Stay ConnectedLife and Art from FT Weekend is the twice-weekly culture podcast of the Financial Times. On Monday, we talk about life, and how to live a good one in one-on-one conversations. On Friday, we talk about ‘art’ – in a chat show. Three FT journalists come together to discuss a new cultural release across film, TV, music and books. Hosted by Lilah Raptopoulos, together with the FT’s award-winning writers and editors, and special guests.
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Copyright: © Financial Times
Before she was the editor of our luxury magazine HTSI, Jo Ellison was features editor at British Vogue, which means that throughout her career she’s had a front-row view of the fashion industry’s love of thinness. In recent years, fashion began to embrace more diversity in body shapes and sizes. But with the rise of Ozempic and other GLP-1 weight-loss drugs, Jo is seeing the industry fear fat again. She worries that as Ozempic becomes more mainstream, fashion will come full circle, back to placing a premium on rail-thin bodies and judging those who don’t conform. Today, she talks about what this could mean for beauty standards, and how it may trickle down to the rest of us.
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We love hearing from you. Lilah is on Instagram @lilahrap, and email at lilahrap@ft.com. And we’re grateful for reviews on Apple and Spotify!
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Links (all FT links get you past the paywall):
– Jo’s column about the silence around weight loss in fashion is here: https://on.ft.com/3ZWoDDq
– Check out our colleague Brooke Masters’ recent column on how GLP-1 drugs are changing gym regimens and food industry planning: https://on.ft.com/4050Cdl
– Jo is on Instagram @jellison22
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Special FT subscription offers for Life and Art podcast listeners, from 50% off a digital subscription to a $1/£1/€1 trial, are here: http://ft.com/lifeandart
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Original music by Metaphor Music. Mixing and sound design by Breen Turner and Sam Giovinco. Clips this week courtesy of Capitol.
Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Today we’re sexy, confident, intelligent, heaven-sent – and taking on Katy Perry’s disastrous new album, 143. Featuring the lead single ‘Woman’s World’, this album has gone viral for all the wrong reasons: a muddled feminist message, a slew of publicity gaffes and even a government investigation. What makes the album so disappointing? And why do people care so much about a Katy Perry flop? Lilah is joined by two excellent guests who bring expertise in celebrity culture and music: Anne Helen Petersen hosts the Culture Study podcast, and Ludovic Hunter-Tilney is our pop critic of almost 25 years.
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We love hearing from you. Lilah is on Instagram @lilahrap, and email at lilahrap@ft.com. And we’re grateful for reviews on Apple and Spotify!
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Links (all FT links get you past the paywall):
– Ludo’s one-star review of 143 by Katy Perry is here: https://on.ft.com/4gTRSga. Here’s the “Woman’s World” music video, so you can decide what it means for yourself! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EVIJUH29pjU
– Anne Helen Petersen hosts the Culture Study podcast. Listen to her conversation with Lilah about cooking in the age of infinite recipes here, or by searching “Culture Study” wherever you listen
– Anne is on Instagram @annehelenpetersen. Her newsletter is here: https://annehelen.substack.com/
– Ludo is on X @ludohunter
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Special FT subscription offers for Life and Art podcast listeners, from 50% off a digital subscription to a $1/£1/€1 trial, are here: http://ft.com/lifeandart
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Original music by Metaphor Music. Mixing and sound design by Breen Turner and Sam Giovinco. Clips this week courtesy of Capitol.
Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
The FT’s innovation editor John Thornhill writes a lot about the dangers of artificial intelligence, but when he recently saw a movie about the musician Brian Eno, created with the help of an algorithm, he liked it. Or, better put, he liked the version he saw: the documentary has 52 quintillion variations. A new take on the film comes together each time it is played. Eno gives us a sense of what AI can do for creativity, finding links and patterns where the human mind does not see any. On today’s show, John tells us about the film, and what makes AI appealing for artists.
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Want to stay in touch? Lilah is on Instagram @lilahrap, and email at lilahrap@ft.com. We’re grateful for reviews on Apple and Spotify!
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Links (all FT links get you past the paywall):
– John’s column about watching Eno is here: https://on.ft.com/3TVG0R2
– And here is his recent review of several books that warn AI’s ability to provide us with more information than ever does not mean we will be better informed: https://on.ft.com/3zXTsge
– John is on X @johnthornhillft
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Special FT subscription offers for Life and Art podcast listeners, from 50% off a digital subscription to a $1/£1/€1 trial, are here: http://ft.com/lifeandart
Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Today, we are stopping time to discuss Megalopolis, Francis Ford Coppola's controversial passion project, which took him 40 years to make. The film was entirely self-financed for $120mn and has an all-star cast, including Adam Driver, Jon Voight and Dustin Hoffman, but it has fiercely divided viewers. Is this Coppola’s worst film, or are critics being too harsh? What is it actually about? And are we glad it was made? Lilah is joined by the FT's film critic Danny Leigh and independent film critic Nicolas Rapold to talk about the film's highs and lows.
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Want to stay in touch? Lilah is on Instagram @lilahrap, and email at lilahrap@ft.com. We’re grateful for reviews on Apple and Spotify!
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Links (all FT links get you past the paywall):
– Danny’s review of Megalopolis is here: https://on.ft.com/3YcfpSo
– Nicolas Rapold is on X @NicolasRapold. Follow him and his podcast The Last Thing I Saw, here: https://rapold.substack.com/
– Raph Abraham’s one-star review of Megalopolis, from the Cannes Film Festival, is here: https://on.ft.com/3ZUAulz
– Danny wants to see more three-star reviews. Here are his three-star reviews of The Substance and Will & Harper
– Nic is reading Once and Forever: The Tales of Kenji Miyazawa
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Special FT subscription offers for Life and Art podcast listeners, from 50% off a digital subscription to a $1/£1/€1 trial, are here: https://www.ft.com/lifeandart
Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
In Megan Park’s new film ‘My Old Ass,’ a teenager named Elliott (Maisy Stella) meets her 39-year-old self (Aubrey Plaza) on a mushroom trip. The experience gives young Elliott perspective: her “old ass” tells her to wear her retainer, and be nice to her family before leaving for college. But it’s the older Elliott who gets the bigger lesson, on the stories we tell ourselves about the past. Today, Megan joins Lilah to discuss the concept of the film, and what it was like to work with a crew of mostly Gen Z actors.
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We love hearing from you! Lilah is on Instagram @lilahrap and email at lilahrap@ft.com.
Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Today, we discuss the author Sally Rooney. Her new novel Intermezzo was published this week – causing queues outside bookstores, launch parties everywhere and a flurry of praise from critics. Does Intermezzo live up to the hype? Why has Rooney become the voice of the millennial generation? Lilah is joined by the FT’s deputy books editor Laura Battle and Griselda Murray Brown, the FT Magazine commissioning editor and her former co-host of Culture Call.
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We love hearing from you. Lilah is on Instagram @lilahrap. We’re on X @lifeandartpod and on email at lifeandart@ft.com. We are grateful for reviews on Apple and Spotify. And please share this episode with your friends!
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Links (all FT links get you past the paywall):
– Intermezzo by Sally Rooney is out now, published by Faber and Faber.
– The FT’s review of Intermezzo is here: https://on.ft.com/3XGoelV
– Griselda’s interview with Sally Rooney from 2018 is here, or you can search: ‘Life and Art bonus: Normal People author Sally Rooney’ wherever you listen.
– Gris is on X @griseldamb and Laura is on X @battlelaura
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Special FT subscription offers for Life and Art podcast listeners, from 50% off a digital subscription to a $1/£1/€1 trial, are here: http://ft.com/lifeandart
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Original music by Metaphor Music. Mixing and sound design by Breen Turner and Sam Giovinco
Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Today, we bring you a special conversation with Jan Dalley, who has just retired as the FT’s arts editor after almost 20 years. When Jan stepped into her job, terrestrial TV ruled, podcasts didn’t exist and the art world wasn’t quite so luxe. And video games? Newspapers didn’t review video games. She joins Lilah in the studio to reflect on how the arts have changed over these two decades (“beyond recognition!”), divulge what the art world is really like (“gruelling”) and share some excellent advice for exploring culture.
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Stay in touch! Lilah is on Instagram @lilahrap talking to listeners about culture, and on email at lilahrap@ft.com. We love hearing from you.
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Links (all FT links get you past the paywall):
– Jan’s Lunch with 83-year-old artist Michael Craig-Martin is here: https://on.ft.com/4d9rQCF
– A recent profile of artist Tracey Emin: https://on.ft.com/3XPBaa6
– And here’s a column of hers that we love, on the immersive Van Gogh exhibit: https://on.ft.com/4ey7eVt
Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
The Apple TV+ show Slow Horses is a critical darling; it has received rave reviews since it first came out in 2022, and with season four in full swing, some critics are begging you to watch. But does this season deserve the hype? Or has the show’s premise run its course? The series, an anti-James Bond drama starring an unkempt Gary Oldman as the head of MI5’s flunky spy department, is based on the Mick Herron spy novel series, Slough House. Lilah is joined by a diehard fan of the novels, FT columnist and executive editor Robert Shrimsley, and the FT’s chief features writer Henry Mance.
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Want to stay in touch? Lilah is on Instagram @lilahrap, and email at lilahrap@ft.com. And we’re grateful for reviews on Apple and Spotify!
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Links (all FT links get you past the paywall):
– Dan Einav’s review of this season of Slow Horses: https://on.ft.com/4dhrPfM
– Henry interviewed one of the show’s stars, Kristin Scott Thomas, for our Lunch with the FT series: https://on.ft.com/4dbTCyj.
– Robert is on X @robertshrimsley. Henry is @henrymance, though he’d like you to quit the platform and meet him on BlueSky at @henrymance.bsky.social
– Here’s Henry’s round-up of great Lunches: https://on.ft.com/3TAEzXP
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Special FT subscription offers for podcast listeners are here: http://ft.com/lifeandart
Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Asma Khan breaks a lot of fine dining’s unspoken rules. She is the chef and owner of London’s beloved Darjeeling Express, an Indian restaurant whose entire kitchen is staffed by women. Her kitchen has no hierarchy, and her chefs were trained as home cooks. Asma’s advocacy for women has won her a spot on Time magazine’s 100 most influential people list, and her kitchen has been widely profiled and acclaimed. Yet she remains extremely candid about her industry’s problems, speaking out about bullying, sexism and racism in the world’s top kitchens. Today, we bring you Lilah’s conversation with Asma, which was recorded live onstage during the recent FT Weekend Festival in London.
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We love hearing from you. Lilah is on Instagram @lilahrap. We’re on X @lifeandartpod and on email at lifeandart@ft.com. We are grateful for reviews on Apple and Spotify. And please share this episode with your friends!
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Links (all FT links get you past the paywall):
– Check out Asma’s ode to the dried red chilli in the FT here: https://on.ft.com/3XtemvF
– Asma Khan is on X @Asma_KhanLDN and Instagram at @asmakhanlondon
– You can learn more about her in Season 6 of Netflix’s Chef’s Table
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Special FT subscription offers for Life and Art podcast listeners, from 50% off a digital subscription to a $1/£1/€1 trial, are here: http://ft.com/lifeandart
Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
After 15 years of feuding, the most famous rock band of 1990s Britain recently announced that it will be reuniting for a stadium tour. Fans went wild, and the first day of ticket sales nearly broke Ticketmaster. Why do we still care about Oasis? Do the Gallagher brothers deserve the fanfare? And what can we expect from the reunion? Lilah's joined by the FT's music critic Ludo Hunter-Tilney and London banking editor (and Oasis superfan) Ortenca Aliaj to discuss.
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We love hearing from you. Lilah is on Instagram @lilahrap. We’re on X @lifeandartpod and on email at lifeandart@ft.com. We are grateful for reviews on Apple and Spotify. And please share this episode with your friends!
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Links (all FT links get you past the paywall):
– Supersonic, directed by Asif Kapadia, is available to rent on Amazon Prime now.
– Ludo’s scathing review of the last time Oasis performed, in 2008, is here: https://on.ft.com/47mEhtt
– We loved Jo Ellison’s column on the meaning of the reunion and why Oasis has a unique hold on “the people”: https://on.ft.com/3TpNueF
– More or Less: Ludo wants to see fewer e-bikes. For those who feel similarly, here’s a piece on the latest e-bikes controversy by our colleague Josh Gabert-Doyon. Lilah recommends Shrinking on Apple Plus
– Ludo Hunter-Tilney is on X @ludohunter. Ortenca Aliaj is @OrtencaAl
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Special FT subscription offers for Life and Art podcast listeners, from 50% off a digital subscription to a $1/£1/€1 trial, are here: http://ft.com/lifeandart
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Original music by Metaphor Music. Mixing and sound design by Breen Turner and Sam Giovinco. Clips courtesy of Creation Records and Red Carpet News TV
Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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