Radio 831: A Romance Podcast

It's summer adaptation season, and hosts Sanjana Basker and Tyler McCall are taking stock: what Heated Rivalry got right, what People We Meet on Vacation got wrong, and what lessons studios are going to take from both. Then author Tarah DeWitt joins to break down the first episodes of Rivals Season 2, including: the moral complexity, the question of whether any sex scene can truly be called gratuitous, and what it means that Rupert Campbell-Black is, for the first time, trying to deny his nature. Plus: a quarterly Internet Boyfriend nomination round in which Sanjana makes a powerful case for Hannah Einbinder and Tyler lobbies hard for an underdog.

• On adaptations: the Heated Rivalry blueprint, the People We Meet on Vacation debate, and the Patrick Schwarzenegger Beach Read casting that has the fandom in shambles.
• Tarah DeWitt is the author of Funny Feelings, Rootbound, Savor It, The Co-op, and Left of Forever. Her next, Lost and Found, is out in August.
• Rivals Season 2 is streaming now on Hulu and is based on the bonkbusters by Dame Jilly Cooper.
• Internet Boyfriend nominees this quarter: Hannah Einbinder and Alden Ehrenreich.

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Welcome back to Radio 831, where hosts Sanjana Basker and Tyler McCall make the case that yearning isn’t just trending—it’s a defining orientation toward life. Then they chat with author Betty Corrello to dig into what Wuthering Heights is actually doing in the canon: Is it a love story, is it camp, and what has romance inherited from Cathy and Heathcliff anyway? Plus: Sanjana gives Tyler her first homework assignment, Lisa Kleypas's Again the Magic, and Tyler comes back a changed woman.

• On yearning: Allison P. Davis’s “A Year on Our Knees” for The Cut, the movie Pillion, and the idea that lit-fic assumes everyone is cynical and jaded ℅ Mel Thomas (aka @page.melt).
•  Betty Corrello is here to talk her favorite classic novel Wuthering Heights—the latest adaptation of which is now streaming on HBO. Her last banger of a romance (written under BC Dolce) is My Italian Vampire, and her next, out this October, is Back for Seconds.
• Sanj’s backlist homework for Tyler: Again the Magic by Lisa Kleypas.

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Welcome to Radio 831, where hosts Sanjana Basker and Tyler McCall share their romance origin stories and make the case for why romance is fiction's most underestimated genre. Then they sit down with Jen Prokop, co-host of the Fated Mates podcast, to break down what actually makes a romance a romance: the HEA, the theory of change, the unspoken rule that love has to make you better. Plus: what our hosts can’t wait to read and watch this summer.

• Sanjana Basker’s romance origin story: period pieces and Lisa Kleypas’s historical romances.
• Tyler McCall’s romance origin story: The Idea of You by Robinne Lee (and Harry Styles fanfic) and Spoiler Alert by Olivia Dade (related: this Jezebel article).
• Four examples of romance at its best, from Jen Prokop, co-host of the Fated Mates podcast: The Paris Match by Kate Clayborn, Heated Rivalry by Rachel Reid, and Indigo and Forbidden by Beverly Jenkins.

Summer releases Tyler and Sanj are hotly anticipating: Rivals Season 2 (May 15), Score by Kennedy Ryan (May 19), Just a Highland Fling by Naina Kamar (July 21), Extracurricular by Rachel Lynn Solomon (July 14), The Invite movie (June 26), I Want Your Sex movie (July 31).

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Everyone is talking about romance, and hosts Sanjana Basker and Tyler McCall are here to delve into why. Each week on Radio 831, they dig into the books, tropes, adaptations, drama, and discourse shaping the conversation, exploring what our obsession with love stories says about how we actually live. Expect genre deep-dives, expert discussions with authors and superfans, and strong opinions on everything from dark romance and age gaps to Wuthering Heights and certain Russian hockey players. Come back May 7 to tune in.

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It’s been about a year since we’ve been in your ears, and we’re so excited to share some news! Coming May 7, this feed will be the new home of the Radio 831 podcast: Your weekly dose of all things romance. It’s a production of iHeartPodcasts hosted by Sanjana Basker and Tyler McCall, two brilliant, funny, knowledgeable people we love having in our ears.

It’s a half-hour show that we like to think of as the SportsCenter of smut: the audio companion to our romantic fiction publishing company 831 Stories that delves into everything from why certain subgenres are having a moment—hello, cowboys!—to what’s happening in the Jane Austen Verse. 

Also, while we have you, we figured we’d take the opportunity to share some of the things that have made us wish we still had a podcast over these last 12 months. Butter bust, wild brand websites, an emotional phone call, and sausage-race innovation await!

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Bobs! In surreal news, this is the final episode of this podcast. To close things out, we answer listener questions, walk down memory lane, share our final Thingies, and recommend a few podcasts to fill the ATOT void.

Starting with a hot take: Labubu is not for us.

Now for the Thingies to end all (podcast) Thingies: We are loving Botox for migraines, a skateboarding corgi, a breakfast spinach salad (relatedly: Dinosaur Time), Painterland Sisters Skyr, Dill Pickle Flamin' Hot Cheetos, and Primary Activewear for kids.

And since you'll have some more podcast real estate, give a listen to Jam Session, Bad on Paper, Lemme Say This, and Shameless!

Want to stay connected with fellow listeners? Our Geneva will still be active! You can also stay up on our future Thingies by subscribing to our newsletter at athingortwo.substack.com.

For longtime listeners: Don't miss the Alex update at the end!

Learn lots with MasterClass and an additional 15% off any annual membership when you use our link.

Grow your garden with Fast Growing Trees. Take 15% off your first purchase with the code ATHINGORTWO.

Find your next favorite book with Underlined.

Cozy up to Sixpenny's furniture offerings—they're doing a really fantastic job. You'll see.

Bye!

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On the penultimate episode of this podcast, we're talking about the things that make us feel happy @ home, courtesy of the wonderful crew over at Sixpenny. (Remember the chair and a half?! They're responsible!) Also: our final—and dare we say most exclusive—Thingie guest…

Sixpenny's furniture just makes us feel GOOD?! Check out the Neva Chair, order some fabric swatches, consider the power of a slipcover, explore the best-looking storage ottomans you ever did see.

A whole bunch of little ways we're improving our space and how we feel in it: flowers from Park Deli, lighting from In Common With and Audo Copenhagen, a quilt from Aloka, high-touch framing from Ulfig Projects, recaning from Yorkville Caning, collections of limoges boxes(shout-out to the Midwest of Cannon Falls Dairy Queen collection) and niche food servingware, and rugs from WovenyHome, Baby Blue Studio, and Block Shop.

Some favorite fabric sources: Maharam, Block Shop, Svenskt Tenn, Caroline Z Hurley for Schumacher (and Schumacher in general), Bolé Road Textiles, and Ottoline.

Cam's Thingies include Greek mythology, The Corpse Bride, and Harriet the Spy the TV series.

Take a browse around Sixpenny's furniture offerings—they're doing a really fantastic job. You'll see.

YAY.

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Thingies time! We're so excited to sit down with Lana Schwartz, the author of the newest 831 Stories release, Set Piece. We talk favorite character actors, joining ClassPass in 2025, and an incredible podcast season that inspired her book.

Lana's Thingies include ClassPass (she's been hitting up MADabolic, Lucent, Good Move, and New Love City), Lorne by Susan Morrison, Sex and the City rewatches, movie trivia at Syndicated, the Rilo Kiley reunion, and Easy Weeknight Dinners by Emily Weinstein.

Lana got some inspiration for Set Piece while listening to the You Must Remember This podcast season on Polly Platt.

Get more of Lana c/o her book Build Your Own Romantic Comedy: Pick Your Plot, Meet Your Man, and Direct Your Happily Ever After and upcoming 831 events in NYC, LA, and Boston.

Foxtails for all!

Want to stay connected with fellow listeners? Join our Geneva! You can also keep in touch at 833-632-5463, [email protected], and @athingortwohq. Last ep airs May 19!

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Get plant-happy with Fast Growing Trees. Take 15% off your first purchase with the code ATHINGORTWO.

Change your clothes (monthly!) with Nuuly and get $28 off your first month when you sign up with the code ATHINGORTWO.

Boost your hair with Nutrafol. Take $10 off your first month's subscription with the code ATHINGORTWO.

YAY.

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Coming through with an exlcu: The A Thing or Two podcast is airing its last ep on May 19, ten years (!!!) since we started this thing. Get ready to walk down memory lane in the coming weeks, but for now, we're sharing what we'll miss about podcasting and what we're ok to leave behind!

But: The A Thing or Two newsletter will live on!

What were your favorite moments of the podcast? Share em' at 833-632-5463, [email protected], @athingortwohq, or our Geneva.Launch your store on Shopify and get a $1-a-month trial with our link.

Sleep better with Bearaby and use the code ATHINGORTWO for an exclusive 10% discount.

Get more plants in your life with Fast Growing Trees. Take 15% off your first purchase with the code ATHINGORTWO.

YAY.

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Thank you to Nuuly, both for sponsoring today's episode and for making it easier to get dressed during these hardest times of the year for CLOTHES (spring for Erica, summer for Claire, thanks for asking).

Have we sold you on Nuuly yet? Use cases: trying out a bunch of jeans (or, gasp, shorts), dealing with wedding season, test-driving a bunch o' new looks without having to own them, navigating maternity and post-partum dressing…we could go on. And! Right now you can get $28 off your first month of Nuuly when you sign up with the code ATHINGORTWO

Starting off with our pre-season preparation, we're curating a no-skips underwear drawer with help from Laura Reilly's newsletter (and Claire's love for the Natori Bliss Brief lives on!). We're also giving our shoes TLC at Leather Spa and getting a little post-winter warm-up with Tan-Luxe The Gradual, Tanning Water, and St. Tropez's Face Mist and Bronzing Mousse.

Ok, onto clothing and accessories! Porselli x Alex Mill ballet flats and Chalo cowboy boots have been in Erica's rotation, and though she's already found jean shorts from Agolde (ahem, via Nuuly), she's looking for sporty shorts like Justin's. The barefoot shoe crowd got us curious about the Xero Genesis, we're going to The Consistency Project for jeans, and Claire is growing a jean shacket collection, intentional or not.

To try to reinvigorate our excitement for getting dressed, we're reading Emilia Petrarca's piece on embracing glamour for Harper's Bazaar.

Respect to Rebecca Jennings for naming the Big Baby trend.

How do you get yourself more excited to get dressed up? Let us know at 833-632-5463, [email protected], @athingortwohq, or our Geneva.

Change your clothes (monthly!) with Nuuly and get $28 off your first month when you sign up with the code ATHINGORTWO.

YAY.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.