The Polyester Podcast

Each week we are greeted with new flash photos of Young Republicans celebrating, Trump government rulings, and regressive Conservatives embracing their right to say slurs as often as they can. But why are our left leaning peers, Oscar winning movies and Twitter pals using the R word so casually too? This week, hosts Ione and Gina dissect the politics of language, the pendulum swing to being anti-W...

In the midst of Trump causing high hell for everything he can regarding reproductive rights Stateside, one birth announcement caused massive controversy on the grid - a post by Lily Collins and Charlie McDowell welcoming their daughter to the world via a surrogate mother. Twitter users went wild on both sides of the coin; one half defending the couple's right to surrogacy, referencing queer famili...

There's been two OnlyFans stars absolutely dominating (not literally, actually) the UK tabloid headlines, Twitter trending topics bar and the girls' group chats in the past eight weeks, and their names are Bonnie Blue and Lily Phillips. The latter kicked off December's discourse by starring in a YouTube documentary about having sex with 100 men in a day while the former stole the show by live-blog...

In a stark contrast to Trump's first inauguration as president in 2016, this month's event became a showcase for fashion houses wanting to dress the Republican party's top ladies. Not only that, but the fashion press and style influencers took to Instagram stories and long read columns to praise the looks presented throughout the festivities. In this week's episode, Ione and Gina analyse how irony...

Is Count Orlok sexy? Or is Babygirl not sexy enough? With both films focus on female yearning - as well as the same US release date - Nosferatu and Babygirl have been paired together in the public consciousness. This week, hosts Ione and Gina dissect Barbenheimer part two; from sexy monsters and film discourse Twitter, to glugging milk and cringe worthy needle drops. Support our work and become a...

We've finally gone and done it, our official breakdown of our generation's Scrooge McDuck, Elon Musk. From saying he wants to destroy the ‘woke virus’ and spreading racist conspiracy theories on X, to pushing right-wing ideologies in the US, Germany and the UK - Elon’s moved from being a punch-line in a joke about Grimes to being a serious political actor.  In this week’s episode, hosts Ione...

Last summer, we covered the dramatic press tour for the on screen adaptation of Colleen Hoover's novel It Ends With Us, digging into the speculation surrounding a beef between co-leads Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni. Over the Christmas break the story exploded, as Lively and Baldoni filed lawsuits detailing not just the drama but levying accusations of on set abuse, social media smear campaigns a...

Surprise!! As new year looms and as the internet declares in/out lists over, Ione and Gina share theirs for 2025. Will it be Lady Gaga's year? Is AI going rogue? Why are all the influencer girlies embracing having no taste? Should video content be longer or shorter? And are tabis finally over? Tune in to this extra special long episode to find out! Support our work and become a Polyester Podcast m...

Are you an Anik Anik girly or are you misappropriating cultural language as an excuse to buy more stuff? Whether you love or loathe blind boxes, this year we’ve all become obsessed with collecting bits and bobs - with the internet fiercely debating the ‘right’ type of knick knacks. In our final episode of the year, hosts Ione and Gina dig into the chaotic customisation trend and discuss why we’re...

As two members of the queer media, this week Ione and Gina are taking the lyrics of Defying Gravity, and taking a deep dive into the most mind boggling film rollout of 2024. From the holding of a singular acrylic nail that broke the internet, to Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo’s friendship, we’re left questioning what the hell Wicked is about to warrant all of this anyway. Support our work and bec...

The 4B movement is a South Korean fringe feminist movement operating on four principles - Bihon (no to heterosexual marriage), Bichulsan (no to childbirth), Biyeonae (no to dating), and Bisekseu (no to heterosexual sexual relationships) - the aim being to remove women from patriarchal lifestyles. After the announcement of Trump's win in the American election on the 5th November, women in the...

How many times a day do you - publicly or privately - berate someone online for being worse than you? From Halsey calling out critics to Pitchfork doing the aforementioned critiquing and Ethel Cain telling us to cut the irony - this week Ione and Gina are discussing how social media has made us all into holier than thou nightmares. Support our work and become a Polyester Podcast member <3 Order...

Sabrina Carpenter's 'Short n' Sweet' tour is off to a (literal) bang as right wing parents and TikTok teens are up in arms over Carpenter wearing lingerie on stage, claiming her costume is too sexual for her underage audience. Simultaneously on SWERF twitter, a new term has reared its head: Pedobaiting. Is the internet combining the Madonna/Whore complex to produce a new kind of sexism? Is this al...

This week Ione and Gina are joined for an extra special long episode with writer, actor, producer and all round internet legend Tavi Gevinson ! The three centre their conversation around class differences in the dying days of influencer culture, the changing face of fandom, and the performance of life online. Tavi's newest project, the Audible Original series Glimpses Of The Moon , an adaptation o...

Is it cynical to question if podcasts are being recorded just to get viral social media clips? And is it ironic that we're saying that on OUR podcast? This week, hosts Ione and Gina delve into the murky ethics of posing questions around sex work and marriage to self promote, the need for having a definite opinion over admitting nuance and whether we're all individualising theory far too much. Supp...

Last week The Last Dinner Party caught major heat from fans after security at their show screened cis male attendees. Meanwhile across the pond, Billie Eilish stans are overstepping boundaries by hurling abuse at her team over the Birds Of A Feather music video. And as usual, Chappell Roan devotees are being little bastards. This week, Ione and Gina are delving into the death knell surrounding cel...

Has the internet killed our sense of self? Why are the advertising campaigns for films, albums and books lauded more than the art itself? And can everyone leave Sally Rooney alone already? This week Ione and Gina are dissecting how creativity and marketing became so intertwined - as well as how social media made Mad Men of us all. Support our work and become a Polyester Podcast member <3 Order...

This week we've partnered with MUBI to bring you an extra special live episode from HOME Manchester to dig into The Substance - Coralie Fargeat’s flamboyant body horror that provocatively lambasts beauty standards with killer performances from legends Demi Moore and Margaret Qualley. Ione and Gina look at the film's use of the male gaze, the meta commentary of the casting as well as the inherent v...

The Polyester Podcast is back after a couple of episodes break so our hosts could go on holidays and for this extra special episode Ione and Gina are digging into all of the discourse we missed in the past month. We're giving our two cents on the burning topics that have plagued our feeds recently, like is Taylor Swift supporting Kamala Harris genuinely? Why won't the Harry Potter franchise die al...

Our feeds have been overrun with a new celeb squabble as the press rollout for the film adaptation of Colleen Hoover's 'It Ends With Us' goes absolutely tits up. Both TikTok and X users have spent the last week picking apart the behind the scenes drama between producer and star Blake Lively and producer, director and star Justin Baldoni. Is Blake giving feminism a bad name? Was Justin's vision ste...

How does embracing your divine feminine turn into an interest in eugenics? Are conspiracy theories making hippies move away from liberal spirituality and towards alt right ideals? This week, hosts Ione and Gina are dissecting the history of Goddess feminism, Elon Musks's mission to populate Mars and the similarities between trad wives and flower children. Support our work and become a Polyester Po...

Last week, Polyester suffered a great injustice on the social media platform formerly known as Twitter as right wing journalists piled on our humble hosts for sharing a pitch call out. This week, Ione and Gina dissect the discourse surrounding publishing industry standards, the declining state of the media industry, and the need to be right on social media. Support our work and become a Polyester...

The Kamalanomenon is here. You think you just fell out of the coconut tree? This week, hosts Ione and Gina break down how brat summer, among other Kamala memes, morphed from gen z nihilistic irony into millennial girlboss earnestness - and how the memeification of politics affects us all. Support our work and become a Polyester Podcast member <3 Order Ione's book, Poor Little Sick Girls, h...

Does a crap economy spawn better music? And should being frugal be a trend, a lifestyle choice or just a case of bloody getting on with things? This week, hosts Ione and Gina dig into the self narration that has been bred into us by social media and whether, during the worst recession we've weathered as adults, we should be romanticising our shampoo purchases. Support our work and become a Polyest...

It seems as though its never been worse to be a woman participating in the discourse. The Hawk Tuah girl has used her blowjob technique to become a star; cashing in on the viral moment with a merch line, a manager and a possible documentary. But while she makes bank, the alt right have commodified her into a figurehead - once again proclaiming any woman with blonde hair and big tits as their own....