The Mays XIX

At the end of June we had a launch party for The Mays. It was...

Mon, 29 Aug 2011 16:07:00 +0100

At the end of June we had a launch party for The Mays. It was sunny and topped with strawberries, cream and readings by Sam Sudar, Sophie Seita and Rachel Teubner. We sold the anthology for a launch day bargain price of £6, though you can buy it for a mere £4 more (inc. P+P!) by clicking Purchase, over to the left. Here are a few snaps from the day, enjoy!

The Mays XIX Exclusive Preview.Click image to go fullscreen.

Wed, 22 Jun 2011 11:40:00 +0100

The Mays XIX Exclusive Preview.
Click image to go fullscreen.

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Tue, 14 Jun 2011 20:47:00 +0100

CONTENTS ANNOUNCED NEXT WEEK!

Sun, 29 May 2011 23:59:35 +0100

Good evening pop pickers. We had around 800 individual submissions for this year’s Mays Anthology, which is simply astonishing, and may have ruined my chances of successfully submitting my MPhil thesis on time. More important than this however, is the astounding breadth, feeling and skill displayed across this panoply of work.
Catriona and I decided from the very beginning that we would like to showcase everything that Oxbridge has to offer. Rather than being the stuffed up drawly place it once was, Oxford and Cambridge are small but mighty towns, where one can walk into any coffee shop and sit beside a Peruvian archaeologist and a Glaswegian medic, each with their own unique stories to tell, and think nothing of it. Thankfully, the work our guest editors have selected represents just how diverse and fascinating the tales of those studying and pretending to study (hello!) here are.
I’m going to place the final contents pages up around a week from now, and I’d appreciate if you could spread the word to anyone else you know who has submitted work. Quite frankly, the prospect of sending hundreds of emails terrifies me (and my supervisor). I’m sorry to have to do the exam-results-on-the-notice-board thing, but needs must. Best of luck to you who entered, and tell your friends. This year’s Mays is undoubtedly the best yet.

POETRY. Jarvis Cocker is a musician, actor, radio DJ,...

Sun, 22 May 2011 22:14:12 +0100

POETRY. Jarvis Cocker is a musician, actor, radio DJ, documentary film maker and poet. He is also Petey in Wes Anderson’s Fantastic Mr Fox. He has fronted his band Pulp for many years, as well as releasing two solo albums, presenting a Channel 4 series on outsider art and having his poetry emblazoned in huge brushed steel letters on the side of a prominent building in his hometown Sheffield. Jarvis’s eye for the unique and uncanny is exactly what we want in a guest editor. We’re delighted to have him on board.

PROSE. Richard Milward is the author of two novels,...

Thu, 19 May 2011 10:25:00 +0100

PROSE. Richard Milward is the author of two novels, Apples (2007) and Ten Story Love Song (2009), both of which were published by Faber and Faber. Irvine Welsh and Lauren Laverne are forever bigging him up, and if you’ve read Apples or seen the theatrical version that toured last year, you’ll understand why. He studied Fine Art at Saint Martins and has written columns for the Guardian and Dazed & Confused. Having just finished his next novel, he’s happily setting aside some time to pore through our short stories in preparation for this year’s Mays anthology.

VISUAL ARTS. Paul Smith is best known as the voice of Newcastle...

Sun, 15 May 2011 22:20:00 +0100

VISUAL ARTS. Paul Smith is best known as the voice of Newcastle band Maximo Park. But more than this, he was once an art teacher and released his first book of photography “Thinking in Pictures” last year, alongside his debut solo album, Margins. His musings on all things visible and aural can be located at www.paulsmithmusic.eu where his blog is on hold while he looks through the cream of Oxford and Cambridge’s visual artwork and writes a tasty preface for this year’s anthology.

"Each year THE MAYS invites one, two or three guest editors to select the very best entries from the..."

Sun, 15 May 2011 22:14:00 +0100

“Each year THE MAYS invites one, two or three guest editors to select the very best entries from the work submitted to us. This year, we have three stunningly fresh and exciting editors to suit our fresh and exciting poets, writers and visual artists. They are making their way through our shortlist as you read this, but to keep you interested before the June release date (MAY WEEK), we’re going to reveal this year’s editors every three days. First up, visual arts.”

"We will announce our guest editors for 2011 here next week. Check back, yes?"

Wed, 04 May 2011 20:25:37 +0100

“We will announce our guest editors for 2011 here next week. Check back, yes?”

STILL TIME.Three more days to scribble, scratch, paint, flick,...

Mon, 28 Mar 2011 22:04:20 +0100

STILL TIME.

Three more days to scribble, scratch, paint, flick, pour and click your best prose, poetry or visual arts to life, March 31st 2011.

It’s getting exciting now.

Congratulations to James Vincent, winner of our lo-fi short film...

Tue, 15 Mar 2011 00:57:09 +0000

Congratulations to James Vincent, winner of our lo-fi short film competition. Beware the hand!

Click on it to head on over to the Facebook event. See you...

Mon, 07 Mar 2011 19:38:38 +0000

Click on it to head on over to the Facebook event. See you there!

"NOTE TIME CHANGE: Come to the screening of our cineMAYS mobile phone short film competition winners,..."

Wed, 02 Mar 2011 21:19:00 +0000

“NOTE TIME CHANGE: Come to the screening of our cineMAYS mobile phone short film competition winners, NEXT Sunday (13 March) at Christ’s Films, 9.30, followed by Nowhere Boy. The event has been delayed a week due to naughty distributors failing to deliver their films to Christ’s. Naughty.”

- Facebook event.

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Tue, 01 Mar 2011 21:50:54 +0000

WHOA! LAST MINUTE CHANGE OF DATE! NOTE NOTE NOTICE!Things are...

Tue, 01 Mar 2011 11:06:00 +0000

WHOA! LAST MINUTE CHANGE OF DATE! NOTE NOTE NOTICE!

Things are busy busy busy at camp MAYS. Next Friday (11TH) sees our second Poetry and Knitting club at the English Faculty. If you happen to be near the Sidgewick Site in Cambridge, just pop through the sliding doors and up the stairs to the Graduate Common Room between 12 - 1pm.

We will be knitting, eating lunch, chatting and hearing poems from Amber Medland, Orla Polten and Sophie Seita.

Come join in! Knitting, eating or listening. Your choice, all welcome.

The Mays XIX presents: cineMAYS a film workshop and...

Sun, 20 Feb 2011 20:13:00 +0000

The Mays XIX presents: cineMAYS a film workshop and competition.

Ever wondered what it would be like to make a film? Get a thrill from being
in the spotlight, or from being the artist behind the action? Got a camera phone? Or a digital camera? Got ideas? Then you’ve already got everything you need.

We’ll give you 3 hours. We’ll help you find and develop your ideas if needed and then perfect your creation with editing on Sunday 27th. Surprise yourself with what you can do.

All entries will be published on the Mays XIX website and VarsiTV, as well as being shown at Christ’s Films on 6th March, judged by a specialist panel
consisting of The Mays XIX Committee and:

Simon Haines - ADC Committee member and Writer’s rep/hot-shot actor-director,

Michael Derringer - Head of VarsiTV.

Get creative. Get acknowledged. Get keen.

Get informed. Contact Kirsty (kep43) or Lavinia (lgtm2) with any questions.

First up, this Friday (18 Feb) will be Kristen Treen and Jordan...

Tue, 15 Feb 2011 17:02:11 +0000

First up, this Friday (18 Feb) will be Kristen Treen and Jordan Savage. Make sure you get yourself along; needles, sandwiches, ears, none of the above. Everyone needs a lunch break.

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Fri, 04 Feb 2011 15:59:00 +0000

THE MAYS XIX presents ‘OUTSIDE THE MARGINS’, a...

Thu, 27 Jan 2011 17:14:00 +0000

THE MAYS XIX presents ‘OUTSIDE THE MARGINS’, a poetry-writing workshop.

1st February, Queens’ Old Kitchens, 7-8.30pm.

Anyone and everyone is welcome, from Shakespeare to the illiterate. Some books will be provided, but bring your own if you can.

Facebook event HERE!

We will likely drink and chat also. We want to meet you. Come.

Soon, there will be wonderful videos by YOU here. In the mean...

Sun, 16 Jan 2011 21:49:42 +0000

Soon, there will be wonderful videos by YOU here. In the mean time, here’s a video of my trip to Ely from Cambridge. Looking forward to your submissions, Phil.