Straight Up

The ‘dazzling’ new film about disgraced Silicon Valley entrepreneur Elizabeth Holmes has become one of the buzziest and most controversial documentaries ever made. Why is there so much hype, and what does it say about our fascination with famous fraudsters? Also on the show: how the serious allegations against Meghan Markle’s father could change public opinion around her, and our thoughts on the three finalists in the running to become the next James Bond. Plus: a five-star review of Disney’s comedy-mystery Phoney and our verdict on Channel 4’s star-studded series, It Gets Worse, about Gen Z disillusionment.

Book your (free!) tickets to our exclusive Netflix film screening and live ep recording here.

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Recs/reviews

• Phoney, Disney+
• It Gets Worse, Channel 4
• Gail Daughtry and the Celebrity Sex Pass
• Will the public change its mind about Meghan? BBC
• You Can See Everything, in UK cinemas Nov 20
• You Can't See Everything: Release delays are killing movie culture in the UK, GQ
• ‘A cultural moment’: smash hit doc You Can See Everything continues to dazzle America, Guardian
• Elizabeth Holmes is Literally Just a Man, Liz Plank, Substack
• The New Stanford Prison Experiment, Netflix

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The Victoria’s Secret fashion show is back and seemingly more popular than ever, just years after it was dismissed as sexist and outdated. So how did we get here, and why are we suddenly celebrating a version of femininity we thought we’d left behind? Also this week: the newly-announced reboot of Lena Dunham’s Girls and whether it can capture the zeitgeist again, the controversy surrounding Sally Rooney’s book ban, plus reviews of Florence Pugh’s East of Eden adaptation and Ben Affleck’s new Netflix thriller.

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Recs/ reviews:

• East of Eden, Netflix
• Animals, Netflix
• Jon Ronson on The Louis Theroux Podcast
• Office Romance, Netflix
• The Sheep Detectives, Amazon Prime
• So, Girls is coming back for 5 fresh eps… Lena Dunham’s substack
• Who Exactly Is The Victoria’s Secret Show For? Otegha Uwagba for Grazia
• Why terrorism laws stopped Sally Rooney selling books in the UK, Today in Focus

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Elizabeth Day’s bestselling novel The Party has been turned into a glossy new TV thriller with Luke Evans, exploring toxic friendships and the dark side of the British upper classes. Plus, a comedian has sparked a furious backlash after calling women in gym shorts “whores” on SNL. Is misogyny being repackaged as edgy comedy? Also on the show: the must-watch new series of prison drama Time starring David Tennant and the questions it raises about our broken criminal justice system, a gripping new investigative podcast about an LA couple who had 21 children via surrogacy, a review of Jeremy Strong’s turn as Mark Zuckerberg in The Social Reckoning and Nara Smith’s “sexy rebrand”.

Get your ticket to our ACOTAR 6 virtual book club via Ticket Tailor here.

Join us on Patreon for exclusive bonus episodes plus early access and ad-free listening at patreon.com/straightuppodcast

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Find us on YouTube @straightupmediapod

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Recs/ reviews

• Honeybloom jewellery (IG @honeybloomstore)
• The Journey, New Yorker podcast
• Time s3, BBC iPlayer
• Criminal: How Our Prisons Are Failing Us All, Angela Kirwin
• Sing Sing, Netflix
• The Party, ITVx
• Elizabeth Day: How I finally got my book The Party on TV, The Times
• The Social Reckoning, in cinemas
• The Interview, NYT, Aaron Sorkin

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Sienna Miller and Dominic West play a celebrity couple at war in Sky’s hyped new divorce drama, so this week we’re getting into some of Hollywood’s messiest breakups – not to mention the stars’ own experiences with relationship scrutiny – from Halle Berry’s current custody battle to how Olivia Wilde and Tom Cruise were both “blindsided” by their exes. Also on the show: The Celebrity Traitors is back and we couldn’t be more thrilled, why contestant Richard E. Grant has our hearts, the Fourth Wing prequel and a review of Daisy Edgar Jones’ Sense and Sensibility. Plus, we reveal all the details of our first ever virtual book club!

Get your ticket to our ACOTAR 6 virtual book club here.

Join us on Patreon for exclusive bonus episodes plus early access and ad-free listening at patreon.com/straightuppodcast

Try the adaptogenic coffee that changed our lives with 20% off using code straightup at londonnootropics.com

Follow us on IG ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@straightuppod⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and TikTok @straightuppod

Find us on YouTube @straightupmediapod

Email at ⁠⁠[email protected]

Recs / reviews:

• Sense and Sensibility, in cinemas now
• War, Sky / Now TV
• ‘I’d strip for £100!’ Dominic West and Sienna Miller on nudity, narcissism and their juicy new show War, Guardian
• Threshing Day, Rebecca Yarros
• The Celebrity Traitors, BBC

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Miquita Oliver went on Fearne Cotton’s Happy Place pod this week, marking the end of a decades-long feud fuelled by the toxic tabloid culture of the early noughties. We debrief on their heart-warming reconciliation and how female rivalry is so often rooted in insecurity. Also on the show: Amelia Dimoldenberg hosted SNL, Taylor Swift has upset fans and critics alike with her latest release Encore (despite cleaning up at the VMAs on Sunday) and Vogue is engulfed in yet another controversy after the company behind Mounjaro sponsored its latest event. Plus: Colin From Accounts season three, Anne Hathaway’s dinosaur movie and a couple of great recs for weekend watching. Enjoy huns!

Join us on Patreon for exclusive bonus episodes plus early access and ad-free listening at patreon.com/straightuppodcast

Try the adaptogenic coffee that changed our lives with 20% off using code straightup at londonnootropics.com

Follow us on IG ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@straightuppod⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and TikTok @straightuppod

Find us on YouTube @straightupmediapod

Email at ⁠⁠[email protected]

Recs/reviews

• SNL UK, NOWTV
• Colin from Accounts, iPlayer
• Last Seen, AppleTV
• Wasteman, Netflix
• End of Oak Street, AppleTV
• Taylor Swift Is Losing Us, Vulture
• Taylor Swift’s Shrinking World, Substack
• Miquita Oliver on The Happy Place podcast
• ‘It’s problematic’: concern as weight-loss jab maker sponsors Vogue World event, Guardian
• I was hurt. It was spiteful: Alexandra Shulman on life after Vogue, The Times

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From Lena Dunham announcing the birth of her baby girl via surrogate in a fashion piece for Vogue, to Ed Sheeran’s PR disaster over Palestine and free speech, this week both celebs have found themselves at the centre of debates they’d tried to side-step. Is commercial surrogacy inherently “anti-feminist”? And can stars really be apolitical in this day and age? Also on the show: we review Sharon Horgan’s brilliant new series YOUTH, all about ageing anxiety and dating in your 50s.

Join us on Patreon for exclusive bonus episodes plus early access and ad-free listening at patreon.com/straightuppodcast

Try the adaptogenic coffee that changed our lives with 20% off using code straightup at londonnootropics.com

Follow us on IG ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@straightuppod⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and TikTok @straightuppod

Find us on YouTube @straightupmediapod

Email at ⁠⁠[email protected]

Recs/reviews

• YOUTH, HBO Max
• Sharon Horgan: My sexual shelf life and dating over 50, The Times
• Lena Dunham Is a Mother! The Sweet, Singular Story of How She Prepared, Vogue
• Whose Babies Are These? A Chinese man hired a Florida surrogate, then didn’t pick up his kids, sparking a custody battle that could upend the industry, The Cut
• When Political Reality Collides With Ed Sheeran, New York Times
• Ed Sheeran wants to stay out of politics. By quitting his tour, his support acts have exposed the hollowness of neutrality, Guardian
• ‘With Gaza, I Couldn’t Not Speak Out’: Ms. Rachel on Controversy, Fame, and the Future, Rolling Stone

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This week we’re revisiting our ep on the dark side of the therapy boom, from unqualified therapists planting false memories in vulnerable people and an obsession with labels to ‘therapy boasting’ on Hinge and the weaponisation of ‘therapy speak’. Plus, what makes a good therapist, and can AI offer an accessible alternative to what has become a luxury? We’ll be back with our usual pop culture debrief next Thursday!

Join us on Patreon for exclusive bonus episodes plus early access and ad-free listening at patreon.com/straightuppodcast

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Find us on YouTube @straightupmediapod

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Recs:

• Dangerous Memories podcast 
• My therapist told me Mum had abused me. She hadn’t, Times
• The therapist who planted false memories, Pandora Sykes, Substack
• How the language of therapy took over dating, NYT
• Nobody has a personality anymore, Substack
• OpenAI CEO Sam Altman warns users not to trust ChatGPT agent with sensitive or personal data, Decoder 
• Chatbots Can Go Into a Delusional Spiral. Here’s How It Happens, NYT
• He Had a Mental Breakdown Talking to ChatGPT. Then Police Killed Him, Rolling Stone
• What does bad therapy actually look like? Stylist
• Can AI therapists really be an alternative to human help? BBC

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Mega-influencer Alix Earle’s new reality show has dropped on Netflix and so we’re unpacking it all, from all the details of her feud with Alex Cooper to the family’s bizarre dynamics. Could Earle Meets World be Gen Z’s answer to The Kardashians? Also this week: series two of The Gentlemen starring Maya Jama, as well as the brilliant film spin-off of French comedy Call My Agent! featuring an excellent cameo from George Clooney.   

Join us on Patreon for exclusive bonus episodes plus early access and ad-free listening at patreon.com/straightuppodcast

Try the adaptogenic coffee that changed our lives with 20% off using code straightup at londonnootropics.com

Follow us on IG ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@straightuppod⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and TikTok @straightuppod

Find us on YouTube @straightupmediapod

Email at ⁠⁠[email protected]

Recs/ reviews: 

• Where Are The Kings, Donal Ryan 
• The Gentlemen, Netflix
• Call My Agent! The Movie, Netflix 
• Earle Meets World, Netflix 

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Ali G is back after more than 20 years, sparking a backlash over the character’s racist stereotypes with cinemas saying they’ll boycott the new film. And speaking of controversial comebacks, the planned John Galliano exhibition at the Met has been pulled, so this week we’re discussing cancel culture, second chances and when some things are better left in the past. Also on the show: the sky-rocketing of push-up bra sales, breastfeeding in public, Bonnie Blue’s baby announcement and Olivia Wilde’s new film, plus the Lindsay Clancy trial.

Join us on Patreon for exclusive bonus episodes plus early access and ad-free listening at patreon.com/straightuppodcast

Try the adaptogenic coffee that changed our lives with 20% off using code straightup at londonnootropics.com

Follow us on IG ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@straightuppod⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and TikTok @straightuppod

Find us on YouTube @straightupmediapod

Email at ⁠⁠[email protected]

Recs/reviews

• Get our book club pick Where Are the Kings here
• FRIENDSHIP BREAKUPS: ghosting, group dynamics and comparison culture (our ep) 
• Outcome, AppleTV
• Toy Story 5, SkyTV
• Furious, Disney Plus
• I Want Your Sex, in cinemas
• Eyes Down Here: Push-up bras are back with a vengeance, The Cut 
• Not My G, More Brit (ish) Than Ever Substack, Afua Hirsch
• The Metropolitan Museum of Art Is Making a Very Bad Mistake, New York Times
• Lucky Boy, Tortoise Investigates

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Why do so many adult men seem stuck in arrested development? We review the buzzy new novel from the “male Sally Rooney” Jem Calder, whose rom-com I Just Want You to Be Happy charts a dysfunctional age-gap relationship between a 35-year-old man-child and 23-year-old woman. Also on the show: our thoughts on the backlash to North West’s “age inappropriate” Dazed cover, Meghan Markle’s new career move, Kendall Jenner and Jacob Elordi’s hard launch and a possible sequel to How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days.

We’ve released a final batch of tickets to our book club on Wed 2 September! Get yours at via Ticket Tailor and order Where Are the Kings here 

Join us on Patreon for exclusive bonus episodes plus early access and ad-free listening at patreon.com/straightuppodcast

Try the adaptogenic coffee that changed our lives with 20% off using code straightup at londonnootropics.com

Follow us on IG ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@straightuppod⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and TikTok @straightuppod

Find us on YouTube @straightupmediapod

Email at ⁠⁠[email protected]

Recs/reviews

• I Want You to be Happy, Jem Calder
• I Want You to Be Happy is the excruciating millennial novel everyone will be reading this summer, The Independent
• Alice and Steve, Disney Plus
• Prue Leith – On leaving Bake Off and finding love again at 70, Experience is Everything
• Kendall Jenner and Jacob Elordi’s Dating World Tour Continues in London, Vogue
• North West: ‘Music is what I wanna do with my life’, Dazed
• Fresh Hell, Tina Brown’s Substack

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