Author: Emily Houlston-Jones

After several delays over three years, the Pontio Arts & Innovation Centre looks ready to impress The final countdown to the official opening of Pontio has begun. Tours of the arts and innovation centre are being held until the 17th of November after a three-year delay. The tours marked the first time the general public have been allowed to enter the much-maligned structure. It garnered public criticism after its opening date had been delayed numerous times. Due to these delays, the projected costs associated with the construction of the building have soared above the original estimate of £37 million to…

A north Wales teenager was left ‘covered in blood’ following a brutal attack at a house party in Abergele. Tia Jade Edwards, 16, sustained the images after an alleged attack by two 37-year old women, in which a glass bottle was used. Edwards’s aunt, Alison Faulds, of Old Colwyn, contacted the police in the aftermath of the attack, and uploaded pictures to Facebook showing the full extent of the teenager’s injuries. Ms Faulds spoke to The Daily Mail, saying: “I decided to release the disturbing images to highlight the injuries and encourage potential witnesses to come forward. “Tia banged on…

On July 8th, Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne presented his budget to parliament. This is the first Tory budget without Lid Dem input since 2010, and the second of the year. Undoubtedly, this budget will have an effect on the students of Bangor; past, present and future. We at Seren have combed through over 100 pages of statistics, numbers, and political thinkspeak to bring you the Budget for Bangor, demonstrating how the Budget will impact our students. Universities The Good News “The government has […] committed for the first time to remove the cap on student numbers, enabling thousands…

I can pinpoint the exact moment I became a full-blown, bona-fide Ella Eyre fan. It was about 25 minutes into her set at the Summer Ball. The energy of the room was flagging; people were taking their shoes off, dancing less. The shouts were a little quieter, the singing a little less enthusiastic. People were starting to realise that getting drunk and dancing around a big room can be exhausting. Then Ella Eyre swaggered up to the microphone, with the confidence of someone who’s been performing for 20 years, and bellowed at the audience “Are you ready?” Suddenly, we were.…

A local man has died after falling from Menai Bridge. The man, who has yet to be named, fell from the bridge on Saturday afternoon. Rescue teams, including helicopters, attempted to save the man, but he was pronounced dead at the scene of the incident. Menai Bridge was closed to traffic as the rescue teams carried out their work. A North Wales spokesman said: “We received a call at 4.55pm [on Saturday, the 30th of May] reporting that a person had fallen from the Menai Bridge. “Police were assisted by the ambulance, Holyhead Coastguard and RAF Valley 22 Squadron but…

Maesgeirchen Social Club is set to play host to an emerging alternative rock band this June. Zefur Wolves is a Welsh 5-piece band, and have written songs in Welsh, English, and Spanish. They were formed when two talented musicians began to work together – both professionally and personally. Super Furry Animal’s keyboardist Cian Ciarán and Baby Queens’ vocalist Estelle Ios are romantic partners as well as being the key collaborators behind the fledgling band. The Zefur Wolves line-up is completed by Danny Wall on drums, Zirian Tahirili on guitar and Trystan Palfrey on bass. All band members are Welsh, and…

Yesterday I discovered my wife was pregnant with another man’s baby. I was away in Scotland at the time, fighting a bloody and seemingly endless war to claim the county of Fife. I sent an assassin to kill my wife’s lover; when the baby arrived, I named it ‘Homewrecker.’ Then I quit Crusader Kings II and went to sleep. At 1am. After playing for 5 hours. In Crusader Kings II, this kind of drama is all in a day’s work. Or an hour’s playtime, depending on what speed you prefer to play at. Simply described, Crusader Kings II is a…

Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board has come under fire from local community members and politicians following a series of controversial decisions. The Health Board, which oversees health services in North Wales, including Bangor’s Gwynedd Hospital and Bodnant Medical Centre, has faced a troubled year, began courting controversy in November 2014. It was in this month that NHS Wales published a report showing that the Health Board was the worst in Wales for A&E waiting times, with over 20% of patients waiting for longer than the maximum target waiting time of four hours. Ysbyty Glan Clwyd, Bodelwydden, was the worst performing…

In a new table released by the Times Higher Education Magazine, Bangor University was placed 90th in the world for most international university, coming 1st in Wales in the categories for internationality and research. This is a large improvement for the university, which failed to place in last year’s table. This success follows another, after the University’s research activity in the 2014 Research Excellence Framework results designated three-quarters of Bangor’s research to be either world-leading or internationally excellent, the top two categories. Bangor University is also a UK leader in student satisfaction, with the 2014 National Student Survey placing Bangor…

Overall, 2014 was a pretty great year for television. There were many great debutants such as True Detective and Fargo, and many other television shows that carried on with fine form such as Game of Thrones and Orange is the New Black. As the Golden Globes and Screen Actors Guild have announced their winners, the Seren team has decided to pick who we thought derserved the awards. 

Bangor University Student’s Union have scored several victories in the ongoing battle for 24/7 library access for university students. After two trial periods last year – during which both Main Arts library and Deiniol library were open 24/7, and which ended on the 31st of May 2014 – the University decided against keeping the trial opening hours. Instead, Deiniol was closed at midnight, and Main Arts library only became a 24- hour library after November 3rd, and was closed during the Easter holidays. However, following feedback from students, Student Union President Rhys Taylor announced on the 17th of…

Two Bangor University lecturers have been presented with prestigious teaching awards. Professor James Intriligator and Peggy James, both members of Bangor University’s College of Health & Behavioural Sciences, received National Teaching Fellows for excellence in Higher Education at an award ceremony, held on the 8th of October. Professor Intriligator is a Professor of Innovation and Consumer Psychology, while Ms. Murphy is a Nurse Lecturer. Both are experienced in their fields, with Professor Intriligator being a pioneer in the field of consumer psychology, while Ms. Murphy is an experienced nurse, having worked in both the UK and Australia. Both have commented…

The A55 expressway, which runs from Chester to Holyhead, has come under scrutiny following several incidents in the past few months. Ongoing road works have been taking place over the past few months on the road, leading to huge tailbacks. Clwyd West Assembly Member Darren Millar says he has been contacted by dozens of angry motorists about the road works. Speaking at the Welsh Assembly Senate, he said: “There are miles and miles of cones across the A55, but there appears to be precious little work taking place. “Presumably the works were planned well in advance, including the dates on…

North Wales Police have launched an appeal to locate missing Menai Bridge resident, 59-year-old John Etiemble. Mr Etiemble was last seen at his Menai Bridge home. He has a slim build, and is five foot ten inches tall. He has black hair and tattoos on his arms. He was last seen wearing a long coat, jeans, and boots. North Wales Police have yet to release any more information regarding the disappearance, but have asked anyone with any information regarding Mr Etiemble’s whereabouts to phone 101.

A man’s body was discovered in the Menai Strait, near Bangor Pier, just before 11am this morning. The body, which was discovered by a member of the public, has not been identified. Piermaster Stanley Stewart said, speaking to The Daily Post, “He was spotted by someone walking on the pier in the water close to the shore on the Menai Bridge side of the pier. The police were alerted and the coastguard were also here.” The RNLI Beaumaris inshore lifeboat crew recovered the body. The pier was closed until 2pm, while police carried out checks. A North Wales Police spokesman…

A man in his 30s was taken to Gwynedd Hospital in Gwynedd with “non-life threatening injuries” following an incident on on the railway near Bangor. The incident led to delays between  Bangor and Llandudno Junction train stations, before the lines were re-opened just after 1pm. The Welsh Ambulance Service released a statement regarding the incident, saying: “We were called at 11.11am today, Wednesday May 28, to the railway line in Bangor. “An Advanced Paramedic Practitioner in a rapid response car attended along with crew in an emergency ambulance, and a man in his 30s with non-life threatening…