Standard Issue Podcast

It’s pretty well documented that the beauty industry isn’t particularly kind to women, but why are we accepting the capitalist forces that make us feel almost universally crap about ourselves? And where do they even come from? These are questions that writer, academic and broadcaster Emma Dabiri sets out to answer in her new book Disobedient Bodies: Reclaim Your Unruly Beauty. And in this week’s podzine she chats to Jen about beauty standards, empowerment and doing beauty better.Meanwhile, Hannah gets to be a hero just for fixing a hoover, as she chats to Fiona Dear, co-director of UK Strategy and Operations at The Restart Project, which aims to help us fix our own stuff and prevent it going to landfill.In Jenny Off The Blocks, we're fighting fit again, and Jen’s bigging up Katie Taylor. Plus, we’re appreciating every single one of Jane Horrocks’s voices in this week’s Rated or Dated, as we revisit 1998's Little Voice. Can Mickey ever get over Michael Caine and his bee facts? Should she even try?

Arit Anderson, garden designer, presenter on BBC Gardeners’ World, host of the Growing Greener podcast, and passionate environmentalist, really loves trees. So much so, she’s co-authored a book about them with botanist Dr Henrik Sjöman. The Essential Tree Selection Guide, in association with the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, is a brilliant, comprehensive, jargon-free look at how which tree we choose to plant where really matters, as well as a tree bible when it comes to their climate resilience, carbon storage and other ecosystem benefits.Our Mick also really loves trees, so was delighted to get Arit on the Zoom to chat about our arboreal friends, how we can save them, how they can save us, gardening opportunities, starting again in your forties, and how we can all do our bit when it comes to sustainability. Photograph of Arit by Diana Monkhurst

As you know, we love an angry woman who gets shit done, so Mick's been on the Zoom with Lisa Baskott to find out about 2nd Line of Defence, her award-winning female-focused recruitment agency for the private security sector. Jen's chatting to fashion editor Bay Garnett about her new book Style and Substance: Why What We Wear Matters, thrifting a bargain and sustainable fashion. In Jenny Off The Blocks, Premiership women’s rugby is back and there's news about the environment and missing apostrophes in BT. And in Rated or Dated, are we laughing or wincing or both, as we watch Hannah's pick - 1983's Trading Places? 

Since it’s International Men’s Day, we’ve only gone and invited a man to chat to us for this week’s Chops, because gender inequality is bad for everyone. And what group of men can better demonstrate this than... the England football team?Screenwriter and playwright James Graham’s new play Dear England, got off to a very successful start at the National Theatre and is now enjoying an extended run in London’s West End. So our Jen caught up with James to find out more about it. They chat toxic masculinity, fear of failure, national identity, and the gaffer himself, Gareth Southgate – call him Gareth.

Oh hello loadsa new TV, welcome to Outside The Box. This week we're talking about Coleen Rooney: The Real Wagatha Story, The Newsreader, Robbie Williams, Shetland, What We Do In the Shadows, Planet Earth III, Bodies and Savior Complex. If there's not something in that extraordinarily mixed bag for you, we don't know what to tell you.

Joni Mitchell is 80, and so Hannah got on the Zoom with musician Jesca Hoop to celebrate the high priestess of folk and living legend. Mitchell’s songs have soundtracked our lives and her pioneering work changed music forever, all of which Jesca explores in her new Radio 4 series, Legend: The Joni Mitchell Story.Meanwhile, Mick’s been chatting to Yuliia Pykhtina, hoola hoop goddess and co-founder of be-Spiegeltented circus-cabaret, La Clique. They talk circus life, living in Ukraine, and delicious round potato snacks.In Jenny Off the Blocks, Jen’s once again tipping her hat to the incredible Emma Hayes, and – SPOILER! – there is absolutely no hat-tipping going on in Rated or Dated as the team watch 2008’s chaste, twinkly vampire, toxicity-fest, Twilight. Urgh, fucking Twilight.