current durham english students?

hey everybody
currently deciding whether to firm durham or exeter for english. i know durham's rep is better, but at the mo for various reasons im leaning towards exeter, because:

more flexible/less old fashioned modules (arguably)
more coursework as opposed to exam
more flexible apparently about missing grade requirements. plus i read some reviews of durham and lots were really positive but there were a surprising amount that literally claimed that durham gave them depression. which is scary. anyways,

if youre a durham english student, what do you like/dislike about durham?
do you think the focus on exams over coursework is a positive thing?
do you think i should choose durham for reputation alone?
and lastly, does anyone know about people who've missed requirements but been let in anyways?