Author: Amelia Smith

April is the month of poetry! Every year, the month is set aside to celebrate all things poetry. National Poetry Month was established in 1996 by the Academy of American Poets. April was the month chosen because it was best suited to coordinate with those most interested in poetry, and it falls at a time thought to encourage poetry reading for the remainder of the year. Yes, spring is a chance for revival, and the beginning of new life, in this case, a renewal to poetry reading. The aim of poetry month is to encourage more poetry reading, highlight ongoing…

Photo by florantevaldez (CC0 1.0) Unfortunately, almost all art forms have been affected in one way or another due to the continuing pandemic and public restrictions put in place to protect people. However, one art form that hasn’t been slowed down at all by lockdown is podcasts. Even without lockdown, they’re basically a more democratic replacement for radio. A podcast is an audio episode or series of recorded spoken word for anyone to listen to on any device. It’s the same process as listening to music or radio, but you listen to a person (or people) talking about a particular subject. …

Bangor-based podcast, Culture My Arts, has secured a Hollywood cameo from Welsh born star of Clint Eastwood’s Invictus & Zack Snyder’s Justice League – Julian Lewis Jones. Culture My Arts, described as a radio show, audio drama & podcast rolled into one, was made independently by 15 Bangor graduates over lockdown. The launch of Series 1 has seen the podcast amass 1000’s of listeners and have various sketches featured on BBC Merseyside, Sheffield, Stoke, Berkshire, Sussex Three Counties & Cambridge. Culture My Arts calls itself a fully scripted satirical fiction podcast which spoofs radio shows and takes the mickey of…

Photo by Leppicu (CC BY-SA 4.0) This article aims to point out some interesting art forms that arguably aren’t so alternative, but that are not so much in mainstream media, like your conventional portrait on a canvas. Most of them are accessible too, in that anyone can have a go – it doesn’t have to cost an arm and a leg! Cake Decorating This is one I think a lot of people will have seen on social media and TV. It has become something of a craze over the last few years; a competition of who can create the most…

Photo by Pikist (CC0) Emma Rice’s theatre company Wise Children adapts Angela Carter’s final novel of the same name, in a thrilling theatre piece bursting with laughter, sex and music. Following the lives of twin chorus girls Nora and Dora, the play explores heartbreak and mistaken identities in a theatrical whirlwind of a show. The production begins with some of the cast already on stage – some are limbering up, some are checking the lighting, and a caretaker type figure watches the audience, who at this point is still murmuring. Only when the music starts up and the cast begins to dance…

Photo by Pixabay (CC0 1.0) Scenes for Survival is a growing collection of short digital artworks that have been created in response to Covid-19. Each piece is curated by a team of creatives and artists to reflect the impact the lockdown has had on individuals. Out of a huge number of films, I chose to watch ‘Naeb’dy’ and ‘Future Perfect Tense’. ‘Naeb’dy’ is a 6-minute film that takes place in the future, where things have reached the extreme. It is made up of video diaries detailing one man’s experience of the virus in a year’s time. Each entry is given…

Photo designed by Freepik, www.freepik.com Watching Rosie is a 12 minute-long play that covers the experience of a person living with dementia during the lockdown. The entire short takes place over a video call between a grandmother and granddaughter, giving the audience insight into a personal conversation that is both funny and moving. The play opens with ‘Hiya’, some light piano and guitar music, and what is now a familiar sight – a video call between relatives. Straightaway we are shown Alice’s playful side. She hides from the camera while Rosie worriedly calls ‘Gran!’, who then pops up from the…

Photo designed by Freepik, www.freepik.com Developed out of a collaboration between Bangor’s Pontio and families from North Wales, Theatr Iolo’s Platform Program has enabled the unique construction of the Welsh-language play Chwarae, by Elgan Rhys. Theatr Iolo is a theatre company that seeks to produce shows which invite children and young people to learn and get creative. True to its objective, the production follows the protagonist – a young boy, most likely of a similar age to those in the audience – who must adapt to changes and learn to accept new challenges; his journey encourages the audience to explore…

Photo by Wokandapix at Pixabay (CC0 1.0) Making art can bring you joy and entertainment for yourself and others. This can be any form of art – paintings, drawings, stories, poetry, music, dance and so on. However, it isn’t just fun! The act of creating can also strengthen your brain and bring some serenity to your daily life. Getting creative is a form of escapism. It can have a calming effect on your mood, which can help if you are feeling stressed-out or anxious. Art can also help you work out your feelings. If you are faced with a problem…

Culture My Arts is a newly premiered podcast designed to spoof discourse around arts and culture. The satire project consists of a team of Bangor graduates led by originator Finnian Shardlow, who first began developing the idea in 2017. The team agreed to talk to Seren about their project. What is Culture My Arts? Culture My Arts is a podcast, audio drama and radio show all rolled into one. Which means it’s super interesting to listen to, but extremely hard to explain.  In a nutshell, it’s a fully scripted satirical podcast which spoofs the sound of a live radio news…

Jamie King is the author of the short play “The Resignation Speech” – part of a new season of audio dramas produced by The Questors Theatre in Ealing, London. A Bangor graduate, King studied Creative and Professional Writing at Bangor University from September 2016 to June 2019. They have published poetry, short fiction and non-fiction, and have written and performed for film and theatre groups in Bangor and across the UK. You can listen to “The Resignation Speech” now by clicking these links to it on youtube or soundcloud. Seren talked to King to hear about their experiences creating it.…

Photo by Videoplasty.com (CC BY-SA 4.0) Set in scenic North Wales, the BBC’s Hidden is a recent detective drama series that follows the investigation of a young woman found dead in a river in the Snowdonia National Park. Kicking off the series, the first episode begins with a man driving wildly through a wooded area, headlights ablaze. We don’t see his face, we just know that he’s wearing a baseball cap, and has a large vehicle – perhaps a pick-up truck. He gets out and runs between the trees with a torch, searching for something. He meets with a crying, scared-looking…

Photo designed by Freepik, www.freepik.com Due to the ongoing Covid situation, a number of organisations have placed theatre work online so that audiences may still enjoy a variety of entertainment while supporting an industry hit hard by the pandemic. These services include: The National Theatre – Currently closed to the public, throughout the lockdown, The National Theatre have shared past live-streamed performances for all to watch, with the request that viewers voluntarily donate to aid their recovery from the impact of the pandemic. At the moment, I can’t see that any productions are being posted, as they are focusing on…

Most of us will know famed naturalist and television presenter Steve Backshall from his TV series, Deadly 60. Or perhaps from his appearance on Strictly Come Dancing in 2014. Either way, he is set to give a series of lectures for students in Bangor’s College of Environmental Sciences and Engineering (CoESE)! Steve is busy working on a documentary series with SKY TV on shark conservation, but even so, plans are now in place for him and senior zoology lecturer, Dr Christian Dunn, to work alongside each other during these sessions. He will be teaching students about zoology, conservation, and the…

I am a second year undergraduate student at Bangor University, and I am asking for your feedback! I have started an internship at university (remotely!) titled: Useful Hacks to Make Life at University Easier. The internship involves asking current students what they wish they had known before starting university. I will use this feedback to create a series of blog posts that aim to directly support and advise future Bangor students. This is a great opportunity to help new students settle in quicker and receive answers to their questions, whatever they are. So, while we are all staying at home in these…

With the instruction to wash our hands thoroughly and frequently following the Coronavirus pandemic, hand sanitiser is the obvious purchase we should all make to keep clean easily throughout the day. However, soap and water is always the better option whenever it is available. Unfortunately, in these strange times, one thing we have all noticed is that, alongside toilet roll and paracetamol, we can’t get hold of hand sanitiser in the shops. If you are or have been unable to buy any, but you feel you should have some, this article offers two recipes you can follow to make your…