Why hello and welcome to our final issue of the academic year, and my final issue as Venue’s Co-Editor. I’m currently in my own little bubble of stress, so it hasn’t really hit me that I’m in my final weeks at UEA. But it turns out the old cliché is actually true – university really does go by in the blink of an eye. It’s probably a bizarre statement as it’s summative season, but this really is my favourite time of the year at UEA. The sun makes an appearance (we can hope), bluebells are in full bloom, students fill the steps in The Square and people lay on picnic blankets dotted around the lake. Good vibes pour through the stress.

I’d like to use my final editorial as a space to give out a few thank yous. Firstly, a thank you to our lovely Section Editors. I’ve loved seeing you all settle into your roles, and really make them your own. The content you provided has made for a really brilliant year of Venue Secondly, to all those who contributed to writing for Venue, I’ve loved reading all your great articles, so a massive thank you for getting involved. So much hard work and talent has gone into each issue.

My final thank you is saved for my Co-Editor, Tee. When I found out that I had been given this role, last year’s editor Louise gave me a piece of advice – become friends with your Co-Editor. Little did I know that my personality doppelgänger had been hired as the other Co-Editor. We instantly hit it off, and amidst a summer of designing Venue, were long text conversations about anything and everything (one of them was rating our top ten biscuit choices). Not only is Tee insanely talented at designing and editing, but she also has a skill for aestheticising anything. I will fondly treasure memories of staying in the Media Office late into the evenings with Tee to work on Venue. Tee brightened these evenings full of work with flasks of hot chocolate, peppermint tea and M&S cake. You have genuinely become my rock, and I am so happy to have not only found a brilliant Co-Editor, but also a lifelong friend <3

Please enjoy all the hard work that has gone into our final issue of the year, and take care of yourselves during this hectic period. Millie x

Where does the time go?!

The picture of me and Millie on the right was taken just before the ‘Big Meet’, both nervous but excited as we began finding our feet in our roles as Venue Co-Editors. Now, we’re seven issues on, and it’s time to say goodbye. Like many of you graduating, there’s lots of goodbyes on the horizon for me – once I’ve written my dissertation over the summer and graduated my MA, I’ll be saying goodbye to ‘education’, this time for good. Having spent the last four years travelling to and from UEA, it will be strange to close this chapter of my life. But one of the hardest chapters to end is this one, saying goodbye to Venue, and working with such a wonderful team across Venue and Concrete. I’m so proud of what we’ve created over this year. There has been some incredible articles published, beautifully designed lay-ups, and lots of laughs along the way. To our writers and the whole editorial team – thank you for all your hard work this year!

I’d also like to send the biggest thanks to my co-editor, Millie. Over many chai lattes, craft evenings, and chats (about literally anything and everything), we have become the best of friends, and I couldn’t be luckier to have shared the Venue editor role with Millie. She’s incredibly talented as both a writer and editor, and even through she’s faced some difficult times over the past year, there has not been a moment when she hasn’t been amazing with Venue. She has the kindest soul and a heart of gold, and as she said too, I’m very glad to have found a friend forever <3

Good luck with everything, and have a wonderful time in the summer ahead of us! If you’re still going to be at UEA next year, make sure you look out for section editor roles and writing opportunities towards the end of the summer.

All the best, Tee x