Tuesday, May 6, 2025
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Scotland’s problem with football violence

Olek Hola-Peryer
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Scotland’s problem with football violence

Neil Lennon has experienced a turbulent first full season in charge of Celtic. It seems barely a week has passed without him appearing in the headlines: There was his bust-up with a fourth official in November at Tynecastle which resulted in a four match suspension; there was his fight with Rangers assistant manager Ally McCoist after a Scottish cup match in March, which also resulted in a four match suspension; there was the out of court settlement he reached with the Bank of Ireland in January after acompany of which he was a director defaulted on a 3.7 million Euro loan; and finally we have the attacks and threats made on Lennon’s person which has resulted in police putting him under 24 hour protection. Multiple packages have been intercepted by Royal Mail, including parcel bombs and ammunition. Most recently, on May 11, a Hearts fan attacked Lennon in his technical area.

These events have been met with almost unanimous outcry against the perpetrators. Football often excites passion in even the more apathetic Scot, and the Glaswegian derby of Rangers versus Celtic is amongst the most hotly contested and passionate derbies in the world. I know a Rangers fan who is physically sick the morning of each ‘Old Firm’ game, such is the tension leading up to them. But why is Neil Lennon being targeted in such a way? What is it about him that makes him such a hate figure?

That Neil Lennon is an abrasive figure on the pitch and touchline is not under much doubt. That there is a historic Protestant/Catholic divide behind the Old Firm games is known to even those ignorant of many footballing issues. Neil Lennon is Northern Irish, Catholic, and formerly played for Celtic. Yet Martin O’ Neill, the Northern Irish Catholic, never experienced such abuse during his five year tenure at Celtic from 2000-2005. O’Neill is a far more introspective and genial man, yet a difference in personality cannot be the sole reason.

Neil Lennon has been experiencing death threats throughout his playing career, having to pull out of an international against Cyprus in 2002 because of it. The issue of sectarianism in both Scotland and Ireland is larger than football. But it is during these sporting events that it is most visible. Lawrence McIntyre, the head of safety for Rangers FC has described this phenomenon as “a 90 minute bigot”. Yet these targeted attacks suggest it is something more sinister and organised than ignorant fans at a stadium.

What can be done? Those who point to Lennon’s fiery nature as the root of his problems are clearly misguided. Whilst many may not approve of some of his actions, they clearly do not warrant this response. Can we play Celtic games behind closed doors? Unlikely, football, as much as it pains me to say it, is a business, and the SFA can ill-afford the loss in gate receipts. The only answer is education. Both Rangers and Celtic have anti-sectarian campaigns (Follow with Pride, and Bhoys against Bigotry, as well as the cross club Sense over Sectarianism). These campaigns need to do more. It is a sorry summary of Scottish football in which an exciting season that went down to the final day will be remembered for these off-field events.

A week in the life of a Blue…

James Gheerbrant
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A week in the life of a Blue…

MONDAY

June is fast approaching and wherever you look, summer is in the air. Children flock gaily to the ice-cream van, cricketers congregate in their brilliant whites, and the air is frothy with the scent of elderflowers in bloom. The inverted smile of a rainbow plays across the beneficent face of the cerulean sky, and memories of a harsh winter seem half a world away.

TUESDAY

Welcome to Cerro Mirador, Chile, 8376 miles, or approximately half a world away, from Oxford. Like the runt in a penguin litter, Cerro is small, neglected, and bitterly cold. The milk freezes in the carton, the toothpaste freezes in the tube, my pasta bake is cold before it hits the plate. The tiny radio in the cabinet plays Hank Williams’ Cold, Cold Heart on an infernal loop. When I tentatively enquire about hot water at reception, the manager laughs bitterly, then mutters in broken English: “Maybe when Hell freezes over.” At this rate, I give it until Thursday.

WEDNESDAY

All of which makes Cerro a destination of unparalleled suitability for the Oxford University Wintersports Club’s annual summer training camp. “It’s a unique opportunity,” says Lasse Gulbrandsen, doctoral student of French poetry and ice-hockey hardnut. In fact, Gulbrandsen is a veteran of twelve such tours, but a severe concussion sustained in the 2003 Varsity match has left him with acute long-term memory-loss: for him, the novelty will never wear off. For others, however, the experience is already beginning to grate. Take French figure-skater Vincent Fournier. Ever since being inspired to take up ice-dancing after an embarrassing evening on the slippery dance-floor at Kukui, Fournier has attended five of these training camps, each time with a different partner. To what, I wonder, does he attribute this unusually high turnover rate? “People come and go,” he says with a sententious shrug. “Passions fade. Priorities change.”

THURSDAY

This is a little disingenuous, it turns out: in fact, the primary reason for Fournier’s misfortune is his unfortunate habit of falling wildly in love with anyone who consents to dance with him. The Frenchman is unrepentant when I confront him about this during a training routine: “Zee more zey try to get away, zee tighter I hold on,” he says, gripping his current partner, diminutive fresher Caitlin Garvey, in an extra-strong crossed-Kilian hold. It’s the kind of aside that would be funnier were it not delivered by a man with two restraining orders.

FRIDAY

Off to watch Lasse train at the local rink. The Norwegian centre is known affectionately as the  ‘Golden Retriever’, after his canine namesake of that breed, the tumbling blond locks that spill from his helmet, and his ability to chase the puck around the ice with the insensible abandon of man’s best friend. Gulbrandsen’s sheer power leaves a real impression, not least on the ribs of an opponent he clatters brutally into the boards.

SUNDAY

Pandemonium on our last night in Cerro. At the town’s solitary nightclub, aptly called La Heladera, or The Icebox, Lasse pulls Caitlin in full view of Vincent. The Frenchman waits until our return to the hotel to exact his revenge. He surprises the amorous couple in Lasse’s room and runs at the burly Norwegian brandishing a sharpened skate-blade; the softly-spoken Scandi promptly clouts him with his hockey-stick. As medics tend to the enormous welt on the Frenchman’s forehead, Gulbrandsen can’t resist a parting shot: “Hey buddy,” he spits, “You might wanna put some ice on that.”

From RAGs to Riches

Rachael Massey
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From RAGs to Riches

RAG announced that they raised a record-breaking £119,368 which more than doubles last year’s total of £46,00. The money will be split equally between Shelter, Pathways Workshop, Helen & Douglas House and Emerge Global.

RAG President Charlotte Le Flufy commented that RAG “provided more support and encouragement to colleges, societies, and individuals to run bigger, better University-wide events”. She also thanked the College Charity reps and RAG committee members who “have dedicated a huge amount of effort and time into making this year successful.”

Daniel Lowe, OUSU Vice-President for Charities and Community commented, “it has been a privilege to work with such a committed RAG team, and to see OUSU’s support lead to such a fantastic result for so many worthy causes.” He stated that RAG’s success was ‘just a part of what has been an incredibly productive year for OUSU’.

Professor in world championships

Katharine Xu
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Professor in world championships

New College Mathematics professor, Marcus du Sautoy was beaten at the semi-finals of the international rock-paper-scissors tournament in Philadelphia last Thursday.

Du Sautoy, adopted the nom de guerre “The Professor” and used the decimal expansion of pi to inform his decision of whether to use rock, paper or scissors.

Du Sautoy used this method to illustrate “how humans are really pattern searchers at heart”. He stated that the contestants who did well in the tournament were the ones who were able to “spot patterns in the people they are playing”

Du Sautoy’s participation was filmed by the BBC and will be used in his new series entitled “The Code”

Definitely not just hot air

Jacob Haddad
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Definitely not just hot air

On Tuesday morning, Oxford woke up to discover hundreds of helium-filled balloons anonymously planted around the city centre, tied to bicycles, railings and signs.

On Tuesday morning, Oxford woke up to discover hundreds of helium-filled balloons anonymously planted around the city centre, tied to bicycles, railings and signs.
The red balloons were all attached to cards with an ‘x’ on one side and ‘260911’ on the other, and were found around the Radcliffe Camera , Merton College, Harris Manchester College, Christ Church College and along Broad Street.
Witnesses first spotted the balloons at around 6am on Tuesday. Within hours, tourists were photographing the phenomena, children were helping themselves to the balloons, some ‘setting them free’.
One student commented, “Still feeling a tad hungover and heading to the confines of the Rad Cam first thing to try and get some finals revision done, seeing balloons all around the square made my morning. I was slightly disappointed to find that the celebrations didn’t continue inside the library.”
Twitter users tried to decipher their origin, with user white_hart tweeting, “Maybe there are 99 and it’s a warning…”.
Another user commented, “It is the closing date for this job: Oxford University Lecturer in the Social Anthropology of Africa. A balloon campaign seems OTT though”.
Suggestions as to who is responsible for the balloons have included marketing stunts by Milkround, TEDxOxford and Love Oxford. None of these groups have yet claimed responsibility for the activity.
The printed number, 260911, is not valid as a local telephone number or University extension. As a date, it points to the Monday of -1st week in Michaelmas though though there does not yet appear to be any major events on that date.

The red balloons were all attached to cards with an ‘x’ on one side and ‘260911’ on the other, and were found around the Radcliffe Camera , Merton College, Harris Manchester College, Christ Church College and along Broad Street.

Witnesses first spotted the balloons at around 6am on Tuesday. Within hours, tourists were photographing the phenomena, children were helping themselves to the balloons, some ‘setting them free’.

One student commented, “Still feeling a tad hungover and heading to the confines of the Rad Cam first thing to try and get some finals revision done, seeing balloons all around the square made my morning. I was slightly disappointed to find that the celebrations didn’t continue inside the library.”

Twitter users tried to decipher their origin, with user white_hart tweeting, “Maybe there are 99 and it’s a warning…”.

Another user commented, “It is the closing date for this job: Oxford University Lecturer in the Social Anthropology of Africa. A balloon campaign seems OTT though”.

Suggestions as to who is responsible for the balloons have included marketing stunts by Milkround, TEDxOxford and Love Oxford. None of these groups have yet claimed responsibility for the activity.

The printed number, 260911, is not valid as a local telephone number or University extension. As a date, it points to the Monday of -1st week in Michaelmas though there does not yet appear to be any major events on that date.

‘Town and Gown’ unite for charity run

Sam Firman
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‘Town and Gown’ unite for charity run

This weekend the sleepy streets of Oxford came alive for the 30th annual ‘Town and Gown’ 10 kilometre race.

Established in 1981 by Michael Cleaver to raise money for children who suffer from muscular dystrophy, the race is now a celebrated highlight of Oxford’s calendar.

This year over 3000 people once more dusted down their running shoes to raise what is expected to be a six figure sum for charities aiding the condition.

Dr Matthew Wood has been researching muscular dystrophy here at the University for 12 years, and with project costs of £117,480, he says that the money raised through the annual race, which meets these costs, is greatly appreciated.

Dr Wood said, “the ‘Town & Gown’ is extremely valuable. We have very large research grants but also small ones from the MDC which are extremely important for getting new projects off the ground”. Indeed the Town and Gown is a great example of how important community events can be for such critical research.

As well as funding such important ventures, the run also presents a light hearted way for students and townspeople alike to have fun and enjoy the city in a very novel way. Elite athletes may have led the way, but the ranks were bolstered by a variety of weird and wonderful looking competitors.

Aisling Leow, a first year at Lincoln College ran the race for the first time. “I was originally dreading it, but now I’m really glad I did it”, she said. “There was some amazing costumes; Big Bird, Spartans, the Flintstones, and an ambulance”.

Third year PPEist Jess Nangle also ran the race, and said that “the mix of people gave the event a really vibrant atmosphere”.

The atmosphere was no doubt helped by runners dressed as “Scooby Doo, Big Bird and a Gladiator”, all of whom race winner and Oxford University student David Bruce spotted on his way around the course.

David was quick to advocate the event to other students, commenting, “You race past some iconic buildings and the crowds are great and offer lots of support to all the runners. It’s all for a good cause too, so all in all a wonderful event”.

Review: The Government Inspector

May Anderson
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Review: The Government Inspector

A little light satire isn’t everyone’s thing; neither is 19th Century Russian comedy. Still fewer would claim to be a fan of the Russian writer Nikolai Gogol. Yet on exiting Sunday’s press preview for The Government Inspector I experienced a bizarre renewal of interest in all three. It seems this year’s garden shows had better step up their game, as the Univ Players’ delightful production has already set a high standard.

Gogol’s play is essentially a comedy of errors in which the impoverished aristocrat Khlestakov is mistaken for a dreaded government inspector. The inspector, whose imminent arrival strikes fear into the hearts of the Mayor and his apathetic townspeople, has been sent there to rid the town of corruption. But when Khlestakov realises the extent to which he can exploit this predicament to pay off his debts, and pocket a bit of cash, a characteristically Russian farce ensues.

Refreshingly funny, The Government Inspector is light and whimsical – more gently amusing than laugh-out-loud entertaining. Nevertheless, I thoroughly enjoyed the frothiness Jack Peters has procured from Gogol’s script – the original production of the play was only put on at the personal intervention of Tsar Nicholas I, so mocking was the satirical strain. Of course, we don’t live in Tsarist Russia and the political implications of Gogol’s comedy will probably fly silently over most of our heads. But even I know corruption is bad and therefore I was, and I’m sure you’ll be, receptive enough to interpret the play’s moral.

James Skinner, playing the foppish Khlestakov with more than a dash of Boris Johnson, is effortlessly funny as the man who serendipitously finds refuge in this corrupt town. Felix Legge gives a winning performance as the crooked Mayor; he might be the quasi-villain of this piece but it’s quite hard not to root for his particular brand of misplaced cunning. Whilst the rest of the Univ Players do a lovely job of representing the caricatures of village life – this after all is a satire with little concern for verisimilitude – there are one or two weak links in what is an almost great ensemble. Also noteworthy is Nouran Koriem as the Mayor’s wife who gives a pitch-perfect performance as the spouse of a bourgeois official.

Of the garden show previews I’ve seen this term The Government Inspector is the one most suited to the genteel setting of the Oxford college garden. A little light satire isn’t everyone’s thing – but the way Univ Players do it, it certainly should be.

How To… The Ankle Boot

Laura Wright
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How To… The Ankle Boot

When, not so long ago, the ankle boot first emerged as a statement piece in its own right (thank you Christian and Azzedine) I think it’s safe to say that the world was really quite sceptical. Lisa Armstrong summed it up perfectly: ‘not too many years ago the entire fashion desk at The Times abhorred the shoe-boot, deeming it the greatest enemy to leg enhancement since the jam doughnut’.  But as is so often the case in fashion, all it took was a few seasons before we all started to see sense.

I am just one of thousands of converts who have realised how flattering the ankle boot really is if you wear it in the right way. So for those of you who are still sitting on the fence (or on the wrong side of it), here is a guide on how to work this key trend throughout the whole year. And, if you manage to master it, then you will truly know what Marilyn Monroe meant when she said ‘give a girl the right shoes, and she can conquer the world’.  

 

 

1. If you’re new to the trend, then my advice would be to wait for a relatively cool day before you launch yourself into it, for the simple reason that everything seems a lot less daunting when black opaque tights are involved!  A pair of black boots with a chunky block heel and platform at the front will go with absolutely anything, and coupled with the tights, will work wonders for leg length.

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2. For a completely different take on the trend during the colder months go for a flat biker pair, couple them with your skinny jeans and leather jacket and hey presto – instantly cool and edgy.

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3. Whilst this is certainly not for the faint-hearted, if you’ve got the legs for it then heeled black ankle boots can be carried over into the summer months.  These boots look great with bare and slightly tanned legs, and will go with anything from denim cut-offs to a white floaty dress.

 

 

4. But what about the less brave among us?  The golden rules are to match the colour of the boots with your skin tone and to keep the heel as high as possible – both contributing towards that leg-lengthening effect.  Keep your outfit relatively simple and floaty; if you’re wearing something like a tight mini then it has the potential to look a bit trashy.

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Street Style #5

Inga Meladze
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Street Style #5

Who would’ve thought that brogues, neon glasses, a rucksack and a granny dress could look so fabulous together? And as for short girls not wearing long dresses, well that rule is out the window…

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Street Style #4

Inga Meladze
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Street Style #4

Like no one else, this fashionista fights the dullness the typical Oxford attire of baggy hoodies and worn-down trackies. Eye-popping t-shirt and laces complement the beige and he’s even got a matching camera!

 

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