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Fashion Neurosis with Bella Freud — Arts
Fashion Neurosis with Bella Freud

Each week join the renowned fashion designer Bella Freud as she invites a special guest to lie on the couch and explore the connection between fashion and identity. Bella’s conversations begin with questions about style: what we reveal and hide through the clothes we wear. Bella also shares her own anecdotes and the conversations expand into deeper discussions on life’s universal themes – love, identity, culture, anxiousness, and even politics.

Through a series of tailored questions, Bella creates a relaxed, intimate atmosphere where her guests – ranging from fashion icons to cultural figures in sport, art, music, film, and literature – reveal more about themselves than they might expect. Fashion is often dismissed as surface, but in this podcast it becomes the lens through which we examine our inner lives, relationships, and society.

Fashion Neurosis with Bella Freud offers a unique, thoughtful, and engaging conversation that goes far beyond what we wear, diving into the unspoken language of clothing and the ways in which we use style to navigate and communicate in the world.

Part of the Vox Media Podcast Network.

www.fashionneurosis.com

www.fashionneurosis.substack.com

@fashioneurosis_bellafreud

Copyright: ©️ All rights reserved. The podcast content, including audio, music, and interviews, is the intellectual property of Bella Freud. Unauthorised use, reproduction, or distribution is prohibited without prior written consent.

Latest Episodes:

Richard E. Grant Feb 25, 2026

Show notes

Richard E. Grant is an actor, director, writer and presenter. Born in Eswatini (formerly Swaziland), his father worked for the British government and Grant grew up as part of an ex-pat community in the country. He made his film debut in 1987 as the titular character in Withnail & I, about an alcoholic out-of-work actor. Grant played a series of eccentric characters in the 1990s, from a fashion designer in Robert Altman’s Pret-A-Porter, to a villain terrorising Bruce Willis in Hudson Hawk, and the manager of the Spice Girls in Spice World. More recently, Grant has starred in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, Emerald Fennel’s Saltburn, and Can You Ever Forgive Me? for which he received Golden Globe, BAFTA and Oscar nominations as Best Supporting Actor.

In 2005, Grant made his directorial debut with Wah Wah, a fascinating account of his childhood in former Swaziland. He has written several books, his most recent A Pocketful of Happiness in 2023, about his grief following the death of his wife Joan Washington from cancer after 38 years of marriage.

Richard E. Grant has become a muse to fashion designers on the catwalk, walking for Burberry AW25 and Miu Miu SS26.

In this episode of Fashion Neurosis, Bella Freud and Richard E. Grant discuss his narrowly avoiding being shot by his father, his life long crush on Barbra Streisand, and how to play comedy straight.

Part of the Vox Media Podcast Network.

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Charlotte Gainsbourg Feb 18, 2026

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Charlotte Gainsbourg is an actress and musician. The daughter of Jane Birkin and Serge Gainsbourg, she was born in London and raised in Paris. She made her acting debut at the age of 13 playing Catherine Deneuve’s daughter in the film Paroles et Musique, and her musical debut the same year with the song “Lemon Incest” duetting with her father Serge. In 1986, she won a Cesar Award for her starring role in the film L’Effrontée. Her debut album was released the same year, produced by her father to accompany the film Charlotte For Ever, which starred a 15 year old Charlotte alongside her father Serge. Gainsbourg has since released four further albums, her most recent Rest in 2017, which explored her grief following the deaths of her father and sister Kate Barry.

In 2009, Gainsbourg starred in Lars von Trier’s film Antichrist, for which she won the Cannes Best Actress award, marking the beginning of a collaboration between the actress and director. She went on to star in his 2011 film Melancholia, and 2013’s Nymphomaniac. Gainsbourg directed and produced a documentary about her mother, Jane par Charlotte, in 2021, exploring their relationship two years before Birkin’s death.

Charlotte Gainsbourg is a reluctant fashion icon, cited by all those with a love of fashion, independent film, and music as a truly original figure of glamour and cool. She has fronted campaigns for fashion houses including Balenciaga and Yves Saint Laurent, with YSL’s Anthony Vaccarello directing Gainsbourg’s most recent music video Blurry Moon.

In this episode of Fashion Neurosis, Bella Freud and Charlotte Gainsbourg discuss relationships with powerful fathers, her work with Lars von Trier, and love and grief.

Part of the Vox Media Podcast Network.

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Esther Perel Feb 11, 2026

Show notes

Esther Perel is a psychotherapist and author, recognized as one of today’s most insightful and original voices on modern relationships. Fluent in nine languages, she helms a therapy practice in New York City, serves as an organizational consultant for Fortune 500 companies, and is an advisor to both Hinge and Culture Amp on the intricacies of human connection.

Esther was born and raised in Antwerp, Belgium, the daughter of two Polish Jewish Holocaust survivors who owned a clothing shop. She gained a Masters degree from Lesley University in Expressive Art Therapy in the 1980s, and has lived in the United States with her partner, Jack Saul, for more than 40 years.

Her celebrated TED Talks have garnered millions of views, and her bestselling books, Mating in Captivity and The State of Affairs, are global phenomena which have been translated into more than 30 languages. Perel is also the host of the hit podcast Where Should We Begin?, which has captivated millions of listeners around the world for nearly a decade.

In this episode of Fashion Neurosis, Bella Freud and Esther Perel discuss Perel’s childhood in her parents’ clothing shop, the rules of dressing as a therapist, and fragile masculinity.

Esther Perel’s podcast Where Should We Begin? can be found on Spotify and Apple Podcasts,and her Substack is Entre Nous, estherperel.substack.com

This is the last of our Fashion Neurosis in New York series - see you next time.

Part of the Vox Media Podcast Network.

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Abiodun Oyewole Feb 04, 2026

Show notes

Abiodun Oyewole is an American poet, painter and author, and one of the founding members of the music and spoken-word group The Last Poets. Born in Ohio, Oyewole was raised in New York by his aunt, whose love of jazz and gospel music greatly influenced him. He was given the name Abiodun Oyewole aged fifteen, by a Yoruba priest at a temple in Harlem.

The Last Poets were formed by Abiodun Oyewole, David Nelson & Gylan Kain in 1968, releasing their first album in 1970. The group is credited, along with Gil Scott-Heron, as having had a profound effect on the development of the hip-hop genre.

Abiodun missed the launch of The Last Poets first album after being sentenced to four years in a North Carolina prison for robbing the offices of the local Ku Klux Klan. During his time in prison he attended a nearby college where he earned his B.A. degree. He went on to earn a Ph.D. from Columbia University, where he has served as a faculty member. Oyewole rejoined The Last Poets during its 1990s resurgence, with their latest albums released in 2018 & 2024, and he has also released several solo albums. Oyewole has published two volumes of poetry, Naked, 2020, and Branches of the Tree of Life, 2020, and an essay collection titled Black Lives Have Always Mattered.

Oyewole hosts Sundays @ 110 each week at his home in Harlem, opening his doors to fellow artists, encouraging performance and a shared creative experience.

Oyewole is one of several poets credited for liberating American poetry by creating vocal, spontaneous, energetic and uncensored vernacular verse that paved the way for spoken word and hip-hop. He continues to write poetry every day.

In this episode of Fashion Neurosis, Abiodun Oyewole and Bella Freud discuss how they first met, being treated as the Pope of Poetry, and spending time backstage with Nina Simone.

Part of the Vox Media Podcast Network.

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Alexi Wasser Jan 28, 2026

Show notes

Alexi Wasser is a New York–based filmmaker, writer, and actor whose work blends razor-sharp comedy with raw emotional candor. Born and raised in Los Angeles, Wasser’s late father was the photojournalist Julian Wasser, who photographed 20th century cultural icons including Joan Didion and Jack Nicholson, and her mother Leslie Knauer is a musician who was in rock bands in the 1970s and ‘80s.

Wasser’s feature directorial debut, Messy - which she also wrote, produced, and stars in - was released in 2025. Messy is an intimate portrait of romantic humiliation, self-discovery, and reinvention in New York, drawing inspiration from the work of Nora Ephron and Carrie Fisher. As an actor, Wasser has appeared in acclaimed series including Rian Johnson’s Poker Face (Peacock), HBO’s Girls, and Search Party. She is currently developing her second feature, a modern-day New York comedy about the humiliations, disappointments, and occasional joys of adult life.

Wasser continues to craft deeply personal comedic stories that interrogate identity, intimacy, and reinvention with an honesty and edge entirely her own.

In this episode of Fashion Neurosis, Bella Freud and Alexi Wasser discuss directing your own sex scenes, big feet, and the tyranny of looking for love.

Part of the Vox Media Podcast Network.

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Christy Turlington Jan 21, 2026

Show notes

Christy Turlington Burns is the Founder and President of Every Mother Counts. Christy’s work in maternal health began after she experienced a childbirth-related complication in 2003—an experience that inspired her to direct and produce the documentary feature film, No Woman, No Cry, about the challenges women face throughout pregnancy and childbirth around the world. Under Christy’s leadership, over the past 15 years Every Mother Counts has invested nearly $50 million to support awareness raising, community-led solutions, and advocacy for systems change, with the goal of ensuring that the maternal health journey before, during, and after childbirth is safe, respectful, and equitable for everyone, everywhere.

Before founding EMC, Christy received international acclaim as a model representing the world’s biggest fashion and beauty brands which she leveraged to become a health and wellness advocate. She authored a book about yoga, Living Yoga: Creating A Life Practice (Hyperion 2002), edited the book, Arrival Stories: Women Share Their Experiences of Becoming Mothers (Random House 2022) with Amy Schumer, and served as an executive producer for the 2023 Apple TV documentary series, The Super Models.

In 2025, Christy was named to the inaugural TIME100 Philanthropy list as one of the most influential people shaping the future of giving, and she received the Distinguished Alumni Award from New York University in 2023. Christy graduated Cum Laude from NYU’s Gallatin School of Independent Studies and studied Public Health at Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health. She has completed 10 Marathons on behalf of Team EMC and lives in New York City.

In this episode of Fashion Neurosis, Bella Freud and Christy Turlington discuss being roommates with Naomi Campbell, whether George Michael had a crush on Linda Evangelista, and advocating for women’s health.

Part of the Vox Media Podcast Network.

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Hilton Als Jan 14, 2026

Show notes

Hilton Als is an award-winning American writer, critic, and curator. He began his career as a staff writer at the Village Voice, and editor-at-large at Vibe. Hilton became a staff writer at The New Yorker in 1994 and a theatre critic in 2002, having contributed to the magazine since 1989.

Als has published several books, with his first, titled The Women, published in 1996. His 2013 book White Girls was a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award, and in 2026 he will publish I Don’t Remember: An American Rhapsody, about the AIDS crisis. Als has also curated and written accompanying texts for multiple exhibitions, including a 2015 show in collaboration with the artist Celia Paul at the Metropolitan Opera’s Gallery Met, a 2017 retrospective of Alice Neel, and a 2022 show on Joan Didion at the Hammer Museum in Los Angeles.

Als was awarded a Guggenheim Award for creative writing in 2000, and in 2016 he received Lambda Literary’s Trustee Award for Excellence in Literature. He won a Pulitzer Prize in 2017 for his writing at the New Yorker and in 2018 received the City College of New York’s Langston Hughes Medal.

Hilton Als is a teaching professor at the University of California, Berkeley, an associate professor of writing at Columbia University’s School of the Arts, and has taught at Yale University, Columbia University, Wesleyan University, and Smith College.

In this episode of Fashion Neurosis, Bella Freud and Hilton Als discuss wearing his mother’s hosiery under his jeans, Prince, and the power of love.

Part of the Vox Media Podcast Network.

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Debbie Harry Jan 07, 2026

Show notes

Debbie Harry is an American rockstar, exploding onto the music scene as the platinum haired lead vocalist of Blondie. After gaining an Arts Degree from Centenary College in New Jersey, Debbie Harry moved to New York and worked as a Playboy Bunny and a dancer before forming Blondie in 1974 with Chris Stein, who was her romantic partner for 14 years until 1987. The band released its eponymous debut studio album in 1976 and split in the early 1980s, reuniting in 1997 - they have released a total of 11 studio albums. Harry also released five solo studio albums between 1981 and 2007.

Debbie Harry had also had a successful acting career, appearing in lead roles in David Cronenberg's body horror Videodrome in 1983, and John Waters’ cult classic Hairspray. Her inimitable style has been the inspiration for many fashion designers and her luminous beauty and punk irreverence continues to make her an icon to multiple generations of music and fashion lovers.

In this episode of Fashion Neurosis, Bella Freud and Debbie Harry discuss dying your hair on a tour bus, Andy Warhol, and Sex, Drugs, & Rock & Roll.

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Helena Bonham Carter Dec 17, 2025

Show notes

Helena Bonham Carter is an English actress. Known for her portrayals of interesting, singular women, she rose to fame playing Lucy Honeychurch in A Room with a View in 1985, and the titular character in Lady Jane in 1986. In 1999, Bonham Carter broke free of her “English rose” reputation by playing femme fatale Marla Singer in Fight Club. She portrayed the malevolent witch Bellatrix Lestrange in the Harry Potter franchise, and more recently played Princess Margaret in The Crown, for which she was nominated for several awards. Helena will star in a new adaptation of Agatha Christie’s Seven Dials for Netflix in January 2026.

Helena Bonham Carter has two children with the director Tim Burton. They met in 2001 on the set of Planet of the Apes, and the couple went on to collaborate on seven films including Corpse Bride and Alice in Wonderland, until their separation in 2014.

Known for her love of bloomers, long skirts and Victorian style, Bonham Carter launched her fashion line The Pantaloonies in 2006. She has starred in campaigns for Marc Jacobs and Prada, and cited Vivienne Westwood and Marie Antoinette as her style inspirations.

Bonham Carter has been the recipient of a BAFTA Award, a Critics' Choice Movie Award, an International Emmy Award and three Screen Actors Guild Awards, as well as receiving nominations for two Academy Awards, nine Golden Globe Awards and five Primetime Emmy Awards. She was made a CBE in the 2012 New Year Honours list for services to drama.

In this episode of Fashion Neurosis, Bella Freud and Helena Bonham Carter discuss androgynous dressing, prominent bums, and the word Cunt being the new compliment.

Part of the Vox Media Podcast Network.

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Willy Chavarria Dec 10, 2025

Show notes

Willy Chavarria is an American fashion designer. Born and raised in California, he studied graphic design at the Academy of the Arts, and got his start in clothing design working in the shipping department at Joe Boxer, eventually taking on a role in the company as a designer.

Willy Chavarria worked at Calvin Klein as the Senior Vice President of Design until 2024. He launched his eponymous label in 2015. Known for his melding of politics and fashion, Willy’s clothing aims to uplift the underrepresented, and he has frequently collaborated with organisations to advocate for social justice. His designs draw on his Mexican-American heritage, and he recently presented his SS26 collection HURON at Paris Fashion Week.

Chavarria has been awarded the 2022 Cooper Hewitt Smithsonian National Design Award in Fashion Design, was the CFDA Menswear Designer of the Year in 2023 and 2024, and in 2025 was named one of TIME100’s ‘Most Influential People of 2025’ and nominated for the Designer of the Year award at The Fashion Awards in London.

On this week’s episode of Fashion Neurosis, Bella Freud and Willy Chavarria discuss politics in fashion, his fashion icons, and designing as a public service.

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