Cianan Sheekey

Cianan’s Column: The gameweek from Hell

Well, that certainly was a thrilling weekend of football, with some scintillating matches, including Tottenham’s shock result against Manchester City away from home, Everton’s first win at their new stadium as they saw off Brighton, and Liverpool’s last-gasp winner at St. James’ Park to beat Newcastle. However, in terms of...
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Posted Aug. 29, 2025

Cianan’s Column: No need to panic ahead of FPL GW2

Don’t worry – you’re not alone. Thousands, if not millions, of Fantasy Premier League (FPL) players are feeling jittery following the conclusion of the first gameweek, the point in the Fantasy season where it’s easiest to feel like you’ve made mistakes, whether you suffered a harrowing one-pointer with Frimpong, missed...
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Posted Aug. 22, 2025

New research warns of ‘alarming’ underestimation in university job cuts, as over 20,000 jobs at risk

As many as 20,000 higher education jobs could be at risk, as a new survey has revealed the true extent of redundancies facing the sector.  Rebecca Harrison, a former lecturer at the Open University, and David Harvie, who previously served as the University and College Union’s (UCU) treasurer, surveyed 349...
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Posted Aug. 17, 2025

Toby Fox Goes BIG SHOT with Deltarune Chapters 3 & 4

Water is wet, grass is green, the Pope is Catholic, and Toby Fox makes great games. Whether it’s Undertale or any of Deltarune’s first four chapters, I have Fox down as 5-0 – and a gleaming 5-0 at that. Coming straight from your house, the long-awaited third and fourth chapters...
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Posted Jul. 25, 2025

Education Committee launches inquiry into financial viability of universities

The Education Committee has opened an inquiry into the precarious fiscal situation of the UK’s higher education institutions. Following the release of a troubling report by the Office for Students, outlining the ill health of the sector’s finances and a growing inability to depend on income from international students (as...
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Posted Jul. 11, 2025

In Iran, we risk repeating the mistakes of Iraq 22 years later

It’s been 22 years since an Anglo-American force invaded Iraq under the pretence that Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction (WMDs). Despite deeply antithetical public sentiment towards the conflict, a brutal war began. America and Britain rushed into a conflict for which the nation’s respective leaders, George W. Bush...
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Posted Jun. 28, 2025

Regional social mobility under threat as universities ignore local applicants for London admissions

A report by the Social Market Foundation (SMF), a cross-party think tank, has highlighted prominent geographical disparities within the university admissions process. A primary focus of the SMF report, entitled ‘Leave to Achieve’, is the deteriorating relationship between many universities and their local areas, with the report highlighting how these...
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Posted Jun. 27, 2025

Greater collaboration between universities needed to tackle financial woes, new report reveals

Universities UK (UUK) has published a new report insisting on a myriad of different cooperative measures, intended to aid the economic survival of Britain’s higher education institutions.  The publication, entitled ‘Towards a new era of collaboration’, provides several policy suggestions to address the academic sector’s dire financial situation.  Sir Nigel...
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Posted Jun. 18, 2025

Russian student numbers in UK plummet as hostility distances British universities from Moscow

The number of Russian admissions for study in the UK has hit a record low, with an increasingly hostile climate towards Russians and higher visa refusal rates contributing to this decline. According to newly released Home Office statistics, only 1,275 Russian applicants were granted study or study-related visas between March...
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Posted Jun. 17, 2025