Playing God – Why we shouldn’t condemn the NHS removal of PIP implants
The Hippocratic Oath states: “I will use treatments for the benefit of the ill in accordance with my ability and judgment, but from what is to their harm and injustice I will keep them.” Doctors must not show discrimination towards those they treat, and must help every patient to the best of their ability. And … Read more
Let’s Buy Happiness – “We’ve found our sound.”
The whirlwind success story of Tyneside’s 5-piece Let’s Buy Happiness has surprised them as much as everyone else. From recently supporting Primal Scream at Electric Brixton to playing the prestigious John Peel stage at Glastonbury, the impressive resume of what was originally “four lads just having a laugh” has shocked as much as it has … Read more
The Bright Lights of…Berwick-upon-Tweed?
On hearing that I come from the sleepy Borders town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, the generic response from most people tends to be either: “Where’s that? Never heard of it” or “Oh yes, I have a caravan there.” Fortunately, this long-standing stigma as a holidaymakers haven is finally under threat by the current crop of local creative … Read more
‘Charity Muggers’ – a step too far?
Earlier this year, like thousands of other woman across the country, I ran the Race for Life, raising £250 for Cancer Research. Despite collapsing in a pathetic heap at the finish line and almost requiring the aid of an oxygen tank, it was a highly enjoyable and worthwhile endeavour. Until, six months later, an aggressive … Read more
Chris Mayo: “However bad things are, people will always want to laugh.”
One of the toughest aspects of interviewing a comedian, as I soon discovered whilst chatting to up-and-coming cockney comic Chris Mayo, is their tendency to answer every question with a joke. Probes about childhood were not met with insightful sob stories about deceased pets and abusive imaginary friends, but with the line “this is just … Read more
INFORMATION OVERLOAD // RANT
I failed General Studies. Not just an “I-got-a-C-and-have-set-ridiculously-high-standards-for-myself-therefore-I’ve-failed” kind of result, an actual ungraded mark. I’d been told that as long as you could spell your name with minimal errors and were vaguely aware that Tony Blair was no longer the Prime Minister, you’d score at least a D. Highly embarrassing, considering I not only … Read more
Tattoo taboo?
“When my Grandpa was rushed to hospital after suffering from a major heart attack, the skilled surgeon that came to his rescue happened to have a Latin quote inscribed on his forearm. It said: “Ready for anything”. Perhaps this was a careless, spur of the moment tattoo that he regretted. Or perhaps, it meant a … Read more
‘Disappear Here’ art exhibition by WeCanCreate – Hoult’s Yard, 15th – 21st October 2010
We all have the innate desire to simply escape, to disappear for a while, a notion that WeCanCreate have conceptualised and confronted in their first collaboration, aptly named Disappear Here. The most remarkable aspect of the impressionist exhibition is not in the aesthetics, rather, in the tranquillity it evokes in the mind of those experiencing … Read more
