Straight Up

Latest Episodes:

Sydney Sweeney, Chappell Roan and dystopian pregnancy Apr 03, 2025

Show notes

Chappell Roan has received a backlash for saying all her parent friends are ‘in hell’ – is it warranted? We discuss her controversial Call Her Daddy interview and the perennial issue of the ‘unlikeable’ woman, including Amanda Knox, who has just given a fascinating new interview. Also, why does it seem like the internet has been waiting for Sydney Sweeney’s engagement to fail? Plus plenty of film and TV reviews, from brilliant new AppleTV comedy The Studio to Emilia Clarke’s disturbing fertility sci-fi The Pod Generation, now on Netflix. Finally, we dig into why so many men seem to be fainting at a depiction of abortion in the West End, and the efficacy of trigger warnings.

Please do leave us review on Apple Podcasts or a rating on Spotify - it really does help keep us going! DM us ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@straightuppod⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, or email at ⁠⁠hello@straightuppodcast.co.uk⁠

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Recs/reviews

I’m Sorry You Feel That Way, Rebecca Wait
Havoc, Rebecca Wait
Brunswick House, London
The Studio, AppleTV
Ellen Pompeo, Call Her Daddy
Millie Bobby Brown, Call Her Daddy
The Electric State, Netflix
Chappell Roan, Call Her Daddy
Amanda Knox, How Do I Cope?
Con Mum, Netflix
The Pod Generation, Netflix
I Who Have Never Known Men, Jacqueline Harpman
The Years, Harold Pinter

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MOVING: flatshares, break-ups and escaping the endless grind Apr 01, 2025

Show notes

Welcome to another bonus episode, this time on the theme of moving: something we’ve been chatting about a lot over the last six months. Why are so many packing up the career ladder for a different way of life abroad? Is it easier to find love elsewhere? Why are people – including couples – flatsharing later in life than ever? And has it now become acceptable to live with your parents in your 30s? We unpick the most recent data and dive into all these cultural and social trends, while sharing our own experiences of moving, from how our first flatshares compared to pop culture tropes, to living with partners, parents and strangers. We would LOVE to hear about your experiences of moving, in any way shape or form, so please do DM us at @straightuppod, or email us a hello@straightuppodcast.co.uk, and we can continue the conversation. (And don't worry we'll be back with this week's regular ep on Thursday!)

Please leave us review on Apple Podcasts or a rating on Spotify - it really does help keep our little pod going <3

Recs

Homesick, Silvia Saunders
The Great Escape: “Why women like me are quitting our jobs in search of sunshine and self-discovery”, Stylist
Why everything you know about Gen Z is wrong, The Bunker podcast
Everything I Know About Love, Dolly Alderton
Girls, Now TV

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Temptation Island, Gwyneth Paltrow and incest at The White Lotus Mar 27, 2025

Show notes

Reality TV is first on the agenda this week huns, as we debrief on Netflix’s bonkers cheating show, Temptation Island, and all the Made In Chelsea alumni currently hitting the headlines. In the wake of the conversations ignited by Adolescence, is a teary Jamie Laing the new face of positive masculinity? Plus, Zara McDermott’s alleged new relationship and the tabloid’s subsequent ‘sad case’ portrayal of her ex Sam Thompson. Also today: the best bits from Gwyneth Paltrow's Vanity Fair profile and Bella Ramsey's British Vogue cover, the previously-promised whistle-stop tour of Chet Hank's many problematic moments in light of his Running Point role, and last but not least, a deep dive into the sixth and most recent episode of The White Lotus. What's driving the incest storyline, and are people right to be offended?

Please leave us review on Apple Podcasts or a rating on Spotify - it really does help keep us going! Say hi by DMing us ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@straightuppod⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, or email at ⁠⁠hello@straightuppodcast.co.uk⁠

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Recs/ reviews:

Temptation Island, Netflix
Million Dollar Secret, Netflix
Big Boys S3, Channel 4
Could tearful Jamie Laing be the antidote to Andrew Tate's toxic manosphere? Evening Standard
Jordan Stephens on We Need To Talk podcast
“There’s No Reason For People Not To Know”: Bella Ramsey for British Vogue
Gwyneth Paltrow for Vanity Fair
The White Lotus, Sky and NowTV
The White Lotus Official Podcast
My Pubic Hair Laser Regret, The Cut
How the Four Seasons Hit a Marketing Jackpot With HBO’s ‘The White Lotus’, WSJ
The White Lotus outstays its welcome, New Yorker

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Adolescence, Fourth Wing and what ‘really’ counts as cheating Mar 20, 2025

Show notes

Adolescence on Netflix has fast become the most talked about TV show of 2025, with Stephen Graham’s new drama igniting much-needed conversations around corrosive social media misogyny and violence against girls. We get into it all from our review to the reception. First, though, a chat about polyamory, non-monogamy and what constitutes ‘cheating’ in light of Ne Yo’s polycule reveal and the fallout from Danny Jones and Maura Higgins’s Brit Awards kiss. And also this week: we debrief on publishing phenomenons Fourth Wing now that we’re both Rebecca Yarros converts, share a listener update on the Let Them theory and return yet again to crisis PR.

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Borrow responsibly. £15 a month. 18+ and UK only. Rep 66.3% APR var. T&Cs apply.

Get an extra month free on top of BFI Player’s 14-day free trial using our code STRAIGHTUP at⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠player.bfi.org.uk/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Get 20% off the adaptogenic coffee that changed our lives, London Nootropics, using our code straightup at⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠londonnootropics.com⁠⁠⁠

Reviews/ recs:

Still Bad, Lizzo
The Dynamics Of This Relationship Will Expand Your Definition Of Black Love, Huffington Post
Mel Robbins and Plagiarism, Sage Justice, Substack
Let Them: Words for the Healing Soul by Cassie Phillips
Flack, BBC iPlayer
Fourth Wing, Rebecca Yarros
Rebecca Yarros on Navigating Fame and What to Expect From ‘Onyx Storm’, Elle
Rebecca Yarros Talks ‘Onyx Storm’, Variety
Adolescence, Netflix
Netflix drama Adolescence has lessons for us all about alienated young men, Observer
Ctrl Hate Delete by Cecile Simmons

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With Love Meghan, a Blake Lively update and being abandoned by friends Mar 13, 2025

Show notes

How has one of TV’s blandest cooking shows ignited such a storm of controversy? We review Meghan Markle’s new Netflix offering to see if those one-star reviews are valid. We also share our honest thoughts on The Cut’s viral piece about the fallacy of the nuclear family. Is it fair to say that friends flake once they have kids? And is the media exacerbating friction between women? Plus, why Blake Lively’s latest big-guns crisis hires suggests something major might soon rock Hollywood, our favourite quotes from the latest Lady Gaga press run, and a look at Adrien Brody’s highly questionable art.

DM us ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@straightuppod⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, or email us at ⁠hello@straightuppodcast.co.uk⁠ and as ever please leave us a review on Apple Podcasts and a rating on Spotify, lysm!

Borrow responsibly. £15 a month. 18+ and UK only. Rep 66.3% APR var. T&Cs apply.

Get an extra month free on top of BFI Player’s 14-day free trial using our code STRAIGHTUP at⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠player.bfi.org.uk/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Get 20% off the adaptogenic coffee that changed our lives, London Nootropics, using our code straightup at⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠londonnootropics.com⁠

Reviews/ recs:

The Brutalist
Miss Me
It Ends With Urgh, Reality Bites podcast
With Love Meghan, Netflix
Furious About With Love, Meghan? Go Cool Off With A Lavender-Scented Flannel, Mate, Vogue
Five key takeaways from With Love, Meghan, Guardian
Running Point, Netflix
Never Have I Ever, Netflix
My Friends Abandoned Me When They Had Kids, The Cut
The Nuclear Family Was a Mistake by David Brooks, Atlantic
Mayhem, Lady Gaga
Lady Gaga: ‘People don’t always make it through success. I did’, Times

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Millie Bobby Brown, ageing and Lucy Boynton on domestic violence Mar 06, 2025

Show notes

We always love it when a guest comes to help us decipher the week in pop culture, and who better to make sense of the Oscars than British actor Lucy Boynton, brilliant star of Bohemian Rhapsody, the Ipcress File, The Politican and Sing Street. She's also in ITV's A Cruel Love: The Ruth Ellis Story, a gripping new drama about the last woman to be hanged in Britain, which reveals the horrific elitism and misogyny of the 1950s, and has become horribly relevant in light of the increasing violence against women. We discuss everything from how the media reports on domestic violence to why our society is built for men. Also on the show: Millie Bobby Brown’s powerful statement in response to media trolling of her appearance, a quick debrief on the Brits and our review of new no1 Netflix hit Toxic Town.

Borrow responsibly. £15 a month. 18+ and UK only. Rep 66.3% APR var. T&Cs apply.

Get an extra month free on top of BFI Player’s 14-day free trial using our code STRAIGHTUP at⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠player.bfi.org.uk/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Get 20% off the adaptogenic coffee that changed our lives, London Nootropics, using our code straightup at⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠londonnootropics.com

Reviews/ recs:

Toxic Town, Netflix
A Cruel Love: The Ruth Ellis Story, ITV
Witches (documentary)
Nickel Boys
Rosewater, Liv Little
Island, Aldous Huxley
Frankenstein, Mary Shelley
Burn After Reading
When The O.C. Killed Marissa: “What Have We Done?”, Vanity Fair
The Politician, Netflix

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Girlfriend robots, Justin Bieber and blowing up your life Feb 27, 2025

Show notes

We are finally getting stuck into the book everyone has been talking about hunnies: All Fours by Miranda July, which has prompted an 'erotic revolution', with a wave of women 'blowing up their lives' by ending their marriages and pursuing sexual liberation. Why is older women’s sexual desire so taboo? Next, following the viral pictures of a 'gaunt' Justin Bieber and Tuppence Middleton’s memoir on her struggle with OCD, we discuss the ethics of media speculation into celebrity health. And also this week: the debate on AI voice recreation as American Murder: Gaby Petito trends at No1 Netflix, a Substack suggesting Booktok content is becoming soft porn for teenage girls (ft our Forth Wing review) and new AI girlfriend thriller Companion.

Borrow responsibly. £15 a month. 18+ and UK only. Rep 66.3% APR var. T&Cs apply.

Get an extra month free on top of BFI Player’s 14-day free trial using our code STRAIGHTUP at⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠player.bfi.org.uk/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Get 20% off the adaptogenic coffee that changed our lives, London Nootropics, using our code straightup at⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠londonnootropics.com/⁠

Reviews/recs:

Harris Dickinson on Chicken Shop Date, YouTube
Harris Dickinson on Off Menu
Is Rose Gray the Next Big British Pop Star? Vogue
All Fours, Miranda July
Miranda July’s Lucrative Fantasies, Substack
Why Gen X Women are Having the Best Sex
Scorpions: a memoir excerpt in the Guardian by Tuppence Middleton
Companion, in cinemas now
Her, Amazon Prime
American Murder: Gabby Petito, Netflix
If BookTok Was a Community Of Men We Would be Calling the Police, Substack

New York recs:

Carbone
Baretto
Bemelman's, Carlyle
Moxy Chelsea

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The White Lotus, botox in cinema and Louis Theroux’s Armie interview Feb 20, 2025

Show notes

Happy Thursday huns! We’re checking in at the White Lotus in Thailand to debrief on the start of season three, from our fave characters this time around, to the wild tales from the seven months cast and crew spent on set. But first this week: BAFTAs gossip, Amelia Dimoldenberg’s new boyfriend and a big debate on whether botox is really ruining cinema, as per a recent piece in Dazed. And finally, Louis Theroux’s viral podcast interview with cancelled star Armie Hammer. Could the actor have made any more of a mess of it?

Borrow responsibly. £15 a month. 18+ and UK only. Rep 66.3% APR var. T&Cs apply.

Get an extra month free on top of BFI Player’s 14-day free trial using our code STRAIGHTUP at⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠player.bfi.org.uk/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Get 20% off the adaptogenic coffee that changed our lives, London Nootropics, using our code straightup at⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠londonnootropics.com/⁠

Recs/reviews

Rye Lane, Disney+
Rev, BBC iPlayer
This reeks of a chemistry recession, Substack
Is botox ruining cinema? Dazed
Bridget Jones: Mad About a Boy
This is not a Pity Memoir, Abi Morgan The White Lotus, HBO
Mike White’s Mischevious Vision for White Lotus, New Yorker
Meet the White Lotus series 3 cast: ‘It’s a big, dark, beautiful symphony’, The Times
The Louis Theroux Podcast with Armie Hammer
Podcasts were ruining Louis Theroux – then along came Armie Hammer, Independent
House of Hammer, Discovery+
Will I survive getting trolled again? Polly Vernon on Substack
Boarders s2, BBC iPlayer

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Bridget Jones 4: grief, friendship and magical men Feb 19, 2025

Show notes

It’s Bridget Jones season, huns, and so obviously we had to review the latest and fourth film in the franchise, Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy as a special bonus episode. We laughed, we cried, then dissected everything from Bridget's new boyfriends to Pandora Sykes' official podcast. Be warned, there are spoilers! And don't worry, we’ll be back here tomorrow with our usual pop culture debrief.

Let us know what you thought of the film by DMing us ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@straightuppod⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, or email us at ⁠hello@straightuppodcast.co.uk⁠ and as ever please leave us a review on Apple Podcasts and a rating on Spotify, lysm!

Recs discussed:

Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy The Official Podcast with Pandora Sykes
Renée And Hugh Reunite For British Vogue’s February Issue
Hugh Grant on Smartless
If the original Bridget Jones was released today, people would still call her fat, Glamour

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Dating advice, Apple Cider Vinegar and the return of horny Feb 13, 2025

Show notes

It’s Valentine’s week, hunnies, so ofc romance is top of the agenda on today’s show – kicking off with with a review of Elizabeth Day’s brand new podcast ‘masterclass’ How To Date, which she cohosts with MAFS’s Mel Schilling. Do you really have to be ‘healed’ to find love? And are we the only ones feeling a bit triggered by the ‘take your younger self for coffee’ TikTok trend? Plus: Netflix and Amazon Prime’s new rom-com efforts, Amy Schumer’s Kinda Pregnant and Reece Witherspoon’s You’re Cordially Invited, Jordan Stephens’ wonderfully refreshing take on male sexuality and the Bonnie Blue phenomenon, as well as life post-divorce in Amandaland. And, as promised, we’re getting stuck into Apple Cider Vinegar, the highly-anticipated Netflix series about Australian wellness scammer Belle Gibson.

Borrow responsibly. £15 a month. 18+ and UK only. Rep 66.3% APR var. T&Cs apply.

Get an extra month free on top of BFI Player’s 14-day free trial using our code STRAIGHTUP at⁠⁠⁠ ⁠player.bfi.org.uk/⁠⁠⁠⁠

Get 20% off the adaptogenic coffee that changed our lives, London Nootropics, using our code straightup at⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠londonnootropics.com/⁠

Recs/ reviews: