"The royal body exists to be looked at" - a response to Hilary Mantel

Hilary Mantel, award-winning author of historical fiction, elicited raised eyebrows and horrified gasps from the British press on the publication of a speech that she made at the London Review of Books Lecture earlier this month. The comments that sparked the greatest outrage concerned the Duchess of Cambridge. Amongst other observations, Mantel compared Kate to a robot or mannequin, who "appeared to have been designed by a committee and built by craftsmen, with a perfect plastic smile and the spindles of her limbs hand-turned and gloss-varnished". As a self-confessed fan of the Duchess, I admit that there were points in the speech that I strongly disagreed with - I do not believe that the ideal of Kate is a construct to the extent that Mantel suggests. However, after I finished reading, I found this BBC news article in which David Cameron condemns the author's comments.

Why I Can't Wait to Graduate

Hello folks, Rosie here. Grace and I have been having a bit of a debate: Graduation, scary or exciting? Of course it's all about the mixed feelings for the majority of undergraduates but I for one am ever so excited.
University life is ending despite the fact that I'm only just coming to terms with the fact that young children will refer to me as a "lady", I don't feel like a lady! However, the many hurdles that lie before me prior to reaching the auspicious date do make me yearn for a freer life after graduation. With this in mind, I have compiled the following list detailing the 5 things I am most looking forward to after graduating.

Countdown to Graduation Day

We got our dates for graduation today, and it looks like on the 12th of July, I'll be stumbling onto a stage and shaking someone's hand whilst wearing the world's silliest hat.

Where did the time go? It feels like just yesterday that I wandered into that forbidding grey building with the sign 'N Block' plastered to it like a warning (actually, maybe that was yesterday - I do still get lost on campus sometimes...). But now my days are numbered, and to be honest, I don't want to graduate just yet! Here's why: