Wikipedia

The Cheese Grater

This article is about the magazine. For the kitchen utensil, see Grater. For the skyscraper in London, see 122 Leadenhall Street.

The Cheese Grater is a student satirical and investigative magazine produced at University College London by a society of UCL Union, a students' union. The Cheese Grater publishes a articles covering student politics, news, investigations, satire and cartoons. Its stories are frequently critical of the UCL Union. It was first published in March 2004, and was named London's best student publication in the 2022 Student Publication Association awards, and has won the UCL Students' Union Publication of the Year Award 8 times since 2005.[1] The Cheese Grater is also the largest publication at UCL in terms of readership, membership and online following, despite being the alternative paper to the mainstream Pi Magazine. The Cheese Grater has also won the most national student publication awards of any UCL publication in the 21st century.

The Cheese Grater Magazine
FormatOnline, Magazine, Satire, Sketch
SchoolUniversity College London
Founder(s)René Lavanchy
PublisherUCL Students Union
PresidentLily Park
EditorNick Miao and Sirjan Narang
FoundedSeptember 2004 (2004-09) (as a newspaper)
HeadquartersStudents' Union UCL
CityLondon
CountryUnited Kingdom
Sister newspapersWomen's Wrongs, Greater Expectations
Websitecheesegratermagazine.org

The cover of March 2006's issue

History

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The Cheese Grater was founded by René Lavanchy, a critical observer of Pi Magazine, the only significant UCL student publication at the time. The society was affiliated on 12 February 2004[citation needed] and the first issue was published on 25 March 2004.[2] The first issue was a poorly photocopied satirical pamphlet which had an empty page on the back cover and an advert within calling for more writers to get involved. The next issue of The Cheese Grater was published in October 2004, and included 12 pages of satirical and investigatory pieces in the style of Private Eye. From here, The Cheese Grater continued to publish between 3-5 issues per academic year, filled with satire and investigations. Interestingly, René Lavanchy stayed on at The Cheese Grater until 2010 as an advisor to new editors, despite graduating in 2006. A notable early member of the society was Dex Torricke-Barton, now known as Dex Hunter-Torricke, former head of communications at Elon Musk's Space X and currently the head of communications for Google's DeepMind project. Another interesting former contributor to early issues of the magazine is Patrick Maguire, a prominent columnist at The Times and The New Statesman.

In October 2008, an article in issue 18 was censored by Communications and Services Officer Charlie Clinton, leading the magazine to instead publish a story condemning his interference.[citation needed]

In 2016, The Cheese Grater launched a sister publication, Grater Expectations; an irregularly published feminist zine focusing on absurdist humour and art. The sister publication now goes under the name "Women's Wrongs" after a revival in 2022. The revival saw Women's Wrongs win the award for best publication at the 2023 UCL Art's Awards, with the publication also being nominated for best newcomer at the SPA national awards.

Notable articles

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In February 2005, The Cheese Grater published a special report accusing UCL Union sabbatical officer David Renton of laziness, incompetence and general neglect of his duties.[citation needed]

In March 2006 the magazine revealed – using the evidence of a leaked e-mail – that then student editor of Pi Magazine Simon Dedman had cheated in recent UCL Union elections, securing the election of Nick Barnard as Media and Communications Officer, and that neither person had been significantly disciplined for it.[citation needed]

In February 2011, The Cheese Grater published documents from UCL Academic Board meetings which revealed the potential impact of government higher education cuts at UCL. The findings suggested a £35 million budget shortfall for UCL even if it were to charge the full £9,000 undergraduate tuition fee. Following the publication of this article, the documents revealing this were removed from the UCL website. The article was later picked up by Times Higher Education, who published a piece using the magazine's findings on 24 February 2011.[3]

In March 2012, The Cheese Grater investigated UCL's bid to build a second London campus in Stratford, uncovering local residents' objections to the potential demolition of their homes and inadequacies in Newham Council's consultation process. The story was later picked up by The Guardian and other national news sources.[4]

In 2021 the magazine launched an investigation into sexual harassment, intimidation, and bullying committed by UCL Security in Halls of Residence throughout the 2020–2021 academic year. The five month long investigation saw two of its writers uncover vast alleged abuses committed by UCL Security staff resulting in the publication of victims recollections of the alleged abuses. The article resulted in UCL launching an investigation, of which its findings have still not been published.[5]

In the Winter 2022 issue, Neil Majithia and Elettra Plati penned an exposé of UCL sports societies and their initiative activities. Neil and Elettra exposed the initiation rituals of UCL's most prolific sports societies. In doing this, the pair brought the culture of Team UCL to attention. They subsequently won the Best News Piece award at the 2023 SPA Awards.[6]

In 2022 the magazine published an article strongly criticising UCL's decision to cut ties with Stonewall, the article was widely received with both praise and criticism after it reached over 60,000 people on social media. The article exposed procedural inconsistencies, and lobbying by an established inter-departmental network of gender critical feminists amongst UCL's academic staff.[7]

The 2023/24 academic year saw numerous pressing articles published. Robert Delaney's investigation into UCL History's redundancy process was met with critical acclaim[citation needed] and was picked up by the University and Colleges Union (UCU), causing the Trade Union to go into industrial dispute with the department. Moreover, Mads Brown's piece on transphobia at the Institute of Education not only won Best Media Piece at the Students' Union Arts Awards, it also pushed the IOE to start a new work shop in conjunction with The Cheese Grater's editors around trans identity and visibility in the faculty. Additionally, Rebekah Wright's investigation into Provost Michael Spence's connection to an anti-LGBTQ Charity saw great reception from queer communities within UCL[citation needed], causing questions to be asked of the Provost's stance on LGBTQ issues, alongside a potential conflict of interest between the role he held in the charity Mercy Ships, and his position as the head of UCL. Nick Miao, the SU Correspondent for the 2023/24 academic year, also published numerous pieces on the Students' Union, oftentimes in conjunction with Robert Delaney and Andrea Bidnic's additional pieces and reporting. The revival of Union scrutiny by Nick saw the readjustment of the SU Media Relations Team to pay better attention to student media at UCL after years of relative inactivity post-Covid.[citation needed]

UCL Graters

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Members of the Cheese Grater Magazine Society founded the UCL Graters sketch comedy group in 2011. As the magazine was founded due to dissatisfaction with UCL's student media, so the UCL Graters were created due to dissatisfaction with UCL's student comedy scene. The group's cast changes yearly, tending to focus on darker and more absurd humour than UCL's Comedy Club and the MDs Comedy Revue. The group is run by the society's Show Coordinator, who directs the group in writing and performing their own material at shows in UCL and around London.

The Graters reached the semi-finals of the Leicester Square Theatre Sketch-Off in 2016,[8] and were described as "exemplary" by the Wee Review for their 2017 Fringe show.[9]

The Graters have performed at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival every year since their founding at various venues, including the Underbelly and Just the Tonic. The Fringe was cancelled in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but the Graters returned to Edinburgh in 2021. The Graters continued their fringe visits in 2022 and 2023.

List of shows

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  • Julian Ignores His Friends And Talks To A Pretty Girl (2012), a sketch show.[10]
  • Crab Salad (2013), a sketch show.[11]
  • Our Jackie (2014), a comedy play.[12]
  • 2015: A Sketch Odyssey (2015), a sketch show starring Ruby Clyde, Luke Reilly and Hûw Steer, produced by Will Orton.[13]
  • UCL Graters: Immature Cheddar (2016), a sketch show starring Luke Reilly, Hûw Steer, Sarah King and Sam Pryce, produced by Will Orton and Freddie Lynch.[14]
  • UCL Graters: Smashing (2017), a sketch show starring Hûw Steer, Heather Dempsey and Felicity Wareing, produced by Will Orton and Alex Diamond.[15]
  • UCL Graters: Panopticon (2018), a thematic sketch show starring Joe Andreyev, Sam Dodgshon, Isobel MacLeod, Luke Shepherd and Felicity Wareing, produced by Alice Fraser-Edwards.[16]
  • Clothesline (2019), a play-sketch hybrid about an unwashed pile of laundry. Starring Gassan Abdulrazek, Jake Bishop, Darcy Bounsall, Agnes Carrington-Windo, Sam Dodgshon and Jennie Howitt. Produced by Agnes Carrington-Windo, Sam Dodgshon and Alice Fraser Edwards.[17]
  • Post Humour (2021), a play-sketch hybrid set in a surreal British Post Office.[18] Starring Jennie Howitt, Rob Davidson, Anisa Khorassani, Sabrina Asrafova, Harris Morris, and Sam Dodgshon. Directed by Jennie Howitt and produced by Bori Papp.[19] Winner of the Derek Spirit of the Fringe award.[20]
  • Council Tax Evasion (2023), a collection of sketches involving characters living in a council flat. Starring Lauren Avis, Sabrina Asrafova, Matt Blin, Ben Scanlan, Alex Dunn, Anezka Khan, Will Telling and Euan Toh.
  • Untitled Graters Show: A Sketch Comedy Show (2023), a collection of miscellaneous sketches. [21]
  • Scaly Terrance's Chrimmus Spectacular (2023), a collection of Christmas sketches with a special visit from Scaly Terrance. [22]
  • Jacobite Adjutant General John O'Sullivan's Lonely Hearts Club (2024), a collection of sketches surrounding Scottish Jacobites and adjacent subjects.[23]

Awards

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Awards and nominations received by The Cheese Graters
Award Year[a] Category Nominee(s) / work Result Ref.
Students' Union UCL Arts Awards 2006 Best Student Publication The Cheese Grater Won [citation needed]
2007 Best Student Publication The Cheese Grater Won [citation needed]
2008 Best Student Publication The Cheese Grater Won [citation needed]
2009 Best Student Publication The Cheese Grater Won [citation needed]
2010 Best Student Publication The Cheese Grater Nominated [citation needed]
2011 Best Student Publication The Cheese Grater Won [citation needed]
2012 Best Student Publication The Cheese Grater Nominated [citation needed]
2012 Best Garage Theatre Show "Julian Ignores His Friends And Talks To A Pretty Girl" Won [citation needed]
2014 Best Student Publication The Cheese Grater Won [citation needed]
2014 Diversity & Inclusion The Cheese Grater Won [citation needed]
2016 Most Improved Society The Cheese Grater Won [citation needed]
2023 Best Student Publication Women's Wrongs Won [24]
2023 Best Media Piece "Chun Buckets Everywhere: How initiation ceremonies ruin the freshers experience" Won [24]
2024 Best Student Publication The Cheese Grater Won [25]
2024 Best Media Piece "TERF out Transphobia: The IOE and “Academic Freedom”" Won [26]
Derek Award 2021 Spirit of the Fringe "Post Humour" Won [27]
Guardian Student Media Award 2006 Best Small Budget Publication The Cheese Grater Won [28]
2007 Best Magazine The Cheese Grater Nominated [citation needed]
Student Publication Association 2022 Best Publication – London region The Cheese Grater Won [29]
2023 Best Creative Piece Mathilde Turner (for "Naked yoga: a belligerent ode to the pussy") Nominated [30]
2023 Best News Story Neil Majithia and Elettra Plati (for "Chun Buckets Everywhere: How initiation ceremonies ruin the freshers experience") Won [31]
2023 Billy Dowling-Reid Award for Outstanding Commitment Nandini Agarwal Nominated [30]
2024 Best Creative Piece “Keir Starmer... A Day in the Life” by Ben Scanlan Highly Commended [32]
2024 Best Newcomer Women’s Wrongs Highly Commended [32]


Structure

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The constitution of the Magazine states the society must have three executive officers, the President, Treasurer, and Welfare Officer. The editorial structure of the publication consists of two Co-Editors-In-Chief, two Co-Investigations Editors, an Online Editor, and a Humour Editor. The magazine committee has also incorporated a Socials and Community Outreach Officer, Sketch Director, Sketch Producer, and Graphics Editor as it has expanded. The position of Zine Editor was created following the launch of the magazines sister publication.

All positions are elected through The Students' Union of UCL. The elected positions form the committee.

Former Editors[33]

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  • Robert Delaney and Mads Brown (September 2023–August 2024)
  • Samir Ismael and Nandini Agarwal (September 2022–August 2023)
  • Rusheen Bansal and Alfie Pannell (September 2021–August 2022)
  • Sophia Robinson (September 2020–August 2021)
  • Suzy Kingston and Weronika Strzyzynska (September 2019–August 2020)
  • Ollie Dunn and Peter FitzSimons (September 2018–August 2019)
  • Jason Murugesu and Jack Redfern (September 2017–August 2018)
  • Ollie Phelan (September 2016–August 2017)
  • Bo Franklin (September 2015–August 2016)
  • Charlie Hayton (September 2014–August 2015)
  • Hannah Sketchley (September 2013–August 2014)
  • Will Rowland (September 2012–August 2013)
  • Chon Böll (September 2011–August 2012)
  • Thom Rhoades (September 2010–August 2011)
  • A.Z. McKenna (September 2009–August 2010)
  • Jenni Hulse (September 2008–August 2009)
  • Hannah Hudson (January–August 2008)
  • Mark Ravinet (September 2006–December 2007)
  • René Lavanchy (September 2004–August 2006)

Notes

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  1. ^ The listed year refers to the date of the ceremony.

References

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  1. ^ "The Cheese Grater, London Regional Winner". Student Publication Association. Retrieved 18 March 2022.[self-published]
  2. ^ "The Cheese Grater Issue 1" (PDF). UCLU Cheese Grater Magazine Society. Archived from the original (PDF) on 26 April 2012. Retrieved 13 September 2007.
  3. ^ "No limits: time to ignore Hefce?". Times Higher Education. 24 February 2011. Retrieved 10 June 2022.
  4. ^ Hill, Dave (13 June 2012). "London 2012 legacy: the battle begins on a Newham estate". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 10 June 2022.
  5. ^ "Violated, Harassed, Ignored: Abuse in Halls by UCL Security Guards". 25 February 2022. Retrieved 10 June 2022.
  6. ^ "Chun Buckets Everywhere: How Initiation Ceremonies Ruin the Freshers Experience". The Cheese Grater Magazine. 18 November 2022. Retrieved 17 July 2024.
  7. ^ "The Story Behind UCL's Rejection of Stonewall". 23 February 2022. Retrieved 10 June 2022.
  8. ^ "Sketch Off 2016 - Semi Final 1". Facebook.com. 13 March 2016. Retrieved 28 December 2019.[self-published]
  9. ^ "UCL Graters: Smashing | Review | The Wee Review | Scotland's arts and culture magazine". The Wee Review. Retrieved 28 December 2019.
  10. ^ "Graters – Julian Ignores His Friend And Talks To A Pretty Girl (Graters)". ThreeWeeks Edinburgh. 18 August 2012. Retrieved 10 June 2022.
  11. ^ "UCL at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival | UCL News - UCL - London's Global University". UCL. 2 August 2013. Retrieved 10 June 2022.
  12. ^ "at the 2014 Edinburgh Festival Fringe | UCL News - UCL - London's Global University". UCL. 29 July 2014. Retrieved 28 December 2019.
  13. ^ "UCL Graters - 2015: A Sketch Odyssey listing on Broadway Baby". broadwaybaby.com.
  14. ^ "UCL Graters: Immature Cheddar listing on Broadway Baby". broadwaybaby.com.
  15. ^ "UCL Graters: Smashing: 4 star review by Ben Munster". broadwaybaby.com.
  16. ^ "UCL Graters: Panopticon". www.underbellyedinburgh.co.uk. Archived from the original on 11 July 2018. Retrieved 13 January 2022.
  17. ^ "Clothesline | Comedy | Edinburgh Festival Fringe". Tickets.edfringe.com. Archived from the original on 23 August 2019. Retrieved 28 December 2019.
  18. ^ "Post Humour". Tickets.edfringe.com. Archived from the original on 10 September 2021. Retrieved 10 September 2021.
  19. ^ "Post Humour". www.comedy.co.uk. British Comedy Guide. 2021. Archived from the original on 7 May 2023. Retrieved 7 May 2023.
  20. ^ "Derek Awards Edinburgh Fringe". Facebook. Retrieved 10 June 2022.[self-published]
  21. ^ "Instagram". www.instagram.com. Retrieved 7 June 2024.
  22. ^ "Instagram". www.instagram.com. Retrieved 7 June 2024.
  23. ^ "Instagram". www.instagram.com. Retrieved 7 June 2024.
  24. ^ a b "Arts Award winners 2024 | Students Union UCL".
  25. ^ "Arts Award winners 2024 | Students Union UCL". studentsunionucl.org. Retrieved 7 June 2024.
  26. ^ "Arts Award winners 2024 | Students Union UCL". studentsunionucl.org. Retrieved 7 June 2024.
  27. ^ "Derek Awards Edinburgh Fringe". Facebook. Retrieved 10 June 2022.[self-published]
  28. ^ Keating, Matt (13 November 2006). "Young, gifted and hacks". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 10 June 2022.
  29. ^ "The Cheese Grater, London Regional Winner". Student Publication Association. Retrieved 10 June 2022 – via Twitter.[self-published]
  30. ^ a b Scott, Geri (8 March 2023). "SPANC23: National awards shortlists announced". Student Publication Association. Retrieved 29 October 2023.
  31. ^ Allegretti, Aubrey (2 April 2023). "SPANC23: National awards winners announced". Student Publication Association. Retrieved 29 October 2023.
  32. ^ a b Scott, Geri (15 April 2024). "SPANC24: National award winners announced". Retrieved 7 June 2024.
  33. ^ "Past Editors". The Cheese Grater Magazine. 22 January 2017. Retrieved 6 July 2024.
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