The first cruise ships for Orkney

by Scarlett

On the 24^th of March 2022 Orkney’s first cruise of the year, MS Gann, visited, later followed by Viking Venus on the 3^rd of April, at Hatston Pier in Kirkwall. This is especially good because cruise ships have been cancelled between March 2020 and July 2021 due to Covid.

Thankfully, this year has a record-breaking number of cruise ships scheduled to arrive in Orkney – a total of 209 ships. Despite predictions that these numbers will fall, there should still be at least 160 ships arriving; the cruise ships in Orkney are making a full return.

Report by Scarlett, using research and interviews found in “Cruise liners set to return in full in 2022” published 13th Feb 2022 in The Orcadian online, and “Cruise set to return bigger than ever in 2022” published 30^th August 2021 on Orkney islands Council website.

Rising Energy Prices

by Lachlan & William

People are becoming increasingly concerned about the rise in the price of energy. This will affect many families who cannot afford to pay any more money for their electricity and gas bills. This is happening all over the world right now. It’s all happening because the companies producing the energy need more money to cover the costs of producing it.

Cristiano Ronaldo and the Impact of Child Loss

by Alida

As most people currently on social media and football fans know that the famous Cristiano Ronaldo and his partner Georgina Rodríguez have lost one of their new-born twins recently.

On Thursday the 28^th of October 2021, the famous footballer Cristiano Ronaldo (37) and his Wife, Georgina Rodriguez (28), shared with their fans and supporters the exciting news that Georgina was pregnant and that the couple were going to have not just one, but two babies joining the family.

Georgina then took to Instagram and was very open, revealing the genders of the unborn twins with a video.  During her pregnancy, she also shared with their supporters the designer cots the twins were to sleep in when they arrive.

But on 18^th April, Ronaldo announced on Instagram that, although their daughter was fine, her brother had tragically not survived.

Child loss in known to be one of the most traumatic events that a mother can go through and can cause severe mental health issues for the parent. Common feelings include guilt, depression, anxiety, grief, denial and numbness, though not all parents will feel this way: everyone will cope differently in any and every situation, especially with loss.

Child loss may happen for many reasons and most of the time isn’t the mothers fault it is just how it is, and it takes a lot of courage to even think about having another child and even seeing new-borns or incredibly young children can trigger a negative reaction from either parent.

If this has happened to you then seek help with a therapist or find a healthy way of coping like speaking to your partner, friends, family and if you are worried about the safety of your partner or yourself then please contact 999.

Morbius box office disappointment

by Rachel and Callum

Morbius, the Sony film starring a spiderman villain, has been a big disappointment at the Box Office since its release in America on 1^st April 2022.  The film is about a terribly ill guy with a rare blood disorder who tries to cure himself.  This gives him super abilities, but also a lust for blood.

The failure of the film affects the company who made it:  there most likely will not be a standalone sequel, and the company will only gain a little bit of money or – depending on how it does – they could lose some of the $75-83 it cost to make.  Many well-known actors are featured in the film such as Matt Smith, Adria Arjona and Jared Leto.

At the Domestic box office, Morbius is failing quite badly, only making around 66 million dollars between opening and today (21^st April).  So far, other films that were released later in the USA and Canada have done better, like Sonic the Hedgehog 2, which made more in its first weekend, taking in 72 million dollars in its opening weekend.

Morbius is not doing that well internationally either, only making around 81 million dollars in the rest of the world, as of now, which is not that good. The full total gross of the film so far globally is around 147 million dollars, which might sound like a lot if you do not know movies but it is small in comparison to other film releases.

The film’s box office disappointment can be traced back to the fact that the original trailer was released two years ago.  A wait that long for a film that was delayed is not good for a film, because people forget about it. The trailers released recently were not that well received and got a ridiculously small number of views compared to other films trailers.

The film was also based on character hardly anyone remembered.

The film’s first impressions were also not that good, with critics saying things like “as bad as you were expecting. 2005 plot collides with visually confusing CGI to create a bit of a snooze fest” (said by Sab Astley) and “Morbius is just as disjointed and boring as you expected it to be” (said by Cameron Howe).

A big nail in the coffin was a score of just 16% from review website Rotten Tomatoes, which made audiences not want to see it.

Elisei Ryabukon was thirteen years old when the fighting had first started, him and his family were stuck in Peremoha until Russian soldiers had given them permission to leave in March. Elisei was then shot dead by the Russian soldiers whilst trying to escape Ukraine.

“On 11 March, the Russians gave us permission to leave. They even waved us goodbye and wished us luck. Then when we were crossing a field, they started firing at us from every direction”.

There were five cars all together evacuating, Elisei was escaping in the second car with a few other people, no one in Elisei’s car had survived.

“I crawled through the field and saved my three-year-old son by dragging him by the hood of his jacket. The fact that any of us made it out alive was pure luck”.

Inna Ryabukon says that her remaining child is “the only reason she’s able to carry on.”

Elisei is one of 200 child victims in Ukraine: 186 children at least have been confirmed dead and killed during the fighting. Ohmatdyt hospital has had dozens of children who have been injured.

Inna wants Justice for what the Russians have done and has filed a complaint to the police.

She says, “I want the world to know about the crimes of Russia. I want every victim to be counted. I want Russia to be held accountable for the people, children, and women, they have killed on our land”.

Report by Esme, based on research and interviews by Yogita Limaye, BBC News, 19^th April 2022.