Straight Up

• NOUGHTIES IT GIRLS: feuds, falls and the reign of the tabloids

  We’re on hols this week, hunnies, but ofc we weren’t going to leave you without an ep! So, we’ve dug into the archives and stitched together one of our very first specials: a *very* juicy two-parter on the iconic Noughties ‘It Girls’ Paris Hilton, Lindsay Lohan, Britney Spears and Nicole Richie, which feels extremely relevant right now thanks to the publication of the amazing new book Girl on Girl: How Pop Culture Turned a Generation of Women Against Themselves. In this deep-dive, we cover everything from the toxic rise of tabloid culture and the paparazzi, to how this era ended up shaping celebrity and pop culture as we recognise it today. We know most of you haven’t heard this one yet and so we want to rectify that, bc we’re very proud of it! We hope you enjoy and we’ll be back to usual business next week! We would love to hear your thoughts, pop culture recs and future special ideas so DM us ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@straightuppod⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ or email at ⁠⁠[email protected]⁠. Plus follow us on TikTok @straightuupod too! And please do leave us a review on Apple Podcasts or a rating on Spotify – it really does help keep us going x. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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• WEDDINGS: pop culture, tradition and marital myths

  It’s wedding szn hunnies so we get into the bonkers and wonderful world of weddings, from the most absurd and insufferable wedding tropes to our favourite wedding pop culture, including two excellent book recs. Plus, a few top tips from recent bride Kathleen!We really hope you love this bonus special! We would love to hear your thoughts on all things weddings or ideas for future bonus eps, so DM us ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@straightuppod⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ or email at ⁠⁠[email protected]⁠. Plus follow us on TikTok @straightuupod too! And please do leave us a review on Apple Podcasts or a rating on Spotify – it really does help keep us going xRecs/reviewsThe FenceThe Wedding People, Alison EspachYou’re Cordially Invited, Amazon PrimeThe Materialists, in cinemas August  The Ballad of Wallis IslandFather of the BrideBridesmaids The Bachelorette An Attempt to Make Sense of the Jennifer Lopez Wedding Industrial-Complex Canon, VultureFour Weddings and FuneralShotgun WeddingTicket to Paradise Crazy Rich AsiansThe Princess DiariesAll Hail the New York Influencer Who Posted TikToks Throughout Her Wedding, The Cut The Happy Couple, Naoise DolanDear Dolly, Should we let a pet dog come to our wedding?. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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  51:36
• Sabrina Carpenter, Alex Cooper and the new age of sexism

  The backlash against Sabrina Carpenter’s new album cover supposedly satirising the male gaze has left us grappling with difficult questions, from how much moral responsibility Sabrina owes her young fans to whether this satire serves any greater purpose. Tying in with the release of Laura Bates’s brilliant new book The New Age of Sexism, we debate everything from how messy female ‘empowerment’ has become and what misogyny actually looks like in our terrifying age of AI. On theme, too, is our review of Alex Cooper’s new documentary about her meteoric Call Her Daddy fame: how does her sexual agency compare to Sabrina’s? And on a lighter note we start off with a juicy debrief on Dua Lipa’s new British Vogue cover. Enjoy hunnies!We love hearing from you, DM us ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@straightuppod⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, email at ⁠⁠[email protected]⁠ and follow us on TikTok @straightuupod too!Huge thanks to our sponsor⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Yonder⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, the incredible lifestyle rewards credit card packed with rewards you’ll actually *want* to use. Find out more at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠yonder.com/straightup⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Borrow responsibly. £15 a month. 18+ and UK only. Rep 66.0% APR var. T&Cs apply.Get 20% off the adaptogenic coffee that changed our lives, London Nootropics, using our code straightup at⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠londonnootropics.com⁠⁠⁠Recs/reviewDua Lipa, British Vogue Dua Lipa, SkinnyTok and the Labubu doll crazePop Culture Takes Up Smoking Again, New York TimesWhy Are People Mad at Sabrina Carpenter Again, The CutHow Sabrina Carpenter Dream-Come-True'd Her Whole Life, Rolling StoneThe New Age of Sexism: how the AI Revolution is reinventing misogyny, Laura Bates Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness: A Conversation With Lana Del Rey, PitchforkGirl on Girl, Sophie Gilbert Call Her Alex, Disney+ There's more to Alex Cooper than the 'Call Her Daddy' documentary suggests, Washington Post. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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  1:08:21
• Bonnie Blue’s petting zoo, Billie Eilish and Blake Lively’s big win

  It’s a big week for Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni, with the judge dismissing Baldoni’s $400m countersuit against Lively and his $200m defamation suit against the New York Times. Who is now winning and where does that leave the trial in March? We bring you up to speed with all the latest developments, as well as news of another legal drama: nine women have accused Jared Leto of sexual impropriety. Now his ‘Mars Island cult’ feels very disturbing indeed. First up, though, we’re talking babies: from Nara Smith’s fourth pregnancy announcement to Jamie Laing’s podcast rebrand. Plus, a primer on Billie Eilish’s new boyfriend, as well as a much overdue debrief on Maya Jama’s adorable hard launch with Ruben Dias. And is the fallout from Bonnie Blue's now cancelled sex stunt valid? Finally we review BBC’s What It Feels Like for a Girl, which might just be the best show of 2025!Please do leave us a review on Apple Podcasts or a rating on Spotify – it really does help keep us going xWe love hearing from you, DM us ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@straightuppod⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, email at ⁠⁠[email protected]⁠ and follow us on TikTok @straightuupod too!Huge thanks to our sponsor⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Yonder⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, the incredible lifestyle rewards credit card packed with rewards you’ll actually *want* to use. Find out more at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠yonder.com/straightup⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Borrow responsibly. £15 a month. 18+ and UK only. Rep 66.0% APR var. T&Cs apply.Get 20% off the adaptogenic coffee that changed our lives, London Nootropics, using our code straightup at⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠londonnootropics.com⁠⁠⁠Try BookBeat for free for 60 days (w 40 hrs of listening) and stream millions of audio using our code straightup at bookbeat.comReviews/ recs:Chicken tarragon lasagne, So Good by Emily English Pearl, Netflix Sinners, AppleTVNewlyparents podcast What It Feels Like For a Girl, BBC iPlayer 'All of us felt like we had touched gold': What It Feels Like for a Girl, the BBC’s electric coming-of-age tale, Guardian Jake Dunn Is Fiercely Protective of BBC Trans Drama ‘What It Feels Like for a Girl’, Hollywood Reporter What It Feels Like for a Girl star Ellis Howard on frank sex scenes, that toilet brush moment, and the emotional finale, British GQParis Lees and What It Feels Like For An Icon, Polyester Judge dismisses Justin Baldoni's $400m defamation lawsuit against Blake Lively, BBCHow Many Times Will Blake Lively Have to Beat Justin Baldoni in Court for It to Matter?, Slate. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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  57:16
• FRIENDSHIP BREAKUPS: ghostings, exes and group politics

  A friendship ‘breakup’ is an experience more than 80% of women have been through and it can be even more gut-wrenching than ending a romantic relationship. Yet in our society that prioritises romantic over platonic love, there’s no social script for dealing with it. We dive into a topic that still feels like a taboo despite its clear universality, with the help of many of your deeply honest and moving DMs, which proved to us just how devastating – and common – friendship break-ups can be. We cover everything from ghostings and estrangement to boundaries and therapy-speak, as well as how politics, exes and different life stages can lead to rifts and resentment. Hopefully, if you’ve been through something similar, then this ep will help you feel less alone! We really hope you love this bonus special! We would love to hear your thoughts on all things friendship, so DM us ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@straightuppod⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ or email at ⁠⁠[email protected]⁠. Plus follow us on TikTok @straightuupod too! And please do leave us a review on Apple Podcasts or a rating on Spotify – it really does help keep us going xRecsBad Friend, Michelle ElmanBride Wars We Need to Talk about Our Ex Best Friends, ElleBad Friend, Tiffany Watt SmithThe Lingering Wounds of Friendship Breakups, Elle The White Lotus S3 E8, HBO Will Our Friendship Survive Your Baby, New York Magazine . Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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