Tuesday 10th June 2025
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Ex-Director General of MI5 gives Romanes talk

Imogen Duke
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Ex-Director General of MI5 gives Romanes talk

Last week, Baroness Eliza Manningham-Buller gave the annual Romanes Lecture on ‘The Profession of Intelligence’ in the Sheldonian Theatre.

Baroness Manningham-Buller was the Director General of MI5 from 2002 to 2007, having had a career in the MI5 for over 30 years.

She is now Chair of the Wellcome Trust and has been a crossbench peer at the House of Lords since 2008. She read English at Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford before joining the Security Service.

The talk was about the nature of intelligence, its value and limitations, and how it is practised. In discussing the role of people working in intelligence, she focused on team- work and diversity. She emphasised intelligence officers should have a variety of experiences and be “comfortable with ambiguity.” She also said discussion between depart- ments and countries is important – it is a “shared endeavour between colleagues.” As well as explaining the nature of the profession of intelligence, she discussed its relation to current affairs.

Anne Deighton, Emeritus Professor of European Interna- tional Politics, noted in a tweet how Manningham-Buller commented on the government’s delay in releasing a report on Russian covert actions and alleged electoral interference compiled by the Parliamentary Intelligence and Security Committee.

“Eliza Manningham-Buller appeared to make a reference to this untoward delay in releasing the report. So what does it say that frightens the govt?”

Deighton told Cherwell: “I thought it was apt, and respectful of her audience that she flagged this issue up, which is about access to information on an important strategic matter which a cross party committee of MPs had spent time compiling. It must make every citizen very curious to know what the report says about the activities of the Russians in our political system.”

No. 10 has since refused to release the 50-page report until after the general election on 12th December, leading to speculation that the government is hiding the extent of Russian interference.

Manningham-Buller’s previous lectures have attracted attention due to her clear opinions on how political decisions impact the UK’s security. In a speech in 2016 at Chatham House, an international affairs think tank, she criticised the choice to leave the European Union because of danger to the country’s security. The Guardian reported how she criticised claims that the UK would be safer outside the EU as “nonsensical and spurious” she suggested that “to leave would present real risks to our security and safety”.


Previous years’ Romanes Lectures have also garnered attention because of prominent figures’ perspectives on current affairs. Hillary Clinton said in the 2017 lecture ‘Making the Case for Democracy’ that young people were “let down by Brexit” and asked whether more should have been done “to turn the tide”. Other Romanes lecturers have included Gordon Brown in 2009 and 2006, the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, in 2004, and Tony Blair in 1999. The first Romanes lecture wasgiven in 1892 by William Gladstone and has since been the public lecture of the University. A distinguished public figure from the arts, science, or literature is invited by the Vice-Chancellor each year.

Oxford Women in Computer Science announces collaboration with Zilliqa

Irene Zhang
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Oxford Women in Computer Science announces collaboration with Zilliqa

Oxford Women in Computer Science (OxWoCS), a society at the University which “aims to promote and support women in science,” announced on October 31st that it will begin a series of collaborative workshops with the help of public blockchain platform Zilliqa. OxWoCS is already sponsored by companies including Google and Facebook.

Spaces at the workshop series will be limited to approximately 20 students per session. The first one, having taken place on the 31st, introduced students to blockchain, Bitcoin, and basic information about the industry and workshop series. The next three sessions will take place on November 7th, 14th, and 21st, and will introduce students to cod- ing a simple smart contract and business use-cases for a public blockchain, culminating in a demo day where qualifying entries will be evaluated for prizes. Those who excel in these workshops may be considered for Zilliqa’s Ecosystem Grant Program, which allows students to receive both funding and mentorship for their ideas. The sessions are hosted in the Department of Computer Science, and interested students can register through a Google Form linked in their Facebook event.

Zilliqa, a public blockchain platform based in Singapore, describes itself as “a high-through- put blockchain platform that achieves over 2,828 transactions per second in its testnet by the implementation of sharding.” Its developer marketing head Saiba Kataruka told Decrypt: “Diversity continues to be an endemic prob- lem in the wider tech industry, and blockchain is no different. We are excited to be embarking on this collaboration with OxWoCS to champion the involvement of more women in this rapidly evolving space.”

The blockchain industry has long suffered from a massive gender gap, with men taking up 85% of blockchain startup memberships. Data group LongHash, while researching a report on inclusivity in blockchain, found only one startup with more than one female executive. Fewer than five percent of GitHub cryptocontributors are women. The nascent industry has been compared to a “New England country club” in media for its shocking gender disparity, and this challenge is the one the workshop series aims to address.

Paula Fiddi, founder of OxWoCS, told Decrypt that “At OxWoCS, our goal is to ensure that female scientists are presented with equal opportunities to engage with various areas of the tech industry. From established fields of research to nascent disciplines ripe for exploration, it’s important that women are adequately represented in order to champion diversity both in action and in practice.”

Greens unite behind Moran

Luke Dunne
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Greens unite behind Moran

The Green Party have decided not to field a candidate in Oxford West and Abingdon following an pro-Remain electoral pact with the Liberal Democrats.

Layla Moran, Liberal Democrat candidate for Oxford West and Abingdon, who has a majority of only 816 (1.4%), responded to the news on Twitter and thanked the Greens and Cheryl Briggs, who is Chair of the Abingdon Greens, for supporting her.

“Thank you to @greenoxford and @CherylOxon for again standing aside at this election as part of @unitetoremain.”

“With just 816 votes between me and the Tory Oxford West and Abingdon is so so close. This is what pragmatic grown up politics looks like.

“Unite to Remain is about putting country before party. Each party has its proud history and views. That doesn’t change. But by this initiative we are stronger together.”

Agreements have been made across the country between the Liberal Democrats, Plaid Cymru and the Green Party, and a list circulated this morning online shows 60 seats in total are involved.

Overall, the Liberal Democrats will benefit from having 43 seats where they don’t need to compete with either party. The Greens will have such an advantage in 10, and Plaid Cymru in 7.

The announcement was made at a conference held by ‘Unite to Remain’, an organization headed by Heidi Allen which aims to co-ordinate efforts between proRemain parties during the General Election.

Jo Swinson, leader of the Liberal Democrats, commented on the agreement. She said: “We are delighted that an agreement has been reached. We would like to thank Unite to Remain for making this possible.”

“This is a significant moment for all people who want to support remain candidates across the country.”

Although there was talk of a ‘progressive alliance’ before the 2017 election, nothing of this scale was agreed and parties only stood down for one another in a handful of seats.

The Oxfordshire Green Party retweeted the national Green Party’s statement, saying: “We can stop Brexit and stay in Europe, but to do so we need to work together.

That’s why we’re working with other parties to give voters one clear choice of Remain candidate in key seats across England and Wales.”

Heidi Allen told Adam Payne, senior reporter for Business Insider, “This isn’t a normal General Election… This General Election is all about Brexit… They [the parties] know this GE is the last chance to change the path that this country is currently on.”

The Green Party has come to an arrangement with Plaid Cymru and the Liberal Democrats to field one candidate from a Remain party in selected seats in England and Wales for the upcoming election.

Liberal Democrat or Plaid Cymru candidates will step aside for the Greens in 10 seats. Co-Leader of the Green Party Jonathan Bartley said: “This is about recognising how damaging Brexit would be – for people and for the environment – and ensuring there is as much representation of Remain parties in the next Parliament as possible.”

Layla Moran, current MP for Oxford West and Abingdon, said: “A vote for the Liberal Democrats is a vote to stop Brexit,” adding that the party was the strongest pro-Remain party in the south east.”

St Anne’s JCR condemn college for failure to pay Oxford Living Wage

Sam Jones
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St Anne’s JCR condemn college for failure to pay Oxford Living Wage

St Anne’s JCR passed a motion on Sunday, stating its support for the College paying its staff the Oxford Living Wage, which it currently does not do. The motion’s passage marks a victory for the St Anne’s Oxford Living Wage campaign group.

They aim to persuade the College to move from paying staff the National Living Wage in favour of a figure more in line with Oxford’s relatively high cost of living.

Members of the group, Izzy Colletta, Philomena Wills, Matthias Barker, and Grace Tierney, said they were “very pleased that our JCR has agreed to support the Oxford Living wage motion. We are hopeful this will help to move the campaign forward, towards securing sufficient wages for all college staff. We hope that other college JCRs will also follow suit and that support of the JCR student body will convince College to pay its staff a living wage for this city.”

The Oxford Living Wage is an hourly minimum pay for all workers currently set at a rate of £10.02 per hour, in contrast to the National Living Wage figure of £8.21. Through it, employees would receive a minimum annual pay of £19,278 for working a 37 hour week.

Oxford City Council have operated an employer recognition scheme for those that have adopted the Oxford Living Wage for their employees. Currently the only Oxford colleges accredited by the Council for doing so are St Cross, Blackfriars and Campion Hall.

According to one individual involved in the running of St Anne’s, some colleges have taken issue with the Council’s calculation of the Oxford Living Wage as standing at 95% of the London Living Wage, questioning how this figure has been calculated.

Concerns have also been raised by colleges regarding how their budgets could cope with the increased expenditure on staff wages. The St Anne’s Living Wage campaign group, however, believe that it is possible, if not easy, for college budgets to adapt to the change.

The St Anne’s College annual report on the 2017-18 year, shows a budget surplus before depreciation of £3.4m for the year ending 31 July 2018. The report states that: “the objective remains to increase the accumulated surplus to help fund an enhanced capital expenditure programme of student room provision and build a buffer against unforeseen adverse events on any of the income streams.”

Some students have suggested using this surplus to pay for staff earning the Oxford Living Wage, instead of on increasing capital expenditure. St Anne’s remains the only college that utilises a living wage levy on students (currently set at £3 per term for each student) in order to pay their staff the National Living Wage.

The levy was instituted in the 2017-18 academic year, after the passage of motion by the JCR, as the College was not at that time paying its staff that amount. Speaking about the levy, the Campaign Group said: “We think that reducing staff salary to the status of a charitable levy is both irresponsible and demeaning. It is patronising to include a levy for something as significant as a Living Wage in a category that includes funding for punts and maintenance of our JCR.”

The passage of the motion occurs at a time of campaigning across the University in favour of the Oxford Living Wage, as the Oxford Living Wage Campaign has committed to increased action on the matter in the coming weeks.

Statistics published by the Living Wage Foundation suggest the taking up of a Living Wage would be beneficial: 75% of businesses paying the living wage say it has increased motivation and retention rates for employees.

Balliol students condemn alumnus Johnson’s behaviour

Max Spokes
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Balliol students condemn alumnus Johnson’s behaviour

Students from Balliol College will send an open letter to Boris Johnson, condemning, and distancing the College from, his “racist, homophobic, misogynistic, and unlawful behaviour.”

In their letter to the Prime Minister, members of the JCR call upon Balliol College to “break with convention,” by revoking Johnson’s alumni privileges as well as ruling out displaying his portrait on College premises.

The letter and JCR motion stemmed from a petition in the summer to ban Johnson from College grounds, as well as revoking his alumni status. However, after debate, the JCR voted in favour of removing the Prime Minister’s alumni privileges rather than status, which does not explicitly banning him from College grounds, as well as seeking reassurance that a future portrait would not be displayed in College.

The JCR President will present a motion to College fellows next Wednesday in support of the action called upon in the letter.

The letter to Johnson says: “The Balliol community strives to promote equality, diversity and debate, and we the undersigned find you at odds with these values.” “Ample evidence can be found for your disregard of democratic conventions and the rule of law; after attempting to prorogue Parliament for five weeks, you openly disagreed with the Supreme Court’s unanimous finding that such an action was unlawful.”

It goes on to quote Johnson, for evidence of his, “racist, homophobic and misogynistic behaviour.”

The letter quotes Johnson writing in the Spectator in 2002 about the colonial experience of Uganda: “If left to their own devices, the natives would rely on nothing but the instant carbohydrate gratification of the plantain… The best fate for Africa would be if the old colonial powers, or their citizens, scrambled once again in her direction; on the understanding that this time they will not be asked to feel guilty.”

Johnson is further quoted on numerous occasions in the letter, with the authors and signatories suggesting that these are examples of the Prime Minister’s controversial views.

Indeed, the former Balliol student is quoted as implying that, “glamorous women” attended a Labour Party conference because of John Prescott’s “whiff of power” and that “with the fickleness of their sex, they are following the polls.”

Additionally, the letter provides evidence of Johnson’s homophobic language when, in 2001 he commented: “If gay marriage was OK – and I was uncertain on the issue – then I saw no reason in principle why a union should not be consecrated between three men, as well as two men, or indeed three men and a dog.”

In relation to Johnson’s comments on Tony Blair’s visit to the Democratic Republic of Congo, the letter says that such comments were “too abhorrent to print.”

It adds: “The JCR strives to make Balliol a more inclusive place, and we openly condemn your intolerance: By calling on College to hold you accountable, we hope to accomplish this.”

The main contributors to the letter told Cherwell that they hope the letter is “able to express the collective opinions of the JCR” though were keen to express that whilst the JCR approved the letter, it does not represent the views of the student population as a whole.

They said that the letter hopes to “distance Balliol from Boris’s actions” and the JCR President stated that if alumni “do things which portray the college in a negative light or do things that portray the student body in a negative light, then individuals should be held to account for that if they are publicly representing the college.”

Moreover, the authors stressed that this was not about Johnson’s politics, and that their focus was on his, “racist, homophobic, misogynistic, and unlawful behaviour.” The President of the JCR further said that “language matters” and that Johnson’s recent actions and words were, “indicative of a general attitude that is very exclusionary.”

Indeed, Johnson, who read Classics at Balliol from 1983 to 1987, has come under fire for his use of inflammatory language.

The decision by the College to revoke Johnson’s alumni privileges will not be made until next week at the earliest, though if a decision was made in favour of the letter, this would, according to its authors, be a “sign of a changing Oxford,” and would show that, as the letter concludes: “There is no place for racism, homophobia or misogyny in our society.”

A physical copy of the letter, which by midday on Wednesday had received over 100 signatures, will be sent to the Prime Minister, and although its authors do not expect a direct response from Johnson, they hoped the letter would publicise the JCR’s wish to distance itself from the behaviour of the former student campaigning to lead the country, and thus to uphold values of tolerance and inclusivity.

The letter comes as 2019 marks the fortieth anniversary of female students at Balliol, as well as the fact that for the first time in its over 850-year history, the College admitted more female fresher students this academic year than males.

The full letter to the Prime Minister can be read below.

“Dear Prime Minister,

The Balliol community strives to promote equality, diversity and debate, and we the undersigned find you at odds with these values. 

Balliol JCR openly condemns your racist, homophobic, misogynistic, and unlawful behaviour. We are calling upon Balliol College to revoke your alumni privileges and to break with convention by ruling out displaying your portrait on College premises, after voting by majority to do so.

Ample evidence can be found for your disregard of democratic conventions and the rule of law; after attempting to prorogue Parliament for five weeks, you openly disagreed with the Supreme Court’s unanimous finding that such an action was unlawful.  

For evidence of racist, homophobic and misogynistic behaviour, we need look no further than your own comments:

  • “Consider Uganda, pearl of Africa, as an example of the British record. The British planted coffee and cotton and tobacco, and they were broadly right. If left to their own devices, the natives would rely on nothing but the instant carbohydrate gratification of the plantain… The best fate for Africa would be if the old colonial powers, or their citizens, scrambled once again in her direction; on the understanding that this time they will not be asked to feel guilty.” (The Spectator, 2002)
  • “The unanimous opinion is that what has been called the ‘Tottymeter’ reading is higher than at any Labour Party conference in living memory,” ‘Hot Totty’ being a sexist term for women. You continued, “Time and again the ‘Tottymeter’ has gone off as a young woman delegate mounts the rostrum… The real reason why Blackpool is buzzing with glamorous women is surely that they scent victory. It is not the great smell of Brut that makes John Prescott attractive. It is the whiff of power. With the fickleness of their sex, they are following the polls.” (Daily Telegraph, 1996)
  • “If gay marriage was OK – and I was uncertain on the issue – then I saw no reason in principle why a union should not be consecrated between three men, as well as two men, or indeed three men and a dog.” (“Friends, Voters, Countrymen”, 2001)
  • “For 10 years we in the Tory Party have become used to Papua New Guinea-style orgies of cannibalism and chief-killing, and so it is with a happy amazement that we watch as the madness engulfs the Labour Party.” (2006 Discussion)
  • When you described Tony Blair’s visit to the DRC, you wrote of “tribal warriors” cheering for the “big white chief”. The rest of the quotation is freely available but too abhorrent to print. (Daily Telegraph, 2002)

This list is far from exhaustive. The JCR strives to make Balliol a more inclusive place, and we openly condemn your intolerance: By calling on College to hold you accountable, we hope to accomplish this.

The Balliol JCR need say no more. There is no place for racism, homophobia or misogyny in our society, and we strongly oppose your behaviour and comments.”

Oxford’s Covered Market turns 245 years old

Natasha Lovel
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Oxford’s Covered Market turns 245 years old

The Oxford Covered Market turned 245 years old on Friday 1st Novem- ber, having first opened in 1774. The market is filled with 63 independent business stalls, selling a variety of crafts, food and drinks. The original part of the market has remained the same, attracting both tourists and locals alike, with food ranging from Greek to Thai.

The market was first established to remove the large amount of traffic entering Oxford, making the roads tidier and safer, via the ‘Oxford Mileways Act’ of 1771. The sale of vegetables, meat, fish and herbs outside of the market became illegal, making the market a hub of activity and eradicating the street markets on Fish Street and Butchers Row.

The universal business directory of 1794 described the “new general market” as being placed in “one of

the finest streets in Europe” and was “universally allowed to exceed everything of the kind in this King- dom”. Its architect John Gwynn, who also built Magdalen Bridge in 1790, designed the market to have three separate entrances to allow ease of access for traders and buyers.

What doesn’t show up on the records is the sense of family and community expressed by the shop workers and owners in the covered market. Many of the shops are generational and have been passed down for many years, such as Browns Café which has been in the same family for twenty-five years.

When asked “What does the covered market mean to you?” the shop manager of the Indie Oxford Market Place focused on the “community aspect” and “family feel” as traders help each other in the mornings.

Oxford Aromatics spoke of the “camaraderie of all the shop owners”, while Brothers contrasted the “market spirit compared to the high street” through the “labouring friendship” at a time where “independents are thriving”.

Other comments included a sense of pride at being part of a place with such historical interest – the fact that the market has been a lively shopping centre for over two centuries illustrates its value in the community and allows us to appreciate the trading development through stores that have stood the test of time.

A florist from The Garden commented that its “nice it’s kept its traditions” and the manager from the Indie Oxford Market Place liked that even though there was new developments in the centre, the focus on independent stores which kept their family names help maintain a “connection to the past, present and future”.

Historians express concern at St Peter’s Project

Trudy Ross
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Historians express concern at St Peter’s Project

In September of this year, St Peter’s College applied for planning permission to build student accommodation next to their main site.

This would allow the second year students at the college to live near campus, meaning they would nothave to find somewhere to ‘live out’ after first year.

However, the proposed project has led to controversy among historians as it would involve demolishing the former Conservative Club at Castle Hill House.

However, Historic England has described the area in questionas a ‘sensitive site’ as a resul tof its situation within Central Oxford conservation area, and the listed buildings surrounding it. These buildings include The Canal House, County Hall and Well House, as well as the buildings of Nuffield College and of St Peter’sitself.

Additionally, the Oxfordshire Architectural and Historical Society has raised objections to the scheme on the grounds that the loss of the Conservative As- lociation building would: “harm and lessen the special significance of Bulwarks Lane”, which is seen to have special historical significance due to its ‘medieval character’.

They have also raised the issue that the new buildings would dominate the area and block the view of the castle mound as seen from Bulwarks Lane.

Local historian Mark Davies has also complained that the demolition of the Club would threaten the links between the city and historical figure Daniel Harris, a significant Oxford Castle gaoler and architect who died in 1840.

The college has highlighted the positive impact this project would have on student life, providing a total of 52 en-suite rooms for individuals who may otherwise be daunted by high rent prices, unfamiliar surroundings, as well as the task of finding a home situated reasonably nearby their classes and lectures.

Furthermore, the college has argued that this development would encourage more students from disadvantaged backgrounds to apply for a place at St. Peter’s.

In a request for donations to the project, Master Mark Damazer said that with enough support for the project the college will be able to, “sustain our exceptional educational community and recruit the most talented students from any background, so that they can come to Oxford, enjoy St. Peter’s to the full and thrive.”

Despite the potential benefitsof the Castle Hill scheme for St Peter’s and its students, Ward Councillor Alex Hollingsworth told Cherwell that the project is: “likely to be judged against a number of important policies surrounding the historic buildings around the site.”

Concerns over Teddy Hall welfare changes

Mariam Ahsan
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Concerns over Teddy Hall welfare changes

Concerns have been raised that a recently proposed motion in St. Edmund Hall could make it more difficult to run initiatives such as subsidising women’s sanitary products and raising awareness towards testicular cancer.

A source told Cherwell that the President and Vice President put forward a motion that would mean all spending would have to be justified at a JCR meeting in front of a group of members.

Teddy Hall’s current system allows the college to run certain programs and initiatives from a separate fund overseen by the men’s and women’s officers.

By merging all the funding together, the fund would have to be voted upon in a meeting along with other calls for initiatives.

There are concerns that the motion would only raise complications and obstacles for these initiatives that are deemed important by JCR members.

Teddy Hall’s JCR President and Vice President told Cherwell that the motion was to “hold a referendum for constitutional changes” which would see a change to the role of the men’s and women’s officers roles.

They said: “The motion was to hold a referendum for constitutional changes that would serve to provide men and minority gender identity (abbreviated men) and women and minority gender identity (abbreviated women) with representatives who could focus purely on events to raise awareness for such things as testicular cancer and to provide schemes such as funding for mooncups (n.b. sanitary products are pro- vided for free for all JCR members through the welfare fund regard- less).”

“Previously, men’s and women’s officers have served more of a social purpose, which the proposers of the motion felt could be undertaken by the social secretaries instead so as to allow the men’s and women’s officers to focus on the aforementioned events instead of social events.”

The source also described that the Executive retracted the motion when the JCR body appeared to move against the motion. When there were calls to vote upon the motion, with the intention to vote it down, they were refused this option.

A second source has corroborated these events and told Cherwell that sanitary products are absent from communal bathrooms such as the toilets in the bar, the library and around the dining hall.

The JCR President and Vice President said: “The motion was withdrawn following concerns being raised which highlighted the problems associated with women’s events having to ask for funding through JCR meetings. The idea behind withdrawing the motion was to allow the concerns raised to be properly considered and met through an amendment of the motion.”

The current women’s officers at Teddy Hall told Cherwell: “The withdrawal of the motion for editing will hopefully address the concerns that were raised when the motion was first brought to the JCR. We therefore support the motion’s content, and will continue to support it once our concerns about women’s funding have been resolved, which is what is continuing to be worked on by ourselves and the JCR exec.”

Other colleges which provide sanitary products for free include St Anne’s, Hertford and Lady Margaret Hall.

The amended motion noted that “There should be one team of officers who are responsible for organising social events in college, and that these officers should be given discretion over the use of the Entz fund.”

It further stated, “Women*’s and Men*’s representatives should have a protected fund in order to ensure the organisation of events relating to important gender-specific issues and adequate supply of necessary provisions (such as sanitary products).”

If passed, the motion will result in a referendum to change the roles, which would then come into effect from Trinity 2020 onwards.

The new amended motion will be brought back to a JCR meeting on Saturday 9th November.

Review: Yerma

Ami Griffiths
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Review: Yerma

TW: domestic violence, difficulty conceiving

On opening night, a hauntingly lyrical musical refrain in softly-sung Spanish opens Angel in the House’s Yerma, infusing the packed BT Studio with an Andalusían folk-like air on a wintry Tuesday night in Oxford, whisking its audience away to a setting reminiscent of the play’s southern Spanish roots, and breathing a wistful and deeply nostalgic sense of yearning into a dream-like opening sequence, the calm before the storm in this new adaptation of Lorca’s rural tragedy. 

As the eponymous protagonist lies peacefully on the ground, surrounded by flowers and bathed in soft lighting, there is an eerily funereal air to the opening of a play in which the central themes are fertility and unfulfilled desire. 

It is as though a funeral is being thrown for Yerma’s fertility as her hands rest gently atop her hollow belly. Ironically, childless and alone, this is the point at which Yerma (Ceidra Moon Murphy) is most at peace during the play, setting the audience up for the persistent tension throughout the production between life and death, as an inability to conceive renders Yerma’s attempts to be a “real woman” futile in her eyes. This is sense is heightened by the newly pregnant María (Millie Tupper) with whom Yerma has a close friendship, rendered complex by Yerma’s extreme, all-consuming jealousy as María enters into the latter stages of pregnancy. 

I was instantly taken in by the innocent, delicate portrayal of María, a newly pregnant, placid mother-to-be, whose fragility sits in contrast with Yerma’s ardent passions. This innocence, however, is quickly disrupted by Juan (Cameron Forbes) and Yerma’s ongoing and increasingly severe marital disputes, although a slight lack of development in characterisation leaves the audience wondering quite how these domestic disputes result in the violent end which Juan meets. 

However, what the production lacked in character development, it made up for through subtlety and skilful acting, a particular highlight of which is the undercurrent of sexual tension and desire between Yerma and her first love Victor (Alex Fleming-Brown), portrayed more through coy gestures and lustful glances than through words, painting a poignant portrait of unfulfilled lust which sits in stark contrast with the passionless, sexless marriage with Juan that Yerma remains so committed to. 

What the production exceeds itself in is the portrayal of the insidious and pervasive progression of Yerma’s paranoia and growing desperation at her inability to bear children, first, through an eerie soundtrack of the wailing baby which only our titular protagonist appears to be able to hear, and then through the cuttingly cruel voices of townspeople, signalling Yerma as the subject of the vicious attacks of the latest gossip of the town. Credit must be given to Flora Faulk for a set that complements this process of growing frustration.

Whilst some of the lyricism of the Spanish original is undoubtedly lost in translation, the Spanish essence of the original is mostly retained, the distinctly rural setting conveyed effectively through rustic accents and touches, incorporating elements of both fertility and the rural setting. 

Do actions speak louder than words?

Daniya Jawwad
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Do actions speak louder than words?

As the curtains draw in a theatre and a play commences, we, the audience, unconsciously focus on the words being said. It is true that a key aspect of theatrical works is the dialogue, since directors and writers are known to dwell upon scripts for months and sometimes years. However, due to this mindset, the physical aspect of theatre is often side-lined and becomes of secondary importance to us. Given this, what can actions accomplish, where words are limited?

To begin with, one can better understand the relationship and dynamics between characters, through their body language around one another. It is important to note that in the 20th century, there was a shift in focus towards stagecraft and gestures, therefore many examples given in this article will be of modern plays (from the 1940s onwards). An example of a playwright who deliberated on each and every aspect of the stage is Arthur Miller. One of his most famous plays, All My Sons, centres on the gradual degradation of the Keller family and the ‘deposition’ of the family’s patriarch, Joe Keller. In this play, Miller goes as far as to dedicate a whole page to describe the front yard of the Kellers’ house, therefore it must come as no surprise to know that Miller also detailed how characters must behave with one another. From the outset, it is evident that Joe and his son, Chris, are not completely comfortable around one another, though this is not completely obvious from the dialogue. While Joe is offering to hand over his entire company to Chris, he actively [moves away]from his father and Chris’ speech is littered with [slight pauses]. Through physically distancing himself from Joe, the audience can visually perceive Chris’ discomfort, which is also evident through his hesitation around his father, evidenced by his constant pauses. Throughout the play, there are instances where the characters border physical violence, reflecting the underlying tension in the family and their friends. However, no act of physical violence takes place until the final act when Kate, Joe’s wife, [smashes him across his (Joe’s) face]. The spontaneous and surprising nature of the act naturally takes the audience by surprise and we know that whatever will unfold is important. Unsurprisingly, Joe’s secret is subsequently revealed and the climax is reached, leading to Chris storming off. As Chris exits, [he pounds down upon his father’s shoulder], demonstrating the conflict between his anger and love for his father. Chris is devastated to learn of his father’s crime but cannot bring himself to unleash his anger upon Joe because he still loves and respects him as his father, therefore he only strikes his father’s shoulder. 

Another way actions contribute to our understanding of plays is how they demonstrate the development of characters as people. However this is not an exclusively 20thCentury phenomenon, Shakespeare’s King Lear has various instances where the physical was more expressive than the verbal. Stage directions are not a major part of Shakespeare’s works therefore the selective times the bard explicitly directs actions is significant. As a tragedy, King Lear the tragic hero develops through experiencing his tragic fall from grace. In the exposition, he demands his three daughters to profess their love for him and he would then accordingly divide his kingdom between them. The two elder daughters, Goneril and Regan, shower him with exaggerated and false praise, saying that he is ‘dearer than eyesight’ for them. The king delights in their praise and gives them each a generous share of his kingdom. However, when it comes to his third daughter, Cordelia, she refuses to showcase her affection because she knows her love to be true and believes that to be enough for her and her father. This angers the king and prompts him to exile Cordelia, the one daughter who truly loves him, showing his lack of perceptiveness and superficiality. As the play progresses, both Goneril and Regan alienate Lear and he finds himself shut out in a storm, with nothing to his name. He realises how he should not take things at face value, like his daughters’ exaggerated praise or Cordelia’s refusal to profess her love, when he rips off his robes, to remove any superficiality. The act of ripping off his clothes is especially powerful, given the fact that he is removing his kingly clothes in the midst of a storm and is equating himself to a peasant, in tattered clothing. 

Finally, actions can also help stress upon the central theme and ideas of a play, an example of which is Waiting for Godot by Samuel Beckett. Since Waiting for Godot is a play from the Theatre of the Absurd, which centres on the philosophy of absurdism, it naturally has a nonsensical script, pushing the audience to make sense of the plot through the characters’ actions. To put it simply, absurdism is the acceptance that life is meaningless and therefore the struggle of living with that realisation is life. Contradiction lies at the heart of this philosophy and throughout the play, the characters’ dialogue contradicts with the characters’ actions. Estragon, one of the characters, declares, ‘I’m going’ but does not move, showing how we as individuals think we have agency but in reality, we do not. This contradiction in speech and actions is common in Godot.

As shown in the examples above, actions can express and emphasise certain aspects which words often fail to do. When looking at character relationships, for example, words can often be misunderstood or can be used to hide a character’s true feelings. However, body language always reveals how a character feels about the other and thus the truth. Keeping this in mind, it is important to note that words play a vital role in complementing actions; often words mirror actions or deliberately contradict the action, grabbing the attention of the viewer.

To conclude, yes, actions do speak louder than words but both elements are of equal importance in plot development and a viewer’s understanding of a play.

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