OAKBANK Sixth Form Magazine

ISSUE 1 - June 2010

University Open Days for June.

Off-the-cuff Cooking.

Current Fashion.

Media Reviews

How NOT to be late for school.

AS Exams Enlightening

Content

The mob descends

Dear Readers,

Voilà! I present to you the new Sixth Form Magazine! With much typing, nagging and working,

it was finally put together, hurrah! This issue contains the usual selection of music, games and

film reviews alongside the new fashion page, author profile and a few other miscellaneous arti-

cles. Also included, is an article that I‟m sure every student can associate with; the subject being

mornings. I think that this month‟s calendar will be taken over by the World Cup; as I type Eng-

land is playing USA , c‟mon England?!

It feels so strange to be writing this instead of Kerry, but I'd like to applaud her for being the

steady leader of the magazine for the year. I‟d also like to thank the OSFM team for this

month... Ploughing on through the exam period was definitely mad, but we did it! So well done

all!

I hope that you enjoy the Issue, feedback is always welcome.

Your New Editor,

Jasmine Camm.

Oakbank Sixth Form Magazine 02

03 - The New Website!

04 - AS Exams Enlightenment

05 - Snoozzzzzzze

06 - Confectionary Conclusions

07 - It‟s a Breeze

08 - Summer fashion 2010

09 - Author Profile: Pratchett

10 - Internet Picks of the Month

11 - Things to Do

12 - Things to Own

13 - 4 Years Later

13 - Gig Reviews

15 - Music

16 - Film

16 - Games

17 - Random Facts

18 - June Open Days

19 - Contact Us

(Click a page title to be taken to it!)

"And since all this loveliness can not be

Heaven, I know in my heart it is June."

– Abba Goold Woolson (1838–1921)

Oakbank Sixth Form Magazine 03

The New Website! By Kieran Clayton

>> www.osfm.co.nr << The new official Oakbank Sixth Form Magazine website offers plenty of

new things. It has a new style and layout which allows easy navigation

across the whole site. (Without an ad to be seen!). The new site will display

much of what can be found in the magazine, but there is also content exclu-

sive to the website; examples being articles published randomly by the

team which means that you won‟t miss anything!

Not only that, but there is now a whole section for the Sixth Form Team.

Mary and both Rachels currently have an account. In this section they will

be able to post instant updates and information just like the stuff that you

get through emails; the difference being that it is all stored in one place and

won‟t ever be „exceeding the storage limit‟. You could even ask questions

and comment on the articles using the simple comment form.

What sort of Content can I find on the site I hear you ask?

Well, we have:

A list of tutor periods - something that normally circulates by word of

mouth.

Useful links to UCAS and other handy websites that will make your

time at Oakbank easier.

A list of Open Days, provided by Rachel Gallagher, which will be up-

dated whenever we are informed of a new open day!

The ability to download the latest issue of OSFM, you can also view it

online in the style of a real magazine!

You can even submit your own article by using the simple submit

form, the article will be sent straight to the Editor‟s email and you

might even end up in the next issue of OSFM.

The new website is just a great way of keeping in the know about what's

going on in Sixth Form, whether this be Fundraising or important meetings

in the common room, it will all be in one place, www.osfm.co.nr.

We‟d encourage both students and teachers to get involved.

Oakbank Sixth Form Magazine 04

AS Exams Enlightening By Nicola Langthorne Closing of Exams for AS.

Now that you've have jumped the hurdle of exams it's time to take a breather, it‟s also a great op-

portunity to make the best of your time. Here are a few suggestions!

I t's highly recommended that we invest some time doing voluntary work. This could be at

Manorlands through the connections we have at Oakbank - a wonderful organisation to help and

be a part of. Other options are as part of the vInvolved volunteering award, which you can sign

up for on the 28th June Period 2! These are great opportunities in which you can selflessly help

others and feel great about, with another plus side of it being helpful on UCAS and job applica-

tions.

A good plan would be to look at UCAS and career websites, researching the possible options

you have for University and jobs for the near future. From here, you could look at how you could

link any voluntary work or hobbies to the subject which you wish to study. Also, beginning your

CV's and Personal Statements is a great idea; the latter of course will be a main subject in tutor

periods. The better you can make them, the better your chances!

Something that would be beneficial for the nearing A2 year is looking for extra work. AS stu-

dents can begin to look into extra work to get a head start in your subjects. This could be from

wider reading for English to visiting museums for Art! Look into your options, and also what you

can do over the summer. This is a wonderful chance and you will reap the benefits.

Finally, make the most of Enrichment Week, and most importantly have some fun!

By Jasmine Camm Top 5 Things that AS exams have taught me:

Set up a revision timetable earlier. Admittedly, we were told again and again to set up those time tables; but who waited until the last

few weeks of exam mania to draw up their calendar? From what I've gathered, quite a number. The

exams seemed to sneak up on us, no matter what we were told. Ah, It‟s a lesson learnt. Point:

Don‟t wait until there is so much stress that revising becomes a mixture of panic (of the time you

have left to revise) and crammed knowledge.

Read through notes after lessons. Again, it was advised and yet the exams seemed to be so far away that it seemed rather strange to

do that so soon. The transition from GCSE exams to AS exams was massive, as was the work load

and thus the need for revision.

Point: The earlier you start, the more comfortable you‟ll be with the subject, the less nervous you‟ll

be when it comes to the exam.

How to revise. After trying stacks of techniques and advice given to me, it was only in the past month or so in

which I finally found a way that works for me! This was the most valuable thing that I learnt from

the exams, at least now I have the technique sorted and so i‟m comfortable with how I can improve.

Point: It‟s pointless revising if the technique isn‟t suit-

able for you.

Avoid panicking people. Just before an exam there is chaos. Basically, it‟s some-

what contagious and should be avoided at all costs. If

you end up panicking in the exam, then it will muddle

your brain, calm down.

Point: Don‟t cram, don‟t have joint panic attacks with

people, and be calm. You‟ve done all you can.

“Told you so”

I‟m sure that many of us are cursing ourselves for lis-

tening, but not putting into action, the advice which we

had been given by both teachers and students at the

beginning of the year.

Point: Cringeworthy... „listen to what we are told‟.

Also, don't worry after exams. What's done is done, wor-

rying will do nothing to help, take Nicola's advice above

and fill your time with things that will help.

Oakbank Sixth Form Magazine 05

“OH NO! Its 8 o‟clock, my bus is in

10 minutes!”

By Kieran Clayton

Snooze, the first word most of us read in a morning. There is no doubt that we all love it - such

a handy tool. I‟m sure you all agree with me when I say that getting out of bed in the morning is

one of life‟s greatest challenges; given the chance I think we would all rather stay there for a few

more hours and roll into school at the hour that pleases us best.

Waking up in the morning and getting out of bed really shouldn‟t be a chore; what excuses do

we have? Too tired? It‟s warm in here... I‟ve got too much to do! Getting up in the morning

should be a good thing - you are waking from, on average, 8 hours of sleep; a new day has begun

and it shouldn‟t be taken for granted. In this article I will give you some tips on how to get out of

bed fast and begin your days! As well as others‟ methods of getting up...

Tips on how to make it easier to get out of bed in a morning:

Be organised! - Having to pick out what to wear and gather your books together in the

morning is all too confusing when you‟ve just woken up, so do it the night before. Spend

10 minutes before you go to bed putting your books for the next day in your bag and get

your clothes out, or at least pick them.

But what do I have to get up for?! – Think of the benefits of getting up... some that

spring to mind for me are; I won‟t miss the bus, I‟ll have time for breakfast, Mary won‟t

kill me! I can start a new day - who knows what might happen!

Think of the dangers... – A classic mistake is when the alarm sounds like an air raid

siren; in a tired dash to stop the ear splitting noise, instead of hitting snooze you hit turn

off... then you fall back to sleep. OH NO! Its 8 o‟clock, my bus is in 10 minutes! You will

never make it, so just think... if you‟d have gotten out of bed pronto then you would be

able to stroll to the bus stop instead or running half dressed.

Now here are other people’s methods, the

weird and the wonderful:

“I get my mum to come in and put Queen on LOUD; I

have big speakers!”

“Wash your hair the night before.” – Courtesy of Year 12

History class.

“I set about 5 alarms before I go to bed; phones, radio,

clock... they all go off about 5 minutes after each other”

“I use my phone alarms, so I set two; the second one goes

off 30 minutes after the first so when I snooze the first

one, they start going off randomly and that really starts to

annoy me”

If you still can‟t get out of bed after reading this then you need

to go to bed earlier... seriously.

Oakbank Sixth Form Magazine 06

Confectionary Conclusions By Jasmine Camm

After undertaking a number of food experiments that had successful and not-quite-successful re-

sults, I decided that they‟d be interesting to share - at least the successful ones. You may be wonder-

ing what on earth confectionary has got to do with school? To be perfectly honest, I would say that it

hasn‟t got much to do with school. If I had to pick an argument, I‟d say that food is essential to good

learning (albeit, healthy food) and that relaxation is crucial to coursework - This is how I relax, wel-

come!

Sweet Successes

The Somewhat Soufflé

Mini Muffins

Contents: Victoria sponge mix (with cocoa), chilli chocolate, double cream and some

berries.

This is something that I discovered on a lazy day. I wanted something chocolate and quick.

After cooking the chocolate cupcakes (either in a ramekin or as usual), make some ganache

by pouring almost boiling cream into a bowl of equal amounts of chopped chocolate, I used

chilli chocolate. Then mix. Cut the cakes as you would do a butterfly bun, but make the cut

deeper, then fill the gap with the ganache, place in the oven again to heat the whole thing to the same tempera-

ture. This recipe is ready to eat in less than half an hour so it‟s perfect for those chocolate urges or pajama days.

Depending on your tastes, I‟d suggest eating with raspberries, black cherries or shortbread. I am in love with

this snack, it‟s quick, it‟s easy and it tastes amazing.

Contents: Victoria sponge mix, food colouring, buttercream and smarties.

These were purely and simply, ace. Due to the minute bun cases that the cupcakes

were cooked in peeling away, we resorted to this is order to make them presentable

for a party. A tiny amount of buttercream in between the mirroring cupcakes sticks

them together and then the swirl of buttercream on the top adds flavour and texture

to the whole thing. They tasted like a compact version of a butterly bun, and looked

really quite fictional, they reminded me of a children‟s fairytale. The downside? They are gone in one bite.

Sweet Disasters The Cardiac Cake

Contents: An awful lot of butter, sugar and chocolate. Improvise.

Sure, it doesn‟t look like much, but after only a few bites you‟ll soon find yourself wondering

just exactly how much chocolate is in the cake. The recipe is practically butter, sugar and

chocolate with a sprinkle of flour and egg. It was coated with a thick layer of Cadbury‟s ga-

nache as we made too much for such a small cake - with Cadbury‟s chocolate, the ganache

tastes very caramel-ish, very sickly. Even the largest Chocoholic I know couldn‟t handle an-

other slice. Although the general flavour exceeded expectations, that aspect of the cake was also its downfall;

everyone feared for their blood-sugar levels that day, we couldn‟t stomach any junk food, how sad...

Gummy Bear Genocide

Contents: Victoria sponge mix, food colouring and gummy bears.

This was purely experimental...The analysis? Gummy bears + Cake mixture = Ex-

plosion. The rating was given for prettiness and the sheer addictive nature of these

colourful creations, stars were taken off because they are sickly and really quite

revolting. As you can see in the picture, the pink was the most delightfully cute

thing, which boosted the rating a lot. Otherwise, the buns are like extra strong toffee

to the teeth, as the melted gummy bears refuse to release their grip on anything they

touch. They were certainly unusual, and the gummy bears gave the sponge a very sweet flavour, they may have

even been nice if there was a higher sponge : gummy bear ratio. Overall, they were fun to make, fun to watch as

the gummy bears explode in the oven but really not fun to bite.

Oakbank Sixth Form Magazine 07

By Rhianna Jones

Discounts With Breeze Cards you can get great discounts, free gifts and gain entry to special events all

around the Leeds area!

Some of the many events include:

Young Peoples Film Festival

Middleton Railway Trust (£1 off adult return, 50p off additional Breeze Card holders. Saturdays

only) Freedom Divers (20% off all try dive sessions)

Swimming (Discounts vary with age)

Squash/Badminton

Fitness Classes

Breezereads Book Discounts (15% off selected books at Borders)

Karate International Black Belt Schools (Discount of £15 per person)

Leeds Wall (10% off pre-booked sessions)

Breeze Cards double up as a library card

Jumbo Records (5% off all full priced merchandise)

Breeze on Tour!

Breeze International Youth Festival 2010

Breeze Breaks Out!

It‟s a Breeze Are you 19 and under?

Do you want great discounts on

sports and entertainment?

Could a Breeze Card be for you?

Breeze on Tour This five week tour gives you the chance to get outside and have a laugh with your friends.

Aimed at 8-18 year olds the Breeze Tour travels to different locations holding many activities

that Breeze Card holders can access for free!

Some activities at Breeze on Tour:

Dancing

Arts + Crafts

Music

Football

DJ‟s

Movie Making

Performances from locally formed bands

TO GET YOUR BREEZE CARD, VISIT:

www.breezeleeds.org (Click above to be taken to site)

Oakbank Sixth Form Magazine 08

Fashion By Olivia Sayer & Michaela Johns

Summer is on our doorstep! ... Hopefully. So make the most of the sunny days as they come

by stepping out in the à la mode of spring/summer 2010.

Proportions have changed this season; floor skimming hemlines are summers favourite new

length. From bodycon styles in bold shades and eye-popping prints to floaty pieces in romantic

hues. This long and flowing shape is going to be this season‟s statement silhouette.

Trend 1 – The Maxi Dress Trend 2 – Sportswear Trend 3 – Nude

A big one for the summer is

the maxi dress. In order to

make it look good, ensure

that you have the cut that is

perfect for you, so even

short people can wear it. If

you‟re short, avoid dresses

with large skirts, to avoid

being swamped. Team with

strappy sandals and either a

denim jacket for the chillier

days or a waistcoat when the

sun is blazing.

Here are some maxi dresses

from the high street, differ-

ing in types:

Another trend to follow this

season is the All American

collegiate look. Sports in-

spired pieces can include;

sheer layers, aertex meshes,

neoprene panels and lattice

detailing – creating a cool

athletic vibe. Haute hoodies

emblazoned with motifs,

sweatpants and oversized

baseball jackets can be

teamed with jersey maxi

dresses or knits.

This season is focusing on

the colour nude. Pastel col-

ours and nude are a must if

you want to hit this season‟s

main trend.

£20,

boohoo.com £39.99,

River Island

£32,

Topshop

£30,

Topshop

£18,

Topshop

£40,

Topshop

£40

Urban outfitters

£18

Urban Outfitters

£22

Urban Outfitters

Something for the Guys...

£25

Asos.com

£40

Asos.com

Biography

Sir Terry Pratchett, OBE, was born in Buck-

inghamshire in 1948. He is an extremely suc-

cessful fantasy writer, having sold over 55

million books worldwide. He was given an

OBE for services to literature in 1998, was

knighted in the Queen‟s 2009 New Year Hon-

ours, and has received 8 honorary doctorates.

He was diagnosed with Alzheimer‟s disease in

2007, and has since made large donations to

help find a cure; he has also presented a TV

programme to help raise awareness. He pub-

lished his first story at the age of 13, The Hades Business (in his school magazine!), which was

later published commercially.

Oakbank Sixth Form Magazine 09

Author Profile: Pratchett

By Ruby Whelan

Works

The Discworld series is his most prolific series, and follows the stories of the inhabitants of the

Discworld – a parallel world to our own, where the world is (as the name suggests) a large disc.

However, as the name definitely doesn‟t suggest, it is also carried on the back of four elephants,

who ride on the back of a giant turtle. The first Discworld book – The Colour of Magic, was

published in 1985, and he has since published a further 36. Pratchett‟s works feature a great

amount of parody, on subjects as varied as Shakespeare, to fairytales, great battles and Holly-

wood.

The majority of the books are set in Ankh-Morpork, the Disc‟s largest and most… interesting

city (smell-wise, anyway), ruled by benevolent tyrant Havelock Vetinari. The books don‟t fol-

low any one character, but instead follow groups of people; the City Watch (led by cynical and

street-smart Sam Vimes, also known as “Vetinari‟s terrier”), the Wizards and the Witches. Or

specific people, for example Rincewind the wizard, Death (wonderfully anthropomorphically

portrayed), Susan Sto Helit (Death‟s granddaughter), and Moist von Lipwig (a con artist, saved

from the gallows (post-hanging) and forced to re-vamp the post office). There are also stand-

alone novels, which follow different characters, though these usually feature the series regulars

in some way or another.

Interesting Facts

He has a greenhouse full of carnivorous plants in his

garden.

He credits his local library for his education, rather

than his school.

He came top of the country in the exams for the Na-

tional council for the Training of Journalists Course.

He has a great interest in astronomy and had an ob-

servatory built in his back garden for that very purpose.

He‟s a trustee of the Orang-utan Foundation UK –

one of his most popular characters, the Unseen Univer-

sity‟s Librarian, is an orang-utan. He says, on the subject of writing, that you must “make

grammar, punctuation and spelling a part of your life”,

(which makes me very happy indeed).

Name: Terry Pratchett

Born: 28 April 1948

Location: Salisbury,

Wiltshire

Genre: Fantasy

“In the beginning there was nothing,

which exploded”

Oakbank Sixth Form Magazine 10

Internet picks of the month

All sites found using: www.stumbleupon.com

By Ruby Whelan

http://www.newseum.org/todaysfrontpages/flash/

This rather interesting website gives you access to the

front pages of hundreds of newspapers, worldwide,

from The New York Times, to The Ashasi Shimbun, in

Japan. Obviously, the newspapers are generally in the

language of their home country, though some, like the

Japanese paper I mentioned, have English versions. This

could be extremely useful if you‟re studying languages,

though weirdly, there are NO French newspapers on the

database. I suppose I‟ll have to just read the ones from Luxembourg… There are a majority of American

newspapers on here, and currently only 4 from England (one of which is the Lancashire Evening Post,

which I find quite odd – no Daily Mail, or Telegraph, but we WILL have the Lancashire Evening Post!),

but the ability to look at newspapers from Vietnam and New Zealand sort of makes up for it. Updated

daily.

I adore this website, partially because it allows me to keep

track of what‟s happening in the world, without the boredom

of sitting through the news, or reading a newspaper. Worldly

knowledge, sans effort. Plus, you get to look at lots of fantas-

tic photography; yay, pretty (though sometimes shocking, as

with the oil spill) pictures! More recent photo collections are

of South Africa‟s world cup preparations, and the horrific

Gulf of Mexio oil spill, currently advancing on America‟s

south eastern coast, destroying the habitat of many helpless

animals as it goes. The website updates every Monday,

Wednesday and Friday. http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/

This webcomic can be ridiculously geeky, which is kinda why I love it.

As it says, it‟s “a webcomic of romance, sarcasm, math, and language”,

and also extremely funny, unless you don‟t get the joke, which, unless

you‟re a real maths/computer nerd, you won‟t for every comic. How-

ever, this is not an overly regular occurrence, and as it updates 3 times a

week (Mon, Wed, Fri), there‟s always something that will appeal to all

audiences.

http://www.xkcd.com/

I adore pretty much everything about this

webcomic, from the artwork, to the hu-

mour, to the more serious “let‟s reflect on

life in quite a silly way” aspect of it. Some

of the comics do contain HUGE walls of

text, though (which I sometimes skip,

which is very naughty of me, but I am lazy

and it doesn‟t necessarily detract form the

joke, so whatever), which I suppose can be

a negative, but not everything is perfect.

There are a few regular characters here,

such as the sphinx, pictured on the right,

whose terrifying appearance doesn‟t make

her many human friends, though that may

be because she eats them. It updates…

Well, it does update fairly regularly, but I

don‟t think there‟s currently any rhyme or reason to when. Generally, it‟s every week.

http://www.viruscomix.com/subnormality.html

Oakbank Sixth Form Magazine 11

Things to do By Jasmine Camm

Victorian Sports

Day.

People‟s Park,

Halifax.

June, 1pm -

4pm, Free.

If you‟re looking for a unique thing to do with

your time then this may be for you! It sounds

quite hilarious - Victorian costumes, egg and

spoon races, whip and top? Hilarity is sure to en-

sue. Of course, it isn‟t imperative that you dress

the part, but why not? Refreshments are also

available.

A Tour with

Anne Lister

Shibden Hall,

Lister‟s Road,

Halifax.

13th June/11th

July, 2pm, Usual

admission.

Following the release of BBC‟s „The Secret Dia-

ries of Anne Lister‟, the tour at Shibden Hall al-

lows you to find out more about the life and loca-

tion of this fascinating woman, the first modern

Lesbian and mistress of the Hall in the 19th cen-

tury, and to have a refreshing walk around some

awesome rooms and grounds. You could even go

on the mini-train or the rowing boats afterwards if

you were feeling particularly child-like.

Calderdale Pride. Piece Hall, Hali-

fax.

19th June, 2pm

- 8pm, Free.

Once again the Piece Hall has the pleasure of

hosting the celebration of diversity in Calderdale.

Everyone is welcome to bring picnics, blankets

and friends to enjoy the day. In the Hall there will

be a variety of eating places, a bar, a full pro-

gramme of live entertainment, and „quality DJ‟s,

artists, bands, and speakers‟. Not much missing is

there?

1960‟s Weekend. Haworth Main

Street.

19th/20th June,

Free.

If you enjoyed the vintage feel of the 1940‟s

weekend, why not indulge yourself in another era

of iconic things? Take yourself back to the days

of fashion from that of Mary Quant‟s miniskirt

and Doris Day‟s feminine gowns to Bardot‟s bee-

hive hairstyles and Hepburn‟s skinny jeans. The

most popular style associated with the 1960‟s is

that created by those who prompted sexual libera-

tion and „peace, love and freedom‟. Groovy...

The Bridge

Birthday Bash.

Hebden Bridge. 19th June,

1:30pm start,

Free.

A medieval festival celebrating the 500th anni-

versary of the Bridge. There‟ll be a packhorse

procession over the bridge, medieval music,

dance and Jesters. It‟s a chance to learn truly fas-

cinating facts and fiction about bridges; some to

„fascinate even the unfascinatable‟.

Leeds Loves

Food.

Millennium

Square, Leeds.

1st - 4th July,

Free for brows-

ing.

A festival which shows off the range and the

quality of the food in Leeds, including events and

promotions. The four day spread of events has a

packed calender which can be viewed online.

There‟s no shortage of food, as the choice varies

from BBQ, picnics and Mexican dishes to the

smoothies, the Mad Hatter‟s Tea Party and a se-

lection of master-classes. If food isn‟t your thing,

then Angel‟s Share Vintage Fair on the 3rd July

may give you a break from the mass amount of

edibles. See http://www.leedslovesfood.com/ for

specific times and dates.

OSFM, Issue 2 Oakbank School/

www.osfm.co.nr

17th July The next issue of Oakbank Sixth Form Magazine is

released, just as we say bye bye for summer!

Event Location Times Further Information

£16.99,

Amazon.co.uk

„To make walking rainy days fun‟, at least

until you get run over by the car that you

never saw because you were too busy staring up at your umbrella screen. It contains a built-in

camera and allows photo-sharing, so you can upload the photo‟s that you take via a wireless

Internet connection. Obviously, this is something every umberella needs - who cares about keep-

ing dry? It also has the function of a birds eye 3D map, this could be useful; however, its pur-

pose is described as being for the user „to compare the 3D views to real sights‟. Perhaps this is

just me, but doesn‟t the physical sight erase the need for a 3D view? I admit that it‟s creative, but

I fail to comprehend WHY somebody looked at an umbrella and thought that it was necessary to

add the Internet. I know that it is the „Age of the Internet‟ and such, but surely this is a little ex-

cessive...

Oakbank Sixth Form Magazine 12

Things to own

By Kieran Clayton

This Months Essential Item!

There is no doubting that we

are all hyped for the release

of Toy Story 3 in UK cine-

mas 23 July 2010. So, why not re-cap on the

gang‟s shenanigans in the much loved child-

hood classics, Toy story and Toy story 2, to-

gether in this new boxset!

Toy Story 1 & 2 Boxset

This handy little gadget will help

with that ever so daunting task of

revising. With the Sound Asleep

pillow you don‟t even have to open

a book, all you need to do it SLEEP! Simply plug in

your mp3 player, and listen to pre-recorded lectures or

class notes whilst you sleep, experts say it works...

Sound Asleep Pillow,

£20,

soundasleeppillow.co.uk

We have all been caught out by our mobile

or mp3 battery whilst on the move; it has to

be one of the most annoying things that can

happen! The Freeloader Solar Charger will

charge up any mobile device including; iPods, phones and even

portable games consoles, just from the power of the sun, any-

where! It would come in handy for festivals and camping trips

this summer.

A lot of us don‟t eat breakfast in a

morning even though we are told time

and time again that we will perform

better throughout the day. This may

look like your average cereal bowl however it has a built in shelf

which stops the milk coming into contact with all the cereal. In-

stead it releases a little bit of milk onto a small section of the ce-

real, keeping it crunchier for longer! YUM!

EatMeCrunchy Cereal Bowl,

£4.99,

firebox.com

Freeloader Solar Charger,

£40,

sciencemuseumshop.org.uk

Editors Pick

Pileus: The Internet Umbrella!,

£16.99,

pileus.net

Oakbank Sixth Form Magazine 13

4 Years later... By Jacob Bartnik

The EDITORS played at St George's Hall in

Bradford on Monday 8th March as part of their UK

tour to promote their latest album, “In This Light

and on This Evening”.

The set which included some old favourites as well

as new material went down well with both old and

new fans. The EDITORS style of Indie-Rock was performed with a

stunning backdrop full of visual and lighting effects which added to

the experience.

The supports acts were equally as good featuring Cold Cave, an ex-

perimental Synthpop band from Philadelphia and English band The

Strange Death of Liberal England which varies from folk to Indie-

Rock.

A number of Oakbank students attended the night, each enjoy-

ing the evening to its full.

www.editorsofficial.com www.myspace.com/tsdole

www.myspace.com/coldcave

Pictured: Top - Tom Smith, Editors | Middle - Cold Cave | Bot-

tom - The Strange Death Of Liberal England

Well the waiting is over; the most anticipated

sporting event in the world has come around yet

again. I am talking, of course, about the Fifa World

Cup. Nothing in the world of sports can amount to

such an awesome, contagious force that floods across

the planet, compelling peoples from every nation to

tune in and watch the greatest and most popular sport

in the world, football. The tournament will be held in

The Republic of South Africa where 32 teams from

across the globe will battle it out to take home the tro-

phy. Of course, most people know this is more than just sport.

This is patriotism. This is pride. What happens over the next

few weeks will be written in the history books along with all

of the other past tournaments.

As a nation who holds football close to its heart, we devote

ourselves to supporting the 23 heroes chosen to represent our

country. Although we may not have competed so well in the

previous World Cup (Losing in the quarter finals to Portugal

in a penalty shootout), we have grown and developed into a

team that is considered one of the favourites to take home the

gold. Led by newly appointed captain Steven Gerrard, our

nation‟s squad is built up of powerful, talented athletes who will work

themselves to death to win this tournament and the love and admiration

of their proud nation. (Yes, I know it rhymes.) So keep watching, this is

history in the making; be proud of our beloved England, no matter what

the outcome... unless we lose in penalties.

By Rhianna Jones Gig Reviews

I was looking forward to seeing Portia

Conn live after the let down on a previous

attempt where she was pulled from the line

up, the only problem this time was the fact

that Portia was, once again, pulled from the

line-up. We went anyway, what fool would

turn down a free gig? We deliberately arrived

late so we could try and avoid seeing the first

support act, “Eight days straight”, however

this plan was foiled when we arrive thirty

minutes after doors and people were still wait-

ing outside.

When we were just about to give up and go

find something else to do, there was move-

ment, doors. After battling with rude staff

over the guest list we were finally stuck to the

floor inside the oddest basement id ever seen,

where I couldn‟t help but feel sickened by the

smell of what I should hope is the toilets seep-

ing through my blocked nose.

We sat away from the stage for the first

support, “Eight days straight”, I was genu-

inely afraid of needing ear treatment if I got

any closer to the speakers, or the girls screech

emitting from them. I also found myself being

irritated by her trying too hard to pretend she

gave a damn about the main act, “MiMi

Soya”, by screaming there name down the mic

towards her obligatory fans. The people who

were paying some kind of attention to EDS

could only be described as... relatives. I re-

sorted to checking Facebook on my phone,

were I got carried away and posted on Portia

Conn‟s wall expressing my disgust towards

the evening so far; you know when you‟re on

Facebook at a gig, you can‟t be having a good

time!

Before the next band, “Pegasus Bridge”,

we went to speak to the manager of MiMi

Soya, Pegasus Bridge and Portia Conn –

Nathen McVittie. He was very friendly and he

kindly explained the situation with Portia and

we couldn‟t help but to forgive him, he also

told us more about Pegasus Bridge and we

even had a brief conversation with Tom Lyn-

man (drummer of PB) before they took to the

stage.

Pegasus Bridge, consisting of two look-

alikes; Russell Howard and Nick Jonas/Simon

Amstell (although I think I was on my own

with this one), got my foot tapping

“are you looking forward to MiMi Soya?!!!!!!!”

- Not Really...

almost straight away. Now we were up in front of the

stage it really sank in how poor the turnout was for

this gig, I would say there was at a max, 25 people

there... 4 of which were staff, 2 managers, 7 bands

members and the rest... „fans‟. I couldn‟t help but to

give Pegasus Bridge the loudest wolf whistle I could

at the end of every song; something which literally

got the thumbs up from Tom. However some rude

members of the audience didn‟t like it as much and

these just happened to be the members of MiMi Soya

- The main act of the evening! Edward Turner, the

lead singer of PB had an outstanding voice which

pleased the audience and Tom was beating the crap

out of those drums like there was no tomorrow.

These guys really did lift my mood and I was actu-

ally having a good time! Whilst we waited for MiMi-

soya we again had brief conversations with Alex

Howick (Bass) and Tom who donated a couple of

drops of his drink for the purpose of a cheers.

It was time for MiMi Soya, I was hoping she

would stand behind the pole in the middle of the

stage however no such luck. I reluctantly watched

the head banging, shaking and eye rolling (with the

hand on the hip) of the singer of MiMi Soya whilst

thinking to myself; “SOZ paramour”. Struggling to

depict any difference between each song I gave no

whistle just a pathetic little clap.

Overview of the night... Eight Days Straight -

Who? Pegasus Bridge - What an awesome bunch of

guys with the potential to be BIG. MiMi Soya - get

your own act.

Oakbank Sixth Form Magazine 14

By Kieran Clayton

Eight Days Straight

Pegasus Bridge

Ribena available now - FREE @ http://www.myspace.com/

pegasusbridge

MiMi Soya Hear more of the same @

http://www.myspace.com/ mimisoya

Oakbank Sixth Form Magazine 15

Music

Pendulum are back, but have

they brought anything new

with them? In my opinion: no.

It‟s the same formula that has

always been used by the fa-

mous Australian D&B band. I

can‟t deny the fact that the

song in itself is not bad at all,

but I just can‟t completely

differentiate it from its prede-

cessors. It brings nothing new

to the table, which will even-

tually have its consequences

as original artists could shine

through and leave pendulum

in the dust. Putting aside the

lack of originality, this song

still stood out to me as a must

have. Its fast paced euphoria

will blow your mind away,

and I can‟t even begin to

imagine how incredible this

would be if this was per-

formed live.

Pendulum - Watercolour

NEW

Scouting For Girls - This

Ain’t a Love Song

I must admit, I‟m not very

fond of Scouting for Girls, but

this one caught my attention.

It differs from the stuff you‟d

expect to hear from them, so it

captivates a wider audience; it

managed to dominate the

charts for a couple of weeks.

If you‟re a SCG fan already

you won‟t be disappointed nor

let down and if you‟re not al-

ready a fan you may just be

pulled in by this one.

Four Year Strong - Enemy

of the world

ALBUM OF THE MONTH

The eccentric, explosive FYS

are back and are better than

ever. Personally I don‟t be-

lieve it‟s as good as their last

album Rise or Die Trying but

it‟s still an amazing album!

From beginning to end its pure

ear melting goodness with

upbeat pop punk to really get

you into the summer mood.

Yeasayer - Odd Blood

Panic! At the Disco - A Fe-

ver You Can't Sweat Out

I first saw these

guys live sup-

porting Bat For

Lashes in

Leeds, it turns

out they have col-

laborated on most of the track

on her CD. I thought they

were good but one of the vo-

calists seemed to be trying to

go too high. When I heard

„Odd Blood‟ I wasn‟t expect-

ing much however I was truly

blown away by its excellence!

The experimental indie music

really is something new, a

great outcome to an experi-

ment if you ask me!

Now I know

this album isn‟t

new and most

have you have

probably forgot

about its exis-

tence , it was the same for

me. Listening to it for the first

time in years really was such a

treat, the transitions in it are

fantastic, they really add the

story like feel of the album

when listened to from begin-

ning to end. The music in it is

extremely varied, they have

probably used ever instrument

under the sun, and it really

works! If you havn‟t listened

before, do it. Even if you don't

think its „your thing‟.

www.pendulum.com

www.scoutingforgirls.com

myspace.com/fouryearstrong

www.yeasayer.net www.panicatthedisco.com

June Releases to Look Out For

By Michaela Johns

By Michaela Johns

By Michaela Johns

By Kieran Clayton

By Kieran Clayton

3oh!3 - Streets of Gold

29.06.10

We Are Scientists -

Barbara

14.06.10

Scissor Sisters - Night

Work

28.06.10

Oakbank Sixth Form Magazine 16

Film & Games Film

The Bounty Hunter

Milo Boyd (Gerard Butler) a bounty hunter gets his dream job when

he is given the task of picking up his ex-wife, reporter Nicole Hur-

ley (Jennifer Aniston) who has „jumped bail‟. Milo, thinking he has

this one in the bag goes for the easy catch, only to find out that

Nicole has other ideas. The pair play cat and mouse for a while

which becomes a little repetitive, but has its funny moments. While

they‟re arguing between themselves it turns out they are being pur-

sued by a bigger threat, suspects from a murder case Nicole is re-

porting on. The action is questionable but it‟s played well and

helped by the obvious chemistry between Butler and Aniston. In the

end, they both get locked up in a police jail, but seem happy to be

there together. Overall its quite funny, and definitely worth a watch.

By Christina Cooper

Games

By Joss Cope-Smith and Jacob Bartnik

Here at the Games Review our goal is to inform you of the top new games being released and

share with you our honest opinions on their content; stretching from storyline and game play to

graphics and online content. For this issue of the Sixth Form Magazine we will be reviewing the

best game of 2009 (and probably the decade), Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2, as well as some

of the newest and most anticipated releases of 2010.

As you may already know, Final fantasy is one of the largest

gaming franchises of all time, with dozens of instalments for

different platforms and even a couple of movies. So, does the latest

instalment, Final Fantasy XIII, meet its much anticipated expectations?

Short answer, no! But why is it such a let down? Well, you may have seen

the adverts on TV; though you may not believe it, those aren‟t cinematic -

that is pure game play. The graphics are unmatchable, but that‟s not all

that games are about. Yes, it is very new and very shiny, but the in game

content, the lack of depth underlying its predecessors and its dismal battle

system make it very boring, repetitive and an all round letdown. I don‟t

think it would have been as difficult to play if it had a follow-able plot. I

would consider it a game to play, but definitely not one to waste your

money on.

Call of Duty is an established series of top-notch first person

shooters, never failing to entertain. Modern Warfare 2 (MW2)

is the second instalment of the highly successful MW series. It

follows the exploits of 2 army divisions; Task Force 141, and The

U.S Army Rangers, fighting against Vladimir Makarov and his ultrana-

tionalist regime, whilst also driving back a Russian invasion of America.

This amazing storyline is well complemented by an array of excellent

missions, great realistic graphics and outstanding game play. But the game

doesn‟t finish after the campaign. The real MW2 experience is found

within its mind-blowing multiplayer content. Players can customise their

classes with an arsenal of unlockable weapons and perks and can play

with, and against players from anywhere around the Globe. This can be

done in various game modes and locations - from the basic team death

match to the complex demolition, in which teams try to destroy 2 central

objectives. It has been hailed the shooter to end all shooters and is a defi-

nite must buy.

Call of Duty Modern

Warfare 2

Final Fantasy XIII

Welcome to the random page. Here you‟ll

find snippets of information that will range

from humorous to serious, and from origins of

phrases to scientific theories. Much of this

information is trivial and useless in ordinary

life, however there are also possible conclu-

sions to questions that we‟ve all asked, such as

„Why is yawning contagious?‟.

The average chocolate bar has 8 insects‟ legs in it. (Sorry!)

A blue whale‟s aorta is big enough for a human to crawl through.

French was the official language of England for over 600 years.

„Raining cats and dogs‟ originated in the 17th century when homeless animals

would drowned and float down the street, making it seem as if it had rained cats

and dogs.

A picture of Gandalf the Grey (LotR) can be seen in the collection of great wizards

in Dumbledore‟s study in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets.

In the early 16th century, a visitor to an English home would kiss the family cat for

good luck.

The „brain cooling theory‟ says that when we contagiously yawn we are participat-

ing in an ancient ritual that evolved to help groups stay alert and detect danger.

No other language has a word that means exactly the same as the English „cake‟.

During World War II, sugar was ra-

tioned in the UK, so icing could not

be made and cakes were reduced in

size. To make them look presentable

cakes were often served inside a box

which had been decorated with plas-

ter of Paris, to resemble the tradi-

tional cake.

There is a 7 ft sculpture made com-

pletely of marmite. It is a re-creation

of „The Kiss‟ sculpted by Jeremy

Fattorini.

'Yahoo' is an acronym for „Yet An-

other Hierachical Officious Oracle‟,

created by David Filo and Jerry

Yang.

In 1926 women were banned form

competing in marathons as it was be-

lieved that they caused infertility.

Oakbank Sixth Form Magazine 17

Random Facts

By Jasmine Camm

In 1843, a Pari-

sian street mime got stuck

in his imaginary box and

consequently died of

starvation.

Fact of the Month

Oakbank Sixth Form Magazine 18

June Open Days 12 06 10 University of Derby

12 06 10 University of Central Lancashire

16 06 10 Royal Holloway, University of London

18 06 10 Northumbria University

18 06 10 University of Reading

19 06 10 Coventry University

22 06 10 Aston University

23 06 10 Askham Bryan College – Taster Day

24 06 10 University of Birmingham

25 06 10 University of Birmingham

26 06 10 University of Liverpool

26 06 10 Peninsula Medical School

26 06 10 University of East Anglia

28 06 10 Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts

29 06 10 Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts

29 06 10 Durham University

30 06 10 Liverpool John Moores

30 06 10 Newnham College, Cambridge

30 06 10 London School of Economics and Political Science

30 06 10 University of Glamorgan

30 06 10 St Anne‟s College, Oxford – Formal Open Day

Seminars, Conferences, Workshops

If your university isn‟t here, check the Oakbank Sixth Form Magazine Website for a full list of

University open days.

And some for early July...

01 07 10 St Anne‟s College, Oxford – Formal Open Day

02 07 10 Leeds Metropolitan University

02 07 10 University of East Anglia

02 07 10 Newcastle University

03 07 10 Newcastle University

Oakbank Sixth Form Magazine 19

Contact Us Have anything you‟d like to say? Read anything that you

want more information on? Or do you have a story you‟d

like to tell?

Feel free to get in touch!

Editor: Jasmine Camm

Email: Jasmine.Camm@student.oakbank.org.uk

Everyone in Sixth Form is auto-subscribed to the maga-

zine, if you would like to stop receiving the emailed maga-

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We look forward to hearing from you!