Evening Gazette

http://www.gazettelive.co.uk/news/teesside-news/2012/05/14/darlington-students-nominated-for-award-84229-30965185/

Full Peter Barron Interview

On Tuesday 22nd May Liam Pape (Presenter for the Wyvern TV) interviewed editor of the Northern Echo, Peter Barron. The full interview is on the 3rd Episode of the Wyvern TV but here it is…

So what first got you into journalism?

When I was at school, about 11, we were doing a school newspaper project and I wrote a story about a horserace. The teacher who was running the class just said to me ‘you should do this for a living’ and that was it really. It just stuck on my mind. I could go on and be a journalist. So that was it really, I wanted to work for a newspaper.

What’s the best thing you’ve ever reported on?

You look back and you remember all of the big stores, September the 11th I’ll never forget, Princess Diana, I’ll never forget. I like stories that change things and that make a difference. The one in my career was a campaign that we launched after one of our photographers called Ian Wear died at 38.  He died because he needed a heart bypass operation and he needed to wait 8 months. He died whilst he was waiting. This lead me to launch a campaign looking into how long people were waiting for heart bypass operations in this country. I found that the average waiting time was 12 months in this country however in other parts of Europe it was 3 months. So I realised that that was something that needed to change. We launched the campaign in Ian’s memory and it lead to the government launching an initiative which lead to heart bypass waiting times to being cut and the government acknowledged that it was the Northern Echo’s campaign that caused that.

So I look back at that and it makes me think if nothing else happened that made my career worth while.

The Northern Echo has recently got an iPhone app. What do you think the chances are of the Northern Echo or other newspapers moving completely to apps and the internet?

I think it is the way that we are moving however I think it will be a long time until they completely replace newspapers. I think we all know that newspapers are in decline and we do need to look to the digital future. But I think it will be very slow.

In terms of the iPad app. We lanched it around 2 months ago and the numbers are very small but it is a start and you need to be in there and make a start. The numbers online are growing all the time. The Northern Echo gets 2 and a half million viewers online and 10% of our revenue comes from online. It is becoming serious.

I do think though that newspapers do have a decade or 2 to go before they do stop. When people talk about the death of newspapers they don’t realise that the Northern Echo is making more money now than it was 5 yeas ago.

The Northern Echo is moving out of it’s current building to make way for a Debenhams in Darlington. Will that affect the Newspaper in anyway?

I don’t think that it will affect the newspaper at all. You can produce a newspaper from your bedroom these days. You don’t need a big office. The echo has been based there for 130 years and over that time the number of people based there have diminished. We don’t print there anymore, we haven't printed there since 1990 so we don’t really need the space anymore. It’s not going to make any difference to the paper. The question is (because of the economic situation in our country) when will we be moving and when will Debenhams be moving in? It is all up in the air. All we know is that they have put a down payment on the building. They want it sometime in the future but it could be ages away.

You’ve been editor of the Northern Echo for around 13 years now. So what is the best bit of the job?

The best bit of the job is doing stuff like this, coming out into the community and meeting people. I think the great thing about my job is that when I go to work in the morning I don’t know what is going to happen. News is unpredictable. You can come to work thinking you are going to do one thing and then something changes that. The unpredictability and the verity is great. I love the fact that I’m in a very privileged position. I’ve been to 10 Downing Street, Buckingham Palace, I’ve met famous sport’s people. It is a very privileged job.

Before you did the Titanic production earlier this year you quoted “I can’t sing, I can’t dance and I can’t act” so how did that go for you in the end?

I loved it! I have never done a theatre production before and I’m a great believer that you need to experience things to understand the. I was asked to perform in Titanic by the Darlington Operatic Society and I need to say that it was one of the best experienced in my life. There is a real camaraderie that comes out of performing with a group, I made new friends and loved the experience. It also showed me how important the arts are. I underestimated Darlington Operatic Society and they bring people together, improve people’s confidence and they generate a lot of money (£30,000) into the Civic Theatre. If it wasn’t for that group of people, where would the civic theatre be? It is a lot of money to loose. I think it is very important for the community to appreciate the importance for organisations like that.

You went on horse back to work one day for the production. What was that like?

Scary. It had been a long time since I’ve been on a horse. I rode to work in my costume of William Stead because it was around 100 years ago when William Stead rode his horse to work and he ties it up outside crown street library. So we re-enacted his journey to work to promote the show really and also to commemorate his death because it had been 100 years since he died on Titanic. We did that and I was amazed how many people turned out to watch me ride this horse. It was a bit scary because I don’t think the bus drivers were particularly nice. They hooted their horse a little which made the horse a bit skittish. But I did it and I got through it and it generated a lot of publicity for the show.

DSMS Cycling Tournament

On Thursday 23rd May 2012 it was the DSMS Cycling Tournament on the back field of the school. There were year 7 and 8 pupils from DSMS, Longfield, Haughton and St. Aidens taking part in the event. The Wyvern team were there to report and the event and it will be going into the 3rd Episode of the Wyvern TV. Above is a video from the head cam of one of the bikes showing you around the track. (It is filmed by Liam Pape who was a Marshall at the event).

Shine Awards

Well A few weeks ago I wrote about the Wyvern being shortlisted for the Shine Awards. I am now extremly happy to announce in all three categories we were shortlisted in we have won a prize in each. However we don't what award it is. It either could be Highly Commended or we have Won it. So on the 25th June 2012 we will be traveling to Sationers Hall London to collect our prize.
The other Finalists are here below-

Finalists were chosen for the second Shine School Media Awards, a national competition for secondary school pupils, by a panel of 16 judges chaired by Simon Heffer of the Daily Mail.  A national competition for secondary schools, The awards recognise key aspects of the secondary school curriculum as well as promoting the development of publishing skills and generating interest in publishing as a career.

 The judges praised the commitment of young people engaging in projects of this kind and were particularly impressed with the team work which projects had engendered.

Blackpool Sixth Form College

Brookfield Community School and Languages College

Budmouth College

Caistor Grammar School

Caistor Yarborough Academy

City of London School

Darlington School of Mathematics and Science

Dean Close School

Exmouth Community College

Farringdon Community Sports College

John Summers High School

Kingsbridge Community College

Langley Park School for Boys

Norbury Manor Business & Enterprise College

Ovingham Middle School

Sherborne School

St Paul’s Girls’ School

The City Academy

The Latymer School

The Right Choice Project

Tonbridge Grammar School

Withington Girls’ School

Wymondham College

Shine Awards

Earlier in the year I told you about the Wyvern being entered into a Competition Called the shine Awards. Well I am please to say that we have been shortlisted in three categories. In each categories seven entries got shortlisted so it is an honour to get this far. We will find out later on in the year if we have won any of them. The Categories we have been shortlisted in are- Overall Content, Comercial stratergy and Outstanding Pupil. We are now really hoping that we win however for now fingers crossed for the Wyvern!

Dark Shadows

Dark Shadows is a new film which has recently came out into the cinema. It stars the likes of Johnny Depp and other big names. Johnny Depp plays the gripping character of Barnabus Collins who moves to America from Liverpool in 1752.   They set up a fishing town called Collins Port and begin work on a house named Collins wood. As he gets older he has an affair with a maid named Angelique Bouchard who is also a witch. When Barnabus ends the affair she turns her love into hate for him and as he falls in Love with another she kills his parents and puts a curse on Barnabus. The curse is to live the rest of his life as a Vampire. She and the town then lock him in a coffin where he lives 220 years before he is re-diged up. Once he is he faces a battle to save the family business and reverse the curse, while trying to sway the lovely Victoria Winters to as in his day court him. Overall the film is full of action and comedy.

So I give Dark Shadows a fantastic Four Star rating!

By Katie Jayne Appleyard

DSMS Flying

For 3 weeks from Thursday 26 April to Thursday 10 March, 9 Year 9 pupils had 3 sessions at the Queen Elisabeth 6th Form building a hover craft.
After 1 week of planning and working out the maths of the hover craft and another week of building, they finally got the opportunity to sit on a hover craft. Engineers from local companies such as Mechtool and Cummings were working with Science and Maths teachers from the QE to assist the schools building the hover crafts.
Their brief was to make a hovercraft using provided materials which could hold 100kg. DSMS was split into 2 teams and were up against Woodham school. The DSMS Boys team finished first and made a working hovercraft however snapped in 2 after it was sat on. It completed the objectives though and they worked out it help 103kg.
The DSMS Girls team however took a while longer however their hover craft eventually help approximately 136kg making them the joint winners with Woodham.

Gooey chocolate mousse cake

Here is a simple recipe for a chocolate Mousse cake which is divine. Hope You like it!
Ingredients
·         6 free-range eggs, separated
·         150g/5oz caster sugar
·         50ml/2fl oz orange liqueur
·         400g/14oz chocolate, melted
·         300ml/10fl oz whipping cream
To serve
·         strawberries, raspberries and cream
Preparation method
1.      Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4. Grease and line a 20cm/8in springform cake tin. Wrap the outside of the cake tin in two layers of aluminium foil so that it will be waterproof when placed in the bain-marie in the oven.
2.     In a bowl beat together the egg yolks with two thirds of the sugar until creamy.
3.     Add the orange liqueur and beat for a further three minutes.
4.     Stir in the melted chocolate and half of the cream.
Technique: Melting chocolate
5.     In a separate bowl, whip the cream, then fold this into the mix.
6.     In a clean bowl, whisk the egg whites until stiff peaks form when the whisk is removed. Beat in the rest of the sugar, then fold this into the chocolate mix.
7.     Spoon the mixture into the lined, foil-wrapped cake tin and place into a deep baking tray. Set the baking tray onto the oven shelf. Half fill the tray with boiling water from the kettle to make a bain-marie.
8.     Place in the oven for 45 minutes at 180C/350F/Gas 4 and then reduce the temperature to 150C/300F/Gas 2 for 45 minutes more.
9.     Turn the oven off but leave the cake in for another 20 minutes.
10.   Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely. Remove the cake from the tin and peel off the paper. Serve with fruit and cream.

Army Trip

Visit to the Army on Wednesday 7^th March

By Robyn Smith (our Business Admin Student)

Along with Mrs Gray, Mr Burford, Miss Wright and about 30 pupils, I head off to Catterick Garrison to spend the day at the army camp. We set off at 9.00am and arrived around 9:40am, once we got there we were told what we would be doing throughout the day and were put into two teams, I decided I was going to take part!

The first activity was a 2 and a half mile run in the rain, down roads and through fields which had obstacles along the way, we had to do things such as sit ups, press ups, pull ups, climb up ropes and climb over objects. Along the way Mrs Gray, Mr Burford and Miss Wright drove behind us in a car watching us suffer and beeping if anyone started to walk!  We were then picked up and taken back by minibus and had some dinner.  After dinner the pupils took part in command tasks where they had to work together as a team and think carefully about what they had to do.  We had another short break after the command task activity then we had to put on our army green overalls and set off for another 1 and a half mile run where we had to stay in the correct order or we got shouted at.

 After the run we arrived at the assault course. Watching the demonstration made me change my mind, I didn’t want to do it anymore! However, Stacey who is a Royal Military Police Officer in the army who was working with us throughout the day made me take part! We ended up crawling through the mud, climbing over walls, running through water, rope swinging over water, walking over wooden planks which were really high, climbing down ropes and jumping onto objects over water and getting onto the other side. After we were all drenched in muddy water we walked all the way back to the room where our things were, it seemed to take forever to get there! We then cleaned ourselves up and changed into our spare clothes. We got back onto the coach at 2.30pm and head back to school. The next day I was aching everywhere! But I would definitely go back and do it all again!

The School Food Trust

The School Food Trust came into school some time ago to do a national survey of school meals. The survey looked at pupil choice, recipes school kitchens use, produce used and the uptake of school meals. The results of the survey can be found on the school food website, the results are for surveys done across the country. After the visit the school food trusted requested a recipe that they sampled here, the recipe was Winter Vegetable Soup. We sent off the recipe and it has been printed in the School Food Trust ‘Recipe’s for Success Series’. The recipe can be viewed following the link

www.schoolfoodtrust.org.uk/resources/recipesforsuccess

The Recipes for Success series provides tried and tested recipes to help schools offer a popular menu and overcome common challenges with meeting the school food standards.

By Julie Hill Canteen Manager