a few. Donizetti can take credit for another. Though his more often performed pieces nowadays may include ‘L’elisir d’amore’ with its cheesy libretto, the prolific composer successfully shifted the cultural balance away from primarily comedic operas to significant historical dramas, starting with 1830’s Anna Bolena (Anne Boleyn).

Anna Bolena

The energetic, heir-obsessed Henry VIII may have contributed more than any other to the grapevine of English chatter. Donizetti is never one to economise with his storyline, a trick later Italian composers such as Verdi studiously adopted to make their operas less hard work on the audience. The bel canto style, known for its exact control of the intensity of vocal tone, demand for vocal agility, and clear articulation of notes, enables the soprano role of Anne Boleyn to dominate the stage. Donizetti further glorifies his Tudor Queen by juxtaposing her with the low bass voices of Henry VIII. The erstwhile ambitious and successful Anne Boleyn now loses the King’s favour, whilst her lady-in-waiting, Jane Seymour, ascends. The rich texture of Boleyn’s inner world twisted by ambition and disappointment is given ethereal expression in her singing.

Maria Stuarda

Anne Boleyn was by no means the only Queen to face the gallows in their period of violent upheavals. Mary, Queen of Scots, would later follow her footsteps. Donizetti made the Catholic Queen less a creature of politics, and one more of love and devotion. The juicy triangle is between Queen Elizabeth I, her long-time suitor, Robert Dudley, the Earl of Leicester, and Leicester’s former marital prospect, Mary Stuart. Donizetti embodies the continental view that saw Queen Elizabeth as an illegitimate heretic, and Mary instead a martyr. Elizabeth is turned unrestrainedly jealous, willful and easily over-wrought, whereas Mary rises in regality with her serene devotion to the true faith and as the object of Leicester’s true love. The famed librettist Felice Romani found Tudor history the perfect canvas upon which to paint his strong and powerful colours, imagining the fictionalised confrontation between the two queens. The two sopranos battle out. The outrageous text of the confrontation is heard in shocking relief, with the dialogue being one of the most original and powerful passages of Donizetti’s composition. The climactic moment is masterfully given theatrical immediacy.

Robert Devereux

Elizabeth I’s long reign could not have gone by without further romantic dalliances. The last decade of her life saw the influence of Robert Devereux, the Earl of Essex, (who, incidentally, was also Leicester’s step-son through his second marriage). Here, the Queen is in the twilight of her life, and her much younger lover increasingly prefers her lady-in-waiting, the Duchess of Essex. The finale in Donizetti’s Tudor drama takes most artistic license with its plot, but nonetheless presents a convincing dramatic narrative of its own. Infrequently performed today, it contains some of Donizetti’s best vocal writing, such as the superb duet at the end of Act 1. The preparation of the opera was overshadowed by a serious crisis in Donizetti’s life, as he endured the loss of both of his parents and the death of two babies (one stillborn), perhaps giving rise to the raw emotional fabric of the music, a powerful vehicle for the soprano. The final scene is one of the most dramatic and difficult in bel canto opera. Elizabeth is mad with grief for the lover that she has ordered executed, and ‘Quel sangue versato’ (‘That spilled blood/rises to heaven’) achieves the most extraordinary effect as it pushes romantic opera to the limits of melodic expression.

Alexander Borodin’s Prince Igor

Many of the elements of Orientalism in music that so bewitched Western audiences for generations can be found in this Russian historical epic, which recounts the campaign of Rus’ prince Igor Svyatoslavich’ against the invading Cuman tribes in 1185. The opera is a powerful mixture of Russian folklore and ancient Slavic epic poems. Borodin incorporates elements of Russian folk music to distinguish his compatriots from the invading ‘heathens’, as characterised through techniques such as chromaticism and melisma. A recent Met Opera production employed 12,000 poppies to create a transporting experience into ancient Russia.

Giuseppe Verdi’s Nabucco

Verdi’s success has been closely tied to his potent calls to Italian nationalism. Indeed, the opera that propelled him to stardom recounts the Biblical story of the repressed Jewish people exiled by the heretical Babylonians. The opera appealed to the Italians struggling to unite so as to release themselves from the dominance of ruling Austrians. The score features the famous hymn by Hebrew slaves sung by the chorus, nowadays often heard in its English version around Christmas season.

Giuseppe Verdi’s Aida

Described by the Met Opera as “the grandest opera on the grandest stage”, Aida has enjoyed enduring success. The opera was commissioned by Isma’il Pasha, Khedive of Egypt for the Khedivial Opera House in Cairo. Set in the Old Kingdom, this opera is always an unrivalled visual feast with its stage setting and costumes. Notable instrumentation includes the use of flutes, military bands, harps and Egyptian trumpets, to name just a few standouts.

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Idomeneo

The opera that propelled the young Mozart into stardom masterfully incorporates the French style of choruses, marches, and ballets. Mozart’s virtuoso baroque composition tells the dramatic story of the Trojan War. The film of the Met Opera production featuring Pavarotti in the titular role is one of the most widely watched versions to date.

Silence is complicit, but so is inaction: Why JCRs and British institutions must act now

Melanie Onovo, Imogen Taylor, and Nigel Yau
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Silence is complicit, but so is inaction: Why JCRs and British institutions must act now

On Sunday 31st May, we brought a motion to Christ Church JCR to donate £720 to the Black Visions Collective, Reclaim the Block, and the Minnesota Freedom Fund. 

The motion was considered at an Extraordinary General Meeting, called through petition, for the specific purpose of debating this motion. Our thanks goes to the 150+ members of Christ Church JCR who responded to our appeal for signatures. The motion passed unanimously without debate. 

The funds were collected through the JCR appeals levy. £320 was donated to the Black Visions Collective and Reclaim the Block respectively, while the Minnesota Freedom Fund received £80. 

Other JCRs have raised similar proposals, including Wadham SU’s initiative to donate £500 to the Minnesota Freedom Fund. As the Minnesota Freedom Fund has received immense support, they are also encouraging people to donate to other organisations on their website. Here’s why you should do this and call for institutions to do the same. 

It is upsetting that it took a 10 minute video of the brutal murder of George Floyd by police to open the eyes of the world to the pervasiveness of racial injustice in our society. While there has been a lot of support from white allies, taking a public anti-racist position, there has been a harrowing silence from our public figures and politicians in denouncing America and the events of the past week. 

George Floyd’s death is not the first instance of police brutality. He joins a long list of black people whose lives were cut short by a system of violent oppression and degradation. This event is yet another reminder that those in power hold such evil contempt and disregard towards the black existence. 

If not now, then when will we finally see real efforts towards change – when will we finally be free to live without fear of unjust arrest, police brutality, and extrajudicial killings? Six years ago the words “I CANNOT BREATHE” were on our posters and painted on our walls. Six years later we are here again. We are still angry and a new generation of disillusioned black children have joined the streets to protest against the same injustice we have been fighting for countless years.

Let us not allow our concern for the fight against racism to burn out when American cities stop burning, when George Floyd is no longer the number one news story, and take real action now.

The silence of the UK Government on the events occurring in the United States is unacceptable and unforgivable. Our institutions must come together to denounce the racial injustice occurring in America because no one else is. Our own leaders are failing to voice our outrage and have chosen a position of neutrality. 

The Foreign Secretary, Dominic Raab, when asked about President Trump’s threatening and racially charged comments in relation to the riots, chose not to comment. By choosing to remain silent, he has signalled to others in privileged positions that it is okay to keep their heads down and hide from the blatant inequality faced by black people. By choosing to remain silent, he has chosen to support the world as it stands, including its biased and racist systems. 

Without action from our leaders, the impetus falls on us to respond. In the past couple of days, much inspiring and notable work has been done to help African American people and the family of George Floyd heal from this unbelievable tragedy. Danielle Welbeck was able to raise over £12,000 in one day for the National Lawyers Guild Inc. Every JCR should join her and take initiative, to contribute and do their part to help the African American community who are currently in a state of anguish as they are beaten, shot and maced when exercising their right to protest. 

Proposing and voting for donations to black freedom causes through JCRs is a direct and proactive way to help and make an immediate impact on the condition of protesters fighting for a better future. JCRs coming together to discuss racism and donate funds to the battle against racism helps to make up for the failures of our national and international leadership to address racial injustice. We have all witnessed students take to social media to show their support for the Black Lives Matter movement, the protesters and George Floyd. Whilst voicing your anger and concern on social media helps to build awareness, it is not enough to effect real change. We are in danger of forgetting the significance of racial inequality and once again seeing more black lives lost. People must not become complacent, and remember their social media activism is an insufficient contribution to the movement. 

Donations to black freedom movements are a significant way to help this fight against racial inequality and injustice, going towards rebuilding communities and healing social divisions. They also, in the long term, go towards building the political capital of the black community so that concerns about institutional racism in the police force, and state sponsored racialised violence, do not go unheard. Reclaim the Block, the Black Visions Collective, Campaign Zero, Unicorn Riot and several other grassroots organisations would welcome donations from your JCR which would go towards creating the safe and inclusive America that the black community deserves, paving the way for an end to racial injustice everywhere. Please, to all JCRs, do your part.

Indeed, on racial discrimination, the University of Oxford is far from immune and has been complicit in its perpetuation. From controversies surrounding Cecil Rhodes, to the confrontational interactions with Oxford custodians, black and minority students today still face the consequences of racial bias and inequality. 

Beyond Oxford’s duty to contribute to correcting racial bias due to its own shortcomings, the University is a powerful and influential platform which should be used to effect change. Though a few hundred pounds from the purses of JCRs may do some good in helping overcome this issue at present, if we truly want to benefit the black students that will continue our Oxford legacies far into the future, a far greater shift in both mindset and policy is required. 

A donation by Oxford University in the fight against racism will not only immediately help the African American community currently suffering, but also sends a strong and clear message that Oxford is actively anti-racism and does not take a position of neutrality in situations of injustice. It will also signal to other powerful institutions to follow suit and actively fight against racial injustice.

The black community has been rioting and protesting the same issues for generations and to no avail. The same institutions that were complicit in the perpetuation of these pernicious norms must now act to break them and reform the status quo; they must be the ones to push the change onto those who have not yet joined the fight. We are not asking for white saviours, but we are asking for white allies to say that enough is enough, to say that they no longer wish to benefit from a system rigged in their favour at the expense of other human beings. 

Oxford has the power and influence to affect real change, and silence on the issue of racial discrimination can only be interpreted as an act of violence against the black community, and therefore against all black students at Oxford University. As an institution with international influence and a history of complicity, Oxford must act now and do their part in ending the oppression of the black community.

What is unique about the circumstances of this situation is that the world is suffering racial inequality together with the outbreak of COVID-19. Strikingly, we have watched how COVID-19 deaths have disproportionately affected Black and Ethnic Minority communities. This is not because of any inherent biological difference within BME communities, but because of the entrenched nature of racial inequality, even in the UK. 

Racism is a global issue, not a virus infecting the United States alone. Global support for George Floyd and all the victims of police brutality and the defunct justice system is crucial for progress against racial inequality. The international community and the UK government’s failure to address this deep rooted problem in our community is an act of violence. It is a direct contribution to the circumstances that makes the world a dangerous and uninhabitable place for black people. 

Without the collaboration of the international community to hold the United States to account for its treatment of the African American community, we will never see the dismantling of the structures that oppress black people in America and around the globe and the violence, hatred and suffering will continue. In response, the UK Government must take a stand, call out discrimination where it exists, and commit to never allowing this to happen again.

Generation after generation have protested against the exact same issues because nothing has changed. We cannot allow this to go on any longer. It is not enough to not be racist, you must actively fight against racism or your inaction perpetuates a system that subjugates and brutalises the black community. It is sad that it took the death of George Floyd on camera, in broad daylight, to highlight a problem that has existed for hundreds of years, but this must mark a crucial shift in society to prioritising race issues. 

We urge individuals to donate, take action, and protest. We urge other student bodies, if you have not done so already, to raise motions to donate to this cause. We urge institutions from the University of Oxford to the Government to take a stand, and take the first step towards reversing centuries of discrimination. People of privilege should take this time to educate themselves, reflect and do everything they can to make sure that the status quo no longer persists and the next generation lives in a better tomorrow. 

Illustration by Daria Koukoleva

In Conversation with Caroline Calloway

William Foxton
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In Conversation with Caroline Calloway

‘Why not get actual human blood involved? I mean if I haven’t been cancelled at this point, I think it’s safe to say I’m uncancellable. Let’s get some ISIS vibes up in this bitch’, Calloway’s voice rings provocatively at my suggestion she shave my head live on her Instagram story. I wonder if there’s a lag in the call and she’s misheard me or if she’s just  misinterpreted my proposal. Either way, I’m worried what she’ll say next. 

I had wondered which Caroline Calloway I would be interviewing: the bright-eyed Cambridge student, obsessed with black-tie dinner and boys? The ambitious scammer willing to do whatever it takes to get her name on the cover of a book? Perhaps the fame-hungry, self-obsessed mess, as portrayed by a particularly damning Vice article? 

I was not expecting this. 

The thing about Caroline Calloway is you either know her or you don’t. You either know obscure facts about her life – the incident with the Yale plates, the rumours circulating about her kneecaps, the fate of all 1200 mason jars she once ordered to her Brooklyn apartment in a chaotic haze, or you get her confused with Kellyanne Conway. 

Calloway’s rise to fame has been a slow-burner, dating back to 2013 when she gained popularity on Instagram for her ‘memoir in real-time’ captions, documenting the adventures of an American Girl in England, which subsequently earned her an alleged half a million dollar book deal. A book she never wrote.

Her next foray into the public eye came in the shape of her infamous ‘creativity workshops’, which cost attendees $165 and lead to her being publicly labelled as a scammer by various journalists, most notably Kayleigh Donaldson in a scathing Twitter thread.

The most recent addition to the saga is an essay published by her former best-friend and supposed ghost writer Natalie Beach for The Cut, a tell-all about the two’s friendship and working relationship, which took the Internet by storm when it was published back in September, inspiring countless think pieces and Calloway’s own response essay, I am Caroline Calloway.

She has 705,000 followers on Instagram and Reddit communities dedicated to trolling her. 

She is in the top 0.37% of creators on OnlyFans and regularly receives death threats. Even Jameela Jamil has weighed in, stating a desire to ‘kick her arse’. Praised by some for her ‘no fucks attitude’, criticised by others for her lack of self-awareness, Calloway is a polarising figure. I, for one, don’t quite know how I feel about her. But I do know that I feel it very strongly. 

In what feels like a typically Caroline Calloway move, she’s seven minutes late to our interview, apologising profusely that her therapy session overran and complimenting the British-ness of my name. We make polite small talk while she pets the cat lying at her feet.

‘Everyone told me that I would kill these cats,’ she says. 

Calloway is a self-proclaimed artist, but trying to pinpoint exactly what her art consists of is something even she struggles with. ‘I myself am trying to advocate for the legitimising of an art form that even I don’t have a complete enough command of language to verbalise’, she admits.

Her ‘Internet art’ does not refer to the individual posts or stories she uploads, but rather her curated online presence. When I finally grasp this, she gives me a relieved, but exasperated ‘Yes!’ With my arms flailing and a look of manic excitement on my face, she likens me to the Pepe Silva conspiracy theory meme. ‘You look like you are actually, personally the guy in the meme solving the Caroline Calloway mystery,’ she adds. 

Her incessant, seemingly compulsive, social media updates give the impression of a woman on the verge of a very public break-down. This is far from the truth. ‘The stuff that I put online and the way I build my persona and the way I capture and keep people’s interest with me is very intentional,’ she assures me. 

Browsing her timeline, I wonder how much of her is a persona, her creative voice seeming to flitter between the ironic (see her ‘POSH DICK ONLY’ tweet) and the intimate, such as her moving reaction to her father’s suicide in her most recent essay. I ask her about this and she teases me playfully, saying ‘What if I was just like, no, I was being serious when I tweeted POSH DICK ONLY? No, of course a lot of what I say is satirical.’

This juxtaposition of the serious and the satirical is a facet of her art, she tells me, a way of engaging with and mocking the ‘astonishingly tone-deaf, classist person’ her critics make her out to be. 

The Internet’s shared fascination with Calloway is a testament to the success of her art. Though I question whether some fans have crossed the line between enthusiasm and obsession, whether there’s a difference between taking an interest in her online presence and learning the intricate details of her life. ‘When [building an online persona] is done well,’ she explains, ‘you build a parasocial relationship with that online creator, and you end up not only knowing all these random details, but caring.’

She views her art as an escape for her ‘parasocial friends’ and part of this escape is The Mystery of Caroline Calloway, the desire to crack her. This a recent phenomenon that she’s ‘leaned into way more’, claiming ‘it would just be silly to ignore that strength.’ It’s certainly something she benefits from, with people paying $2 a month to access her ‘close friends’ story on Instagram and $500 for a one-to-one skype call with the woman herself. A section of her website reads: ‘I am mysterious and hard to reach.’ Like much of what she says, it’s laced with irony, but it is indicative of the role she plays in perpetuating her own myth. 

For every fan referring to Calloway as their ‘problematic fave’, there are five tweets ridiculing her. This ‘snark’ ranges from criticism of her apparent self-obsession to cruel remarks about the shape of her face, which prompts my next question, why do people hate her with such vitriol?

She thinks it has something to do with the change in her online content. A cursory glance at her original Instagram posts will show this – captions narrating her grand adventures at Cambridge, exploring the safe, well-trodden themes of love and heartbreak, set against a backdrop of castles and balls, with impossibly beautiful men serving as the supporting characters in her bildungsroman. Her comments section is filled with admiration, young women longing to live vicariously through her. It was, by her own admission, a ‘fairy tale.’ 

Her most recent essay, however, is a frank account of addiction and mental illness, both hers and her father’s, who committed suicide in early September, accompanied by images of the house he killed himself in. They’re difficult to look at. In her own words, her father was ‘a hoarder who loved cleaning supplies’.

Many influencers choose to portray a sanitised depiction of mental health. But not Calloway. 

‘What is still quite a grey area of online ridicule is when you talk about the actual nitty gritty, day-to-day texture of experiencing mental illness, and especially mistakes that can’t be fixed and regrets that you may have as a consequence of being mentally ill’, she says. She cites this as a reason for being ‘easy to hate’, an expression she readily brandishes throughout our conversation. 

Though it would be untrue to say that all her criticism is a result of toxic Internet culture and snarling trolls. Calloway has come under fire recently for posting an anti-semitic cartoon, which references her relationship with her ghost-writer Natalie Beach. When I bring this up, I’m expecting her to be elusive, perhaps skirt around the issue. Instead she offers a sincere apology: ‘My own privilege led to blind spots that made me post this cartoon which was actually anti-semitic. I take full responsibility for those blind spots caused by my privilege. And I’m sorry.’

She’s less apologetic about another tweet I raise, one in which she questions whether she is the only person on OnlyFans with a degree from Cambridge. She immediately faced backlash from her followers, being accused of classism. However, she argues that it was a genuine question, and didn’t phrase it as such because she doesn’t ‘ask for feedback from the Internet anymore’. 

‘If people can have compassion for sex workers who receive so much hate from the world, I would hold them to the standard of being able to feel compassion for what I’ve been through with my cancellations and have enough compassion to see why, with the trauma of public shaming that I’ve been through, I wouldn’t phrase that as a question,’ she says. 

I’m sceptical of her justification, but can’t help but sympathise when she asks me, ‘can you imagine if you just got feedback on every micro decision you made, that was mainly negative, because you are a very safe person to hate on the Internet?’

‘Even without asking people to respond to me, I get violent messages about how I should kill myself, about what’s wrong with my personality, about how awful I am, every minute of every day, and I will for the foreseeable future.’ 

After the immense criticism she faced, ranging from sensitive and thought-provoking discussions of celebrity privilege to abusive comments, I wonder if her critics, and perhaps her fans too, have placed Calloway in a position wherein she can only fail, if they’re rooting for her downfall. ‘I know when I post something anti-semitic, it’s a lot more damning than when someone else does,’ she says, claiming that intense scrutiny follows after being cancelled because ‘you lose the benefit of the doubt.’ 

Just as Calloway’s followers were sucked into the romantic tales of her ‘#adventuregrams’, it’s easy to be consumed by the media’s portrayal of her. There is something eminently clickable about the story of a narcissistic New York scammer, captivating her followers through flower crowns and fraud. ‘We’re all part of the problem,’ she tells me, ‘if I saw an article about a scammer influencer I would have clicked on that too. Anyone who likes a sensationalised story feeds into it.’

Despite being many people’s go-to punch bag, Calloway continues to live her carefully filtered “no-filter” existence. When I ask her how she wants the world to see her, her response is simple. 

‘I think for the people who follow me, I absolutely want to be seen as Caroline Calloway, the real person.’

And the rest?

‘Fuck what other people that don’t know you think about you.’

This is an attitude she’s developed from ‘the politics of BNOC-ery at Cambridge’, an environment she claims has served her well for real life.

‘There’s perhaps no more environment bitchy enough to prepare a person for that sort of judgement than the bubble that is Oxbridge.’ 

I ask her what she thinks lies ahead for those same Oxbridge students in the current climate and her response sounds exactly like one of her Instagram captions. ‘It’s one thing to like castles, it’s another to assume that you can actually predict the future in a global pandemic. Boy do I love a good castle, but I have no idea what comes next.’ 

We talk about her cancellation and she prides herself on being one of a handful of people to survive social cancellation, twice. Her advice is characteristically tactical, ‘even your cancellation can become material for why people should buy your stuff’; her creativity tour was later renamed The Scam, the title of her new memoir is Scammer.

I appreciate the plucky sentiment but there’s one comment that jars with me: ‘I’ve been dealt this hand of being a controversial figure and I would be remiss to try and avoid it or not lean into it.’

There’s a fine line between embracing scandal and seeking it out, between wearing your controversy on your chest and using it to sell t-shirts. Recalling her previous comment about ISIS, I wonder which side Calloway is on; to what extent her chaotic charm relies upon her audience’s hunger to see which scandal she’ll embroil herself in next. Controversy for the sake of controversy? You’ll have to read her book to find out. 

Calloway has built her Internet empire so meticulously, I can’t help but wonder how she would react if it was suddenly taken away from her. As we finish our conversation, I ask her how she would feel if she wakes up tomorrow, goes online and discovers that both fans and critics have no idea who she is.

‘I’m feeling…,’ she says, reflecting for a moment, ‘like it’s time to start an Instagram account.’ 

OPINION: Another BBC Controversy, Maitlis Under the Spotlight

Florine Lips
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OPINION: Another BBC Controversy, Maitlis Under the Spotlight

If you thought a steadily rising death toll, a crisis in our care homes, and growing calls for the PM to sack his chief aide might finally give us a break from the age-old debate about BBC impartiality, you were wrong. It’s back – and this time it’s Newsnight presenter Emily Maitlis who has taken the hit.

Following complaints that last Tuesday night’s show had featured ‘biased’ views, the BBC made a statement saying that the programme had not met their standards of impartiality. Despite showcasing “fair, reasonable and rigorous journalism,” they said, the team should have done more to “make clear the introduction was a summary of the questions [they] would examine, with all the accompanying evidence, in the rest of the programme.”

Watchers of Newsnight might well wonder: when is this not the case on the programme? Lead presenter Emily Maitlis is one of the BBC’s most prominent journalists, and has been widely praised for rigorous interviews such as last year’s Prince Andrew Newsnight appearance, when she tore apart the prince’s description of Jeffrey Epstein’s behaviour as “unbecoming” – “unbecoming? He was a sex offender.”

Around a month into lockdown, she made headlines again with a powerful opening in which she dispelled the infuriating claim that ‘we are all in this together’ – “they tell us coronavirus is the great leveller. It’s not. It’s much, much harder if you’re poor.” Not only is this indisputably true, but, at the time, it felt like something that needed to be said; something the government was not taking into account. The clip went viral, and Maitlis was hailed as a voice of reason, a perfect example of what responsible journalism can look like.

When she opened last Tuesday night’s show, however, which was dedicated to an in-depth analysis of the Dominic Cummings debacle, she was accused of going too far. What changed? She said of Cummings’s breach of lockdown, to which he had pretty much admitted without apology in that already-infamous press conference the day before, that: “he made those who struggled to keep to the rules feel like fools, and has allowed many more to assume they can now flout them. The Prime Minister knows all this and has chosen to ignore it.” Lack of nuance there may be here, but can it really be described as biased?

A J.L. Partners poll for the Daily Mail published on Wednesday shows that 80% of people believe Cummings broke lockdown rules; 66% believe he should resign. James Johnson, co-founder of J.L. Partners, called it: “the most consistently one-sided political topic I have ever run a poll on. I expected nuance, there was no nuance.” Impossibly for the UK public, he called them: “completely united in their views.”

Whether or not you agree with the decision to reprimand Maitlis for her introduction, it does raise the question of what we expect from our journalists, not just in times of crisis, but always. It is particularly interesting when you consider that Maitlis presents a current-affairs programme, not the headlines. This is a significant distinction. Newsnight is not the news, it does not broadcast the headlines, it probes them and tries to make sense of them for the public. Those defending Maitlis would argue that her introductions are the whole point of journalism – like her dismissal of the “great leveller” claim, which we all know to be false, she cuts into the news and buzz-words of the moment with a commitment towards revealing what they really mean. One tweet about the whole thing stuck with me the most, shared by the Chief Political Correspondent of the FT: ‘Apocryphal quote about journalism: “If someone says it’s raining & another person says it’s dry, it’s not your job to quote them both. Your job is to look out of the window and find out which is true.”’

The question of BBC bias will probably never really go away, and, in part, it is a justified debate to have about a corporation funded by license fees. It is, truly, important that they broadcast content that is: “impartial, high-quality and distinctive,” as their website states, because that is what the public pays for. But to criticise a current-affairs anchor for potentially missing the mark on her perception of the public mood, despite the fact that the polls say otherwise, when Cummings himself has faced no such consequences for a provable breach of lockdown rules? That feels less justified. Would Jeremy Paxman or Andrew Neil have been treated the way Maitlis has? Again, questionable.

What it comes down to is what we expect from news anchors like Maitlis. Do we want them to quote two conflicting weather reports, or just look outside and see if it is raining? Of course, this is easier said than done, and not every single viewer will always have the same opinion. But when the polls show it, and newspapers with opposing ideological stances have almost identical headlines, I think you can be fairly certain of the public mood, and gauging it shouldn’t make you biased, it should make us value your journalism even more.

Songs of a Pride Cancelled

Joseph Drakeley
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Songs of a Pride Cancelled

Pride 2020, which was supposed to be a celebration of our place in the world looking forward to liberation for even more LGBT+ people around the world, will instead pass by, largely unnoticed by the masses. Does that mean we as queer people should roll over and dampen our pride? No: now more than ever we need to let the world know we are still here, we are still queer. Whether it be with Instagram live streams of our unabashed dancing or wearing our best Pride fits in lockdown, we can still show the world who we are and just what it means to be LGBT+. 

A personal tragedy of the effective cancellation of Pride 2020 is the lack of a month-long party, bopping to some of the best hits known to humankind. So, to remedy that… here are six songs that I was personally looking forward to celebrating pride with.

‘Rain On Me’ – Lady Gaga, Ariana Grande: At the time of writing this song has not been out a full 48 hours. And yet somehow it feels just like all good Pride songs do, as if it has been playing in our heads for the past 20 years. With many already proclaiming it the Pride anthem of the generation, I’ll hold off that particular accolade, for now. Nevertheless, this song is sure to be heard across the world every June, all month long, for many years to come.

‘Don’t Start Now’ – Dua Lipa: Despite not making it to the top of the charts when it released October last year (criminal, in my opinion), this song may just be one of the best songs released in the past five years. Dua is loved in the community, and it’s not hard to picture everyone, myself included, turning 360 degrees as Dua tells us she’s done ‘a full 180’. Having saved the early part of our quarantine with the entirety of her Future Nostalgia album, Dua deserved to be the Queen of Pride this year.

‘La Vita Nuova’ – Christine and the Queens, Caroline Polacheck: With its slow thumping beat and angelic vocals, this is pop at its best. Openly pansexual and genderqueer, Christine and the Queens is one of the most dynamic queer acts out there, and as we move into a new decade, it is the performers from the community that deserves to be highlighted and celebrated at Pride. 

‘Savage Remix’ – Megan Thee Stallion, Beyoncé: Beyoncé singing about only fans? That’s gay culture right there, and I won’t hear any different. Queen B shows she is a woman of the people. Moreover, this remix is just really bloody good—and with the kind of lyrics many in the LGBT+ community cherish, with emphasis on owning your own sexuality, this is certain to be a mainstay at pride this year. Hopefully come June 2021 we will all be able to sing about how we’re all savage.

‘Always’ – Waze & Odyssey, George Michael, Mary J Blige, Tommy Theo: Dance beats? Check. A remix of a classic by one of the best-selling gay musicians of all time? Check. A drag queen redux music video? Check. This song is still being market towards a Pride season that isn’t physically taking place. It’s fun and upbeat, and I would seriously suggest checking out the original song. As if you haven’t already…

‘Never Really Over’ – Katy Perry: Katy seems to have an interesting relationship with the community. Is she really a gay icon? No one can seem to agree on the answer to that question. She’s been quite the outspoken ally, but until recently, she still seemed to struggle to gain everyone’s support. Arguably this release has changed a lot of that with a great beat. ‘Never Really Over’ was the perfect comeback song, and we all love a good comeback—after all, Cher’s made her entire career off it!

As we move through and navigate a virtual Pride season it’s worth remembering that those of us who can celebrate from the comfort of our homes are especially lucky. There will be many members of our community at uni who simply can’t be themselves when at home. If you do one thing this Pride season, remember to check on your LGBT+ friends. Outside of university life, many people around the world still can’t safely be themselves either, and Pride season should first and foremost serve to highlight and campaign against their struggles. All the tunes set aside, Pride started as a revolution, and it should stay that way. 

Stay alert. Stay safe. Stay savage.

Check out Joseph’s playlist, ‘pride in quarantine‘, on Cherwell Spotify (@cherwellmusic).

Christ Church Dean row reignited amid calls for dismissal

Mark Robins
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Christ Church Dean row reignited amid calls for dismissal

Academics have called for the Dean of Christ Church to be dismissed, accusing him of “unsound judgement” and “consistent lack of moral compass”.

In a letter seen by The Telegraph, members of the college’s Governing Body have called on the Charity Commission to help remove the Very Rev Prof Martyn Percy from the Board of Trustees.

The letter claims he has “hampered the day to-day-day operations of the institution” and that “he is not fit to remain a trustee”.

Signed by 41 out of the 65 members of the Christ Church Governing Body, the letter accuses Percy of breaching his duty of confidence to the College and his duties under the Conflict of Interest Policy and the Harassment Code. It also claims he has disclosed “confidential material to the press.”

“There is also now an established and well-documented pattern of behaviour which we believe shows the Dean to be sacrificing the best interest of Christ Church to his own,” the letter adds.

A source also tells The Telegraph that Percy has been offered £1 million to resign his position, however, Christ Church states that this claim is inaccurate.

In December 2019, the Dean lost a no-confidence vote by 38 votes to two. However, as he was appointed by a Letters Patent, only the Queen and the Archbishop of Canterbury can request his resignation.

The Telegraph also reports that the Governing Body has asked the Charity Com-mission to “step in”, as “scope within our statutes to replace the Dean is very limited. A failure to act now will oblige Christ Church to spend more money on attempts to resolve an unsustainable situation.”

The letter reignites the ongoing row amongst the college’s Governing Body.

The dispute is thought to have started in 2017 when Percy complained that his salary was insufficient and below the median for Oxford heads of colleges. Percy was subsequently suspended after being accused of “immoral, scandalous, or disgraceful conduct” but was reinstated last year, according to the Guardian.

The Dean’s current salary is just under £95k and he and his family have rent-free use of the 12-bedroom deanery.

The College hired former high court judge Sir Andrew Smith to conduct an internal tribunal, who dismissed the complaints against Percy. The tribunal’s full judgement has not been published. Speaking to the Financial Times, one member of the Governing Body claimed the college was “virtually ungovernable”.

Percy has launched an employment tribunal against the college, claiming he has been victimised. He retains the support of some members of the Governing Body and alumni, including former cabinet minister Jonathan Aitken. Aitken told Cherwell: “The letter is a foolish own goal by the Governing Body. It is full of windy assertions attempting to denigrate the Dean which are unsupported by any evidence.”

“This letter will cut no ice with the Charity Commission. It has been well briefed by many other sources who are angry about the continuing failures of governance and the recklessly extravagant expenditure of charitable funds by this bitterly divided Governing Body. Last week the respected and hitherto neutral Christ Church Association Committee (CCAC) which represents 9,000 alumni wrote to the Charity Commission saying that it had lost confidence in the Governing Body and the Censors.”

He went to say: “As for the future I believe the Charity Commission will soon intervene to impose an independent inquiry and its own interim management.”

In a statement, Christ Church said: “We are aware that over 40 trustees and members of Christ Church Oxford’s Governing Body have appealed to the Charity Commission to intervene in the current dispute with the Dean. Christ Church is fully committed to achieving a solution through independent mediation, to avoid the considerable cost that will otherwise be incurred through responding to the Dean’s Employment Tribunal claim against Christ Church.”

“The Dean has suspended the mediation process, but Christ Church remains ready, open and willing to restart it whenever he wishes. The Charity Commission may be able to help bring him back to the negotiating table. The sooner the Dean’s Employment Tribunal claim can be resolved, the sooner Christ Church will be able to undertake the independently-chaired Governance Review it is commissioning in consultation with the Charity Commission.”

Image credit to charlemagne/ Pixabay

Rent increases spark uncertainty for graduate students

Matthew Schaffel
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Rent increases spark uncertainty for graduate students

Graduate housing tenants have complained that University rent increases put them under increased financial pressure. A change in Oxford City Council policy also means they will have to pay more council tax.

These changes could add 15% to living costs for graduate students in University accommodation. The imposition of a 4.57% rent increase by the university follows a total 23% increase since 2015. 

A formal complaint was filed against the University in April this year, requesting a suspension of the decision on rent due to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and rises in council tax. 

The Graduate Accommodation office has refused to suspend rent increases, encouraging students to apply for hardship funds. This decision was upheld at a Property Management Sub-Committee meeting. Only one representative from the Student Union was present at the meeting.

This seems to have affected students’ desire to stay in their accommodation. In a survey of 69 student tenants, 81.3% reported they were considering leaving due to this policy and 64% said the increase will mean spending 60% of their household income on living costs.

The University describes its graduate accommodation as “affordable”, although according to the CIH and National Housing Federation, an “affordable rent” should consume less than 30% of household income.

Cherwell has received comments from several tenants on the issue, all of whom wish to remain anonymous. 

“As a parent to a toddler I already face extremely high expenses on childcare here in Oxford”, said one tenant. 

“We already pay £2,210 only for accommodation and childcare each month. This is while most stipends are only around £1,200 per month. Many couples and families have already left Oxford because of the University’s policy.”

Another tenant added: “I am reticent to draw on the hardship funds, as although the rent increase may push me out of University housing, I fully understand that each and every one of my neighbours faces a similar situation. This is a crisis that all of us must face and which cannot be solved by individual appeals for extra funding alone.”

A third tenant told Cherwell: “Due to the COVID-19 pandemic my course (medicine) has been completely suspended until further notice. I have received no financial advice from the university concerning how this unspecified length of time with no opportunity to study will affect my ability to receive a student loan or sustain myself. I am currently living off savings with no concrete information to help me plan financially for the future.”

Graphic by Charlotte Bunney

In response to these claims, the University said: “The wellbeing of students is a key priority for the University, particularly in the current exceptional circumstances.

“Council tax policy remains a decision for Oxford City Council. However, we have listened and responded to the concerns of our graduate students in respect of council tax changes. We have engaged with Oxford City Council on our tenants’ behalf, and as a result a decision not to apply the charges during the current tenancy period has been agreed. This change in exemptions by the council only applies to households where one or more resident is not in full time education and no other exemptions apply.”

“The recommendation for rent increases in 2020/21 was decided at University committee level in September 2019. Affordability was a key issue in the decision and student interests were represented by Oxford Student Union. These increases are part of a longer-term plan, agreed in consultation, after a period of historically low rents.

“In light of Covid-19, a review of the decision was carried out by the committee in May 2020. Once again student interests were represented by the Student Union, and the rent increase was upheld as reasonable.

“Graduate accommodation rents, when compared with equivalent properties in Oxford for size and amenities, still remain below the open market rates.

“The University takes the impact of current circumstances very seriously. If students have a licence or tenancy agreement for University or College accommodation this term, but are not in residence, they will not be charged rent. In light of the current crisis, the University is also making available additional hardship funding to support students needing help.

The Council said: “Oxford City Council reviewed its student property portfolio during the last financial year. Some self-contained flats belonging to the University of Oxford and to Oxford Brookes University had been made exempt from Council Tax charges under the Halls of Residence regulations for a number of years. This was incorrect and the exemption had to be removed.

“The Council agreed with the University of Oxford and Brookes, in January 2020, that the exemption would remain in place until the occupiers’ tenancy agreements came to an end, guaranteeing the current tenants would remain exempt from Council Tax until their current lease expired. Anyone signing up to a new lease would have to apply for a student exemption class N or a student-related discount and the qualifying criteria applied.

“If the properties are leased to a mixture of qualifying student and non-student occupiers then the student occupier would be disregarded and the remaining resident will be liable for a discounted Council Tax charge.

“The changes correct a misinterpretation of the regulations that was applied solely to Oxford University and Brookes properties. The student occupiers of other self-contained accommodation within the City already conform to the regulations.

“Anyone remaining and signing a new tenancy agreement was advised of the changes to the policy and how it would affect them by the Oxford University Accommodation Unit on the 19 February. A similar arrangement was reached with Brookes.

“Our actions will impact on those households where the partner is not a full time student, is able to work or has access to public funds.

“The City Council’s actions will restore equity to the way we treat students in self-contained accommodation. It does not deprive the student, or qualifying dependant, of the opportunity to apply for an exemption or disregard. If their partners work and or claim benefits, they will have access to support through the Council Tax Reduction scheme or to apply for assistance under the hardship regulations.

“The University has received 248 requests for renewals or extensions. A percentage of these will be subject to a charge.”

Meanwhile, graduate students at Balliol College have been told to leave accommodation if they wish to complete voluntary work with the NHS.

In emails seen by Cherwell, the College has told a student wishing to volunteer with the NHS that they would have to vacate their room during the lockdown. 

A student at Balliol, who wished to remain anonymous, told Cherwell: “I was told by the Profectus and the Dean that I would have to leave if I wanted to do any kind of volunteer work. Initially they said I would not be able to come back until the pandemic was over and would have to pay rent still as my room would be full of my stuff. 

“After I pushed back on this they said I could come get my possessions but still would not be able to live in my room for the duration of my NHS work.” 

The College’s decision was based on safety concerns for other residents in graduate accommodation. The University has been contacted for comment on this issue.

Cover Graphic by Isabella Lill.

Good Vibrations: Hertford and Merton raffle sex toy vouchers for charity

Joe Hyland Deeson
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Good Vibrations: Hertford and Merton raffle sex toy vouchers for charity

Hertford and Merton JCRs are raising funds for charity by organising raffles in which the prizes included £20 vouchers for Lovehoney.

At Hertford, Rory Saitch offered participants “that warm fuzzy feeling”, although this was in reference to the action of donating money to frontline workers through the purchase of £1 tickets. In the space of a week, the JCR raised £320. The sum was Gift-Aided and donated to NHS charities after two lucky participants won £20 vouchers in the draw made to the college at a virtual JCR meeting.

One uncredited message reposted by Saitch said, “who knew Hertford was so horny?” as the college promoted a different form of Sighs to the bridge with which it is usually associated.

Merton’s JCR has since followed suit. In a raffle to coincide with Welfare Week, a £20 Love Honey voucher was one of four prizes, although winners will be able to select a Cadbury’s chocolate hamper instead if the money to spend at the popular sex toy company is “not your cup of tea”.

In the caption of the online raffle, Merton JCR President Lucy Buxton wrote: “If you are looking to ~spice~ up your sex life in whatever way suits you, this is the perfect prize!” as she offered an unconventional and perhaps more literal solution to the problem of isolation “getting you down”.

Other potential prizes included a bottle of gin made with natural products from the Oxford Botanical Gardens, a specially commissioned portrait of the college, and the chance to adopt a tiger for a year with the WWF.

Tickets are also priced at £1 each. With over fifty sold on the first day alone, Mertonians will surely hope to rival the generosity of their fellow students at Hertford before the draw on Friday 5th June. Proceeds will go towards Oxfordshire Homelessness, BEAT, Oxfordshire Mind and Reducing the Risk Oxford.

Image credit to Morderska/ Wikimedia Commons.

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