Here at The Edge if there’s one thing we like it’s good television, and a great boxset to binge. Fresher’s week is the best time to catch up on the newest series of a long time favourite, or introduce your flatmates to something new. And many of the shows out there have a lesson that we can all take away and apply to our university lives. Whether it’s learning how to properly sort out all of the freebies you picked up from the fresher’s fayre, or just to show you that you’re not alone, here are picks from our writers for shows to help you out during fresher’s week.
Tidying Up with Marie Kondo
The Netflix Original series Tidying Up With Marie Kondo shows Marie Kondo helping families and couples tidy their living spaces to create a space that suits their ideal self. Marie uses her five step system, discarding of objects by category first (clothes first, then books, followed by papers, then komono and lastly mementos), breaking everything into sub-categories if necessary, keep only things that spark joy, organise your space, and complete this whole process in one go. Tidying Up with Marie Kondo is the perfect programme to binge-watch during freshers week as not only does it encourage you to keep your space clean and tidy but it’s an easy watch that provides some heartwarming breakthrough moments that are perfect for those lazy days.
- Amy Penn
Great British Bake Off
Picture this… It’s Freshers’ Week. Your new flatmates are dying inside from all of the cheap Jagerbombs they bought at SUSU the night before. You could just leave them, hungover and alone… or you could make them those lovely American style pancakes that you saw on Mary Berry whip up on The Great British Bake Off when you were binge-watching it yesterday afternoon. Free food, along with the ability to sleep for 12 hrs straight without being judged, are some of the best things about university, and knowledge gained from Bake Off will, unquestionably, help you make friends. Whether you’re baking boozy gin and tonic cupcakes for pre-drinks, or crusty bread to make the good old student staple of beans on toast; everyone loves baked goods. Taking inspiration from the tent, and applying it to uni gives you a showstopping introduction to your new uni mates.
- Jack Nash
Peep Show
Peep Show is one of the greatest shows of all time and with all nine seasons it is perfect to binge-watch. For those who do not know Peep Show, it is a cynical (and sometimes offensive) British sitcom providing us with important valuable life lessons like “People like Coldplay and voted for the Nazis, you can’t trust people, Jez”. Peep Show is a show you can watch again and again and each time will be a little different depending on your mental state or where you are in life. Jeremy, Mark and Super Hans are all characters we can all find aspects of ourselves in. If you ever feel a mess after a Freshers night out just watch an episode of Peep Show and you’ll (hopefully) feel a little bit better.
- Morgan McMillan
Gilmore Girls
Gilmore Girls can help you out during so many stages of your life, but there’s something really special about watching (or rewatching) it at this time of year. Follow Rory Gilmore’s journey from high school to college as she deals with, well, everything that you are right now.
There’s no fictional character more qualified to inspire you to study. She makes you want to be a better student and her enthusiasm is contagious. Of course, it’s a journey. Her difficulties settling in at college really stuck with me when I was going through the same thing, and although I had already watched Gilmore Girls once I learned more when I watched it at uni.
This is one of the most real, feel-good shows around that has the power to change how you look at families, relationships and education. So follow Rory’s lead and make the best of university!
- Vicky Greer
