The students behind ‘PMB 2.0’ say they don’t want another Fyre Fest

The cancellation of Pimp My Barrow has frustrated wheelbarrow loving students all across campus, but two UEA students Emily Latimer and Louise Kihlberg have decided to take matters into their own hands, and set up a Facebook event, and proposed an alternative Pimp My Barrow.

The event description reads:

"So after the recent tragedy of the cancellation of PMB, we have decided to take matters in our own hands. So grab your fancy dress, grab your barrows and let's make this an event to remember.

"BYOB, Plus ones, twos, tens, everyone's welcome – #letsmakeUEAwonderfulagain"

We spoke to the pair to ask why they decided to set up the different event and how they feel about the huge amount of attention it has already received.

Why did you decide to make this event?

"To be honest we made this event as an act of protest, and it started as a bit of a joke more than anything. This is our last year of Uni, and PMB has always been such a big day of the year and part of our Uni experience.

"The fact it is cancelled and other fresher’s won’t get to enjoy it is heartbreaking. If UEA is going to take on more students each year, it needs to plan to accommodate to those numbers rather than cancelling big events like this at the last minute."

What does PMB mean to you?

"PMB has always been the one day of the year that all the students come together for a good cause and have a blast. It is the one day that highlights the unity and camaraderie of the students. In short, PMB is the spirit of UEA, and it’s a shame that the event was cancelled this year, not to mention how much it raises for The Big C.
"

Do you see this actually happening and how are you planning on making it work?

"To be honest, we started the event for a bit of fun and never expected it (perhaps naively) to get this much attention, but clearly the students want this to happen!

"We have no experience in organising events, and don’t want to hype people up and have the outcome of a Fyre Festival situation! But it would be great to have some kind of substitute event, and if the SU isn’t going to do that, if enough of us got together maybe we could make something happen."

One student said he had the 'Sound system covered…'

What will you do if your event is shut down?

"The event we’re hosting is not being held on university grounds.

[The event page states its location as Earlham Park].

"We don’t think we’re doing anything wrong by making a Facebook event, we just want to create a platform for everyone to air their frustration and maybe organise something together."

Did you expect the reaction from other students towards your event?

"Not at all! We expected maybe a few of our friends to respond, it’s a bit insane.

"The overwhelming response to this event really showcases the love UEA students have for this university and the event. All we want to do is have a reason to celebrate the survival of another academic year in the most silly way possible, and PMB has always enabled us to do that.

"We just want to carry on the tradition, giving the people of UEA the same joy that PMB has given us without fail every year. Put the wonderful back in UEA!
"

Robert Thurbon bought up the importance of raising money for The Big C

Fellow student Jack Annand, has set up a JustGiving page in order to raise funds for The Big C, the charity that PMB raises money for every year. You can donate here

He told The Norwich Tab:

"I think like everyone else at UEA I was pretty devastated when I saw PMB was cancelled, then naturally I was excited to see somebody take the initiative to run their own event instead!

"The justgiving page was set up as a result of a conversation I was having with a friend, and she pushed me to set it up! We both agreed that while it's bad enough that students are missing out on one of the best events of the year, it's even worse that a charity is missing out on thousands of pounds it would have otherwise been given!

"If students are prepared to take part in this alternative event, I think it's only fair to also consider donating a little bit to the charity they would have been donating to had it been run by the SU"

Whether or not any sort of event does end up taking place, make sure to donate to The Big C, here.