Standard Issue Podcast

When she turned 40, journalist and author Poorna Bell decided she’d had enough of being told her best years were behind her – not least because she was seeing so many older women absolutely killing it in their various and varied arenas. With that in mind she set about looking at the rules set for women by society, questioning how and why they’d come to be, which in turn became the basis for her new book: She Wanted More: Reimagine your future and live by your rules.

Jen chats to Poorna about why society writes off older women, our fears around ageing, and the art of not giving a shit.

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A “wardrobe malfunction” during the 2004 Superbowl halftime show caused a huge furore and changed the course of Janet Jackson’s career for decades, while her fellow performer, Justin “Trousersnake” Timberlake thrived. Multidisciplinary artist Paula Varjack’s play, Nine Sixteenths, examines the impact of the infamous “Nipplegate” incident.

Jen chats to Paula about the play, the forces of racism, sexism and ageism that conspired to derail Jackson, and the hypocrisy that underlines pop culture.

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Sure, the news is all about the Middle East, but what else is going on? Quite a bit. In this week's Bush Telegraph, Hannah and Jen talk about how "baby brain" is actually good for women, the Telegraph's literally unbelievable school fees story, good news about homelessness in Wales, and sexism in the workplace. And in Jenny Off The Blocks, there's ice hockey, tennis and football. 

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Fava beans and Chianti all round as Mick’s picked Jonathan Demme’s Oscars-dominating 1991 psychological horror. Or is it a thriller? Other questions addressed include: how’s Hannah feeling about Scott Glenn; does the film have feminist credentials; what’s with the stereotyping, and how much ham is simply too much ham for Jen’s mum Cath? Fffffffffffffff. Etc.
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Talented multi-hyphenate Annabel Port’s The Other British Museum is a joyful collection of potted histories of recognisable items and our Mick cannot get enough. And so, she got Annabel on the Zoom to chat museum entries, the smell of Imperial Leather, the genesis of weekends, podcasting with Geoff Lloyd, and making a career out of your social awkwardness. 

As ever, there’s more available for our £5 and above patreons, and you can become one of those by visiting patreon.com/standardissue.
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