Last Saturday was the grand final of the Eurovision Song Contest 2026. All around the world, Eurovision fans tuned in to enjoy glitzy party pop, fiery ballads and theatrical staging. This year we enjoyed an Italian disco wedding (Sal Da Vinci), a Greek man dressed as a cat (Akylas), a somewhat underwhelming silver man from Lithuania (Lion Ceccah) and some very patriotic Moldovans (Satoshi).

As is customary, the UK marked the occasion by coming last, receiving just one point for our entry Look Mum No Computer with 'Eins Zwei Drei'. In today's episode we discuss why we think the UK does so badly at Eurovision, addressing some of the established theories (political voting, Britain's perceived unpopularity in Europe, etc.). Most importantly, though, we talk about the music. Why does the UK always seem to hit the wrong notes - both literally and figuratively? Does our famous 'stiff upper lip' make it more difficult for us to channel the over-the-top, camp aesthetic of Eurovision? And should we take the competition more seriously?

The episode also includes our definitive 2026 Eurovision debrief. We talk about our favourite entries, low points and our verdict on the winner: 'Bangaranga' by Dara for Bulgaria.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In 2024 the world was promised a rat boy summer by the media. This was supposed to be a glorious season of celebration for everyone's favourite rat boys, or 'hot rodent boyfriends': young attractive male celebrities with sharp features and bags of personality. Celebs like Jeremy Allen White and Josh O'Connor were (and still are) box-office gold, and high-profile rat boy films like Challengers were controlling the discourse.

Alas, rat boy summer was soon forgotten by our fickle culture. In this episode, we mourn this sad missed opportunity, exploring exactly what makes someone a 'rat boy', and how this fits into ideas of masculinity today.

Most importantly, we talk about everyone's favourite rat boy Timothée Chalamet, charting his trajectory from sensitive indie darling to mainstream man of the moment.

We also talk about our favourite historical rat boys and the origins of the rat boy phenomenon, from the Romantic poets, to the rock 'n' roll heroes of the 1960s, and the indie lads of the 00s.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.