The Breakup Monologues with Rosie Wilby

In a live episode recorded at Poplar Union, Rosie chats to comedian and screenwriter Jordan Gray and comedian and Comedy Arcade podcaster Vix Leyton about ex-partners turning up to gigs, teenage heartbreak, the pitfalls of trying to get revenge on an ex via performing in a goth metal band, rudimentary early methods of online chat, whether Halloween should become the new Valentine's Day, sexy pumpkin outfits, reclaiming a sense of agency by listening to Danger Zone by Kenny Loggins, friendship breakups, no fault divorce and how idealogical differences over topics such as vaccinations can separate us. Recorded at Poplar Union on 17 February 2022.

You can now follow The Breakup Monologues on Instagram @breakupmonologues and buy The Breakup Monologues book from all good bookshops: https://linktr.ee/breakupmonologues

The Breakup Monologues will also be recording a live episode at Kings Place on 22 April: https://www.kingsplace.co.uk/whats-on/comedy/the-breakup-monologues-22-apr/

To find out more about Jordan, read this article: https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2022/mar/08/trans-comic-jordan-gray-interview-simon-pegg-nick-frost-sitcom-x-man

Or to listen to Vix's Comedy Arcade podcast, click here: https://podfollow.com/the-comedy-arcade

As recording for season 5 begins, Rosie presents a few highlights from season 4 along with a clip of The Breakup Monologues audiobook. You can now follow The Breakup Monologues on Instagram @breakupmonologues and buy The Breakup Monologues book from all good bookshops: https://linktr.ee/breakupmonologues Our next live recordings are at Poplar Union on Feb 17 and at Faversham Literary Festival on Feb 19. Book tickets: https://poplarunion.com/event/rosie-wilby-presents-the-breakup-monologues/ https://www.favershamliteraryfestival.org/index.php/evt-urls/event-list/events-2022/the-breakup-monologues-2

Here's something a bit different this week. Rosie has been working on a pilot for this new podcast idea…

I am an only child. I do not have a sister. As far as I know. That is enough for the rational, scientific part of me, the part inherited from my pragmatic mathematician father. Yet I have always believed deep within the more spiritual part of me that I do have a sister. So where the hell is she?

This is a story about the conflict between what we know and what we feel... and how we make sense of the space in between.

Please get in touch if you'd like to hear more of this story or could help in creating a longer series. Many thanks to Content is Queen for the micro grant which made this pilot possible, to Dave Pickering for editing and to Tony Pickering for designing the episode artwork.

The Breakup Monologues, meanwhile, will be back soon with more live recordings and episodes. And, in the meantime, The Breakup Monologues book is available here: https://linktr.ee/breakupmonologues

In a live episode recorded at London Podcast Festival, Rosie chats to comedian Ania Magliano, author of The Ex-Boyfriend Yard Sale, Haley McGee, and creator of The Chemo Chat Show, Sarah Mills, about whether we can calculate a mathematical formula for the cost of love, crying so much that your nose bleeds, the dubious reliability of scientific studies, smoking after a breakup, first date locations, why fleeting relationships and their unexplored potential can torture people the most and whether we should comfort ourselves with either positive or negative memories of an ex. Recorded at London Podcast Festival on 3 September 2021.

You can now follow The Breakup Monologues on Instagram @breakupmonologues and buy The Breakup Monologues book from all good bookshops: https://linktr.ee/breakupmonologues

The Breakup Monologues will be recording live episodes again in early 2022, including our annual anti-Valentine's show in Feb at Poplar Union. Follow Rosie on Twitter @rosiewilby for announcements.

In a live episode recorded in Einstein's Garden at Green Man Festival, Rosie chats to journalist and author Jude Rogers about her forthcoming book The Sound of Being Human: How Music Shapes Our Lives, how music can help us to heal after a breakup and Jude's breakup playlist choices from Abba, Blur, Soft Cell, Erasure and Will Young. Recorded at Green Man Festival on 22 August 2021.

You can now follow The Breakup Monologues on Instagram @breakupmonologues and buy The Breakup Monologues book from all good bookshops: https://linktr.ee/breakupmonologues

The Breakup Monologues will also be recording a live episode at London Podcast Festival at Kings Place on 3 September: https://www.kingsplace.co.uk/whats-on/words/the-breakup-monologues-london-podcast-festival/

In a live episode recorded at Underbelly Festival, Rosie chats to comedians Felicity Ward and Maisie Adam about meeting partners at raves and at Edinburgh Fringe, dating apps, gender stereotypes, being an awkward teenager and the future of breaking up over TikTok. Recorded at Underbelly Festival on 7 August 2021. You can now follow The Breakup Monologues on Instagram @breakupmonologues and buy The Breakup Monologues book from all good bookshops: https://linktr.ee/breakupmonologues

The Breakup Monologues will also be recording a live episode at London Podcast Festival at Kings Place on 3 September: https://www.kingsplace.co.uk/whats-on/words/the-breakup-monologues-london-podcast-festival/

In a live episode recorded at Primadonna Festival, Rosie looks to comedians and authors Helen Lederer and Samantha Baines for wedding advice. They discuss wedding dress fittings, cats, sorbet relationships, sexual explosions, Dawn French's matchmaking skills and sex in toilets, hot tubs and swimming pools. Rosie also has a lightbulb moment about why she's so fascinated by talking about breakups - if you document a relationship's ending, you acknowledge that it existed in the first place. Recorded at Primadonna Festival on 1 August 2021.

You can now follow The Breakup Monologues on Instagram @breakupmonologues and buy The Breakup Monologues book from all good bookshops: https://linktr.ee/breakupmonologues

The Breakup Monologues will also be recording a live episode at Underbelly Festival in London with guests Felicity Ward and Maisie Adam at 5pm on 7 August: http://www.underbellyfestival.com/whats-on/the-breakup-monologues

In a live episode (our first with an actual audience for some time!) recorded at Wimbledon Book Fest, Rosie is joined by acclaimed comedian and author Shappi Khorsandi. They discuss how the way we talk about relationships has evolved, the self-knowledge and empowerment that can come from being single, how her divorce coincided with the moment her career was really taking off, how running and books helped her through heartbreak, how her ADHD impacts relationships, an unfortunate electrolysis incident, her relationship with a musician who had a double life, friendship breakups and whether being attracted to extroverts is really a good idea.

Recorded at Wimbledon Book Fest on 12 June 2021. You can now follow The Breakup Monologues on Instagram @breakupmonologues and buy The Breakup Monologues book from all good bookshops: https://linktr.ee/breakupmonologues

The Breakup Monologues will also be recording live episodes again at Cambridge Comedy Festival and Primadonna Festival this July and at Underbelly Festival in London with two very special guests on 7 August: http://www.underbellyfestival.com/whats-on/the-breakup-monologues

Rosie is joined by podcaster, writer, performer and Breakup Monologues producer Dave Pickering to reflect on the first four seasons of the podcast, what they've learned from the show and the guests, their personal highlights and Dave's teenage breakups.

You can now follow The Breakup Monologues on Instagram @breakupmonologues and preorder The Breakup Monologues book from all good bookshops: https://linktr.ee/breakupmonologues

The Breakup Monologues will also be recording live episodes again on June 12 at Wimbledon Book Festival with special guest Shappi Khorsandi (book tickets here) and in July at Cambridge Comedy Festival and Primadonna Festival.

In a special live online episode recorded in partnership with Poplar Union, Rosie is joined by award-winning comedian, podcaster, writer and actor Sindhu Vee. They discuss the work that it takes to keep a marriage going, how she learned about addiction when her mother ran a nonprofit drug and alcohol rehab from their home, her decision not to have an arranged marriage, meeting her husband, learning to compromise but not at the cost of your self respect, why first loves are not the ones to marry, why great sex isn't necessarily forever and how a spiritual teacher helped her to get over her first ever heartbreak. Recorded online on 8 March 2021.

You can now follow The Breakup Monologues on Instagram @breakupmonologues and preorder The Breakup Monologues book from all good bookshops. The Breakup Monologues will also be recording live episodes again this July at Cambridge Comedy Festival and Primadonna Festival.