Oxford's biggest student newspaper, produced by and for members of the University of Oxford, since 1991.
STAGE – SCREEN – MUSIC
Image Description: a large red MOTEL sign against a blue sky Like a lot of Schitt’s Creek fans, I was late to the game and only discovered the sitcom on Netflix during quarantine, five years after its premiere. Now I am not saying that the show wouldn’t have been awarded its well deserved nine Emmys […]
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Image description: Rodrigo sticking her tongue out and standing against a purple background, with stickers on her face and the letters spelling ‘SOUR’ on her tongue. Olivia Rodrigo’s SOUR is the perfect debut album. It draws on familiar genres and themes, which is probably why Rodrigo has been compared so much to the likes of […]
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Image Description: A Dalmatian perched upright against a metal fence, looking into the camera. If you’ve ever watched the movie 101 Dalmatians and wondered just why the maniacal antagonist Cruella de Vil wanted to murder and skin over a hundred puppies, then you’re in luck. Disney’s new film Cruella is the latest live-action reboot to […]
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Image description: Cinema lobby lit up in neon pink lighting Cinemas have reopened, and according to my completely unbiased and totally comprehensive research, nobody in England is as excited about this as I am. I was never a massive film fan before the pandemic; I’d usually watch a few Oscar nominees and winners annually to […]
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Image description: a silhouette with a raised fist over a light orange background The year is 1991. You pick up a copy of the Bikini Kill zine and find the Riot Grrl manifesto. Towards the top of the page there is the statement: BECAUSE viewing our work as being connected to our girlfriends-politics-real lives is […]
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Image description: Eurovision crowds in purple and turquoise lighting turned to a stage with a spotlight Following Saturday’s Grand Final, another Eurovision has come and gone. In what felt like the quickest grand final in recent memory, 26 countries competed for the glass microphone trophy, with Italy pulling up ahead of the jury-favourites Switzerland and […]
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Image Description: Two men reading a newspaper. Searching for recommendations of all things culture this week? We’ve got you covered! Music What do you think about the car – Declan McKenna (2017) Declan McKenna weaves politics and poetry throughout this album while also delivering immaculate indie pop vibes. McKenna’s vocals exude a devastating earnestness over […]
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Image description: Daði & Gagnamagnið performing on stage with a purple and blue background and sparkling lights Picture it now, and wipe a tear from your eye. Last year, Gay Christmas was cancelled. Due to go ahead in May 2020, the pandemic forced the 65th Eurovision Song Contest off our screens, and a microwave meal […]
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Image description: a large crowd and colourful flags in front of Glastonbury Festival’s Pyramid Stage The world-renowned Glastonbury Festival attracts 200,000 seasoned festival-goers and newcomers alike to its home in Pilton, Somerset, every year. While well-accustomed to the odd ‘fallow year’ to allow the site’s land to regrow, the festival first opened its gates to […]
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Image description: the promotional artwork for The Arnolfini Portrait (an illustration of two figures set against a pale blue background, with the play’s title in dark blue lettering) With the absence of staging, lighting and costume among the many other elements which make up an understanding of theatre in the traditional sense, it could be […]
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Image description: yellow mannequins covered in splashes of red paint and political messages such as #MeToo CW: Sexual assault and rape If sex is what underpins ‘The Oldest Profession’, then it is sex which also underpins much of our most ancient art, as academics (and, subsequently, sensationalist newspapers) pose that World’s Oldest Art is Female […]
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Image Description: Monochrome photo of hands holding a copy of Marquez’s book “Over the weekend the vultures got into the Presidential Palace by pecking through the screens on the balcony windows, and the flapping of their wings stirred up the stagnant time inside, and at dawn on Monday the city awoke out of its lethargy […]
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Image Description: A dolphin upright underwater, its head pointing towards the surface, just above the seafloor. Netflix’s Seaspiracy has reached millions of viewers worldwide and remains in the Netflix top 10 most-watched even now. The documentary, which reported on the wide-ranging scandals surrounding commercial fishing and the apparently devastating impacts the practice is having on […]
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Image Description: An array of vintage cassette tapes One of my favorite things about music is that there truly is never a shortage– new music is constantly being created, and in the streaming age we have access to recordings from the early 20th century onwards. Still, somehow I frequently find myself in phases where I […]
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Image Description – promotional image for the album; Arlo Parks’ sits on an orange chair with album title written next to her Arlo Parks’ breakout album is a 40-minute long exploration of adolescence, anguish and acceptance. Diaristic lyrics and a kaleidoscope of influences seep through Parks’ honeyed voice and mellow tunes in “Collapsed in Sunbeams”. […]
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Image Description: the BBC logo on a brick building BBC Three was a channel home to many nostalgic shows of our adolescence, from Sun Sea And Suspicious Parents to Gavin and Stacey. After just five years of being kicked off air and existing solely on BBC iPlayer, the channel is returning to television, as early […]
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Image description: Two actors playing Romeo and Juliet kissing on stage in period costume The National Theatre’s new film, Romeo and Juliet, was intended to be a full run theatre production last year. But of course, like most things, it was derailed by the pandemic. With a full (and impressive) cast, a theatre, some set […]
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Image Description: poster used to advertise the production, a tree made out of abstract images of people on a black background Exploring grief through music, Oxford Contemporary Opera Society has commissioned 5 pieces that move through the stages of grief. Throughout the performances, dissonant chords and large ranges in the melody present challenges for the […]
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Image Description: A warmly lit room with a person sat concentrating and wearing earphones Early 2020 saw the beginning of the UK’s response to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, and as a result, millions of people being ordered to stay at home. With seemingly endless restrictions on socializing, shared spaces, and attending events, it wasn’t long […]
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