Lowbrow

They say the way to a man's heart is through the stomach, and in the case of Harry Styles it looks like a certain salad dressing really hit the spot. But how do we know this? Who spilt the tea? And what the heck is in that dressing? This episode Shannen explores a love triangle, a tell-all and a delicious side - perfect for summer! THE END BITS Subscribe to Mamamia CONTACT US Feedback? We’re liste...

The year is 2003, Guy Sebastian wins Australian Idol, everyone is watching Finding Nemo, Eminem is enjoying his mums spaghetti, and Victoria and David Beckham are living out a fairytale romance. The couple are tabloid darlings, and in July of that year David Beckham moves to Spain to play for Real Madrid. It's all fun and (football) games, until an assistant speaks out and leaves fairytale in sham...

Over the weekend, a pop culture miracle transpired... A photo of Selena Gomez and Hailey Bieber hugging, cheek to cheek emerged and went VIRAL! So why did Gen-Z lose their collective minds? This episode, Shannen walks Holly through 'Jelena' (Justin + Selena's relationship), the drama, the significance, the lost years and why this pic was such a big deal.  THE END BITS Subscribe to Mamamia CONTACT...

It’s a cool September night, in Sydney in the year 2000.Ian Thorpe is just moments away from breaking the 400m freestyle World Record, and while that isn’t what this story is about it is the catalyst that turned one young Tassie woman into a Princess. Welcome to Lowbrow! One story, two generations, so much WTF. This episode Holly Wainwright tells us the story of how Princess Mary of Denmark came t...

In 2002, Avril Lavigne was one of the most well-known and idolised pop/rock stars in the world. Kids dressed in studded belts and ties, teens wore a little too much eye-liner and parents were trying to figure out what Sk8er Boi meant.  And then time went on, Avril grew up and started making music that was...  different.  Or did she? This week Shannen's deep dives into one of the weirdest celebrity...

In the 90's a gloriously permed Nicole Kidman, was swept off her feet by a hunky movie star named Tom Cruise. They starred in movies together, had a glorious Christmas Eve wedding, and were totally and completely smitten - and then a certain religion came knocking.  This is a story of young love, heartbreak and aliens (kinda).  One story, two generations, so much WTF. THE END BITS Subscribe to Mam...

There are two types of people in the world; those who are one of Only Fans star Anna Paul's millions of followers, and those who have no idea who she is. Shannen is the former; as a Gen Z she watches Anna's every move play out on TikTok alongside millions of others. Holly, unsurprisingly, has absolutely zero clue who she is, so Shan breaks down how she rose to fame, what her appeal is, and exactly...

In 1993, one phone conversation rocked the entire world. A private phonecall between a Prince and his rumoured mistress was splashed onto the pages of the world's biggest tabloid magazine. It lead to a high-profile divorce, global embarrassment and more tampons content than you can poke a stick at.  This episode Holly unpacks Tampon-Gate, the who, the how and most importantly the why?! One story,...

On Shannen's first episode hosting, she's brought her favourite topic to the table. Five men, one iconic band, and millions of die-hard Gen Z fans. When One Direction broke up, millions of Gen Z hearts were broken, but there was still hope of a reunion...that was until earlier this year, when one member did an interview with one of the biggest Youtubers in the world and spilled some serious tea. T...

This episode of Lowbrow, we welcome our incredible new co-host Shannen Findlay and hear all about her pop-culture beginnings (One Direction fan-fiction).  We flash-back to 2004, where a little movie called Mr & Mrs Smith starring Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie starts filming in LA.  Not long after the movies release Brad’s marriage to American sweetheart Jennifer Aniston is over, and just months...

This episode of Lowbrow, we say farewell to our wonderful Emily Vernem! She's on to a new venture, but before she goes, she's leaving us with a legendary Australian story. In 2008, A Melbourne teen threw the biggest house party Australia had ever seen. It made news for attracting over 500 kids and practically destroying a neighbourhood, and a tweenage Em was enamoured by the peroxide blonde culpri...

"She became famous because of her sex tape". How often have you heard that about a high profile woman? In the 2000s, Paris Hilton was one of the most famous (and divisive) women in the world, and when an ex boyfriend released an intimate tape of him and the 22-year-old heiress, most of the world assumed she was in on it to promote her new reality show. But was that really the case? This week, Holl...

It's 2009, and Taylor Swift has just won a VMA for the music video for her song 'You Belong With Me'. As she graces the stage to make her acceptance speech, rapper Kanye West appears from nowhere and takes the microphone off her. And that's when the words "Imma let you finish" became immortalised forever. On Lowbrow this week, it's Taylor vs Kanye, and the gloves are off. From their many VMA inter...

When you hear the word 'Friday', what do you think of? The last day of your work week, or possibly the most annoying song ever released? 11 years ago, 13-year-old Rebecca Black broke the internet with her viral song 'Friday', but what you might not know is how the song came about, the backlash she received and how she's finally come out on top. One story, two generations, so much WTF. THE END BITS...

This week, it's officially the end of an era, with Neighbours airing it's last ever episode. Ramsey Street launched the careers of so many Aussie celebs and contained so many bonkers storylines, but none were as iconic as Jason Donovan and Kylie Minogue's on screen and off screen relationship. In this episode, Holly tells Em about the episodes she wagged school to watch, and the rock star who stol...

In the 2000s, a one-size body ruled them all; thin and waifish. A literal size 0. And according to a lot of people, there is one person to blame for that. Celebrity stylist Rachel Zoe. In this episode, Holly explains to Em who the 'Zobots' were, how Rachel defined not only 2000s fashion but also dress sizes, and what happened to Misha Barton at Nicole Richie's infamous Memorial Day BBQ... One stor...

Welcome to Lowbrow! Your cheat-sheet to big pop-culture moments from the perspective of two women 25 years apart. It's 2010, and a 16 year old Justin Bieber is the biggest pop star in the world thanks to his iconic hair and his hit song 'Baby'. So when he announced he was coming to Australia for a quick promo tour, every tweenage girl in the country promptly had a meltdown . His appearance on morn...

Welcome to Lowbrow! Your cheat-sheet to big pop-culture moments from the perspective of two women 25 years apart. To Gen Z, Winona Ryder is the amazing Joyce Byers from Stranger Things. But to Holly's generation, she was a style icon, talented actor, it-girl, and subject of a furious tabloid flurry in 2001 (Em was 5 years old at this stage). This episode, Holly explains what went down to make Wino...

Welcome to Lowbrow! Your cheat-sheet to big pop-culture moments from the perspective of two women 25 years apart. You may have heard of the manic pixie dream girl, but she is so 2000s. Now everyone wants a manic pixie dream boyfriend. Wondering what that is? On this episode of Lowbrow, Em explains to Holly what a "Pixie Boyfriend" is and why every It Girl in Hollywood is getting one. Plus, she poi...

Welcome to Lowbrow! Your cheat-sheet to big pop-culture moments from the perspective of two women 25 years apart. He's one of the biggest movie stars in the world, but when Tom Cruise jumped up on Oprah's couch to scream about how much he loved his girlfriend Katie Holmes, the world had...questions. This week, Holly explains to Em how 'TomKat' met, the Mission Impossible style way Katie divorced T...

Welcome to Lowbrow! Your cheat-sheet to big pop-culture moments from the perspective of two women 25 years apart. When you hear the last name 'Spears', who do you think of? For most people, it's a certain pop star, but for Em, Jamie Lynn is the only Spears that mattered. She was the star of her favourite show, Zoey 101, before a shock pregnancy derailed everything. On this episode of Lowbrow, Em t...

Welcome to Lowbrow! Your cheat-sheet to big pop-culture moments from the perspective of two women 25 years apart. Oprah Winfrey is one of the most famous entertainers on the planet. But before she was giving away cars and conducting groundbreaking interviews with royals, her show looked a little bit different (and so did she). This episode, Holly takes Em back to 1988, before she was even born, to...

Welcome to Lowbrow! Your cheat-sheet to big pop-culture moments from the perspective of two women 25 years apart. Have you heard of a 'purity ring'? In 2008 they were all the rage thanks to three Disney stars. In this episode of Lowbrow, Em explains to Holly the hold Disney stars had on her generation, why she convinced her mum to buy her a purity ring, and what happens when the rings come off......

Welcome to Lowbrow! Your cheat-sheet to big pop-culture moments from the perspective of two women 25 years apart. It's 2002. Two of the world's biggest movie stars, Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck, have started a whirlwind relationship and gotten engaged, though call it off at the last minute. Fast forward to 2021, and 'Bennifer' is back on. In this episode of Lowbrow, Holly takes Em through the ti...

Welcome to Lowbrow! Your cheat-sheet to big pop-culture moments from the perspective of two women 25 years apart. The year is 2013, and the world is watching the MTV VMA's. It's normal programming, until a giant teddy bear appears on stage, and out of it's stomach climbs one of the biggest starts in the world...like we'd never seen her before. This week Em talks twerking to Holly, and the event th...