S18, Ep7 Gillian Anderson on sex, body image and rebellion
Oct 18, 2023
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Gillian Anderson talks about her career, addiction to work, and coping with global celebrity. She discusses the impact of wellness culture, her natural instinct to rebel against authority, and her healthy soft-drink range. The podcast covers cross-section of women's experiences, imposter syndrome, embracing movement on her own terms, and prioritizing pleasure in life.
Gillian Anderson emphasizes the importance of finding pleasure in exercise and approaching it in a personal and empowering way.
Anderson encourages individuals to embrace their own choices in health and wellness, rejecting the notion that pleasure and well-being are frivolous.
Deep dives
Failure to Move Limbs
Gillian Anderson admits to not being a fan of exercise, citing a refusal to be told what she should or shouldn't do. However, she acknowledges that she is now considering incorporating movement into her life as she acknowledges the potential health benefits and the importance of listening to her body. She emphasizes the need to find pleasure in exercise and to approach it in a way that feels personal and empowering.
Failure to Fill Body with Nourishment
Anderson confesses to having had an addiction to high-caffeine, high-sugar soft drinks and a lack of hydration. She discusses her journey in creating wellness beverages to replace her addiction, focusing on taste and functional ingredients that positively impact cognitive functions and stress levels. Anderson encourages individuals to embrace their own choices in health and wellness, rejecting the notion that pleasure and well-being are frivolous.
Failure to Not Work
Anderson admits to being a workaholic, driven by a strong work ethic and a desire to prove herself deserving of success. Although she acknowledges the need for work-life balance, she expresses her enthusiasm for her current projects and the freedom she feels in pursuing her passions at this stage in her life.
Conclusion
In this insightful podcast episode, Gillian Anderson discusses her failures and personal growth, from her resistance to exercise and her addiction to unhealthy drinks, to her workaholic tendencies. She emphasizes the importance of embracing personal choices, finding pleasure in one's pursuits, and prioritizing both physical and mental well-being. Through her candid reflections, Anderson inspires listeners to challenge societal expectations and cultivate a sense of empowerment in their own lives.
Continuing this season's line-up of ICONIC AND INCREDIBLE WOMEN, I am veritably trembling with delight to bring you today's guest: the extraordinary Gillian Anderson.
Her 30-plus year career has taken her from playing FBI Special Agent Scully in The X Files to Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher in The Crown. She’s been a dogged detective in The Fall and an unembarrassable sex therapist in the Netflix hit show Sex Education. On stage, she has been everything from Blanche duBois in A Streetcar Named Desire to Margo Channing in All About Eve. It’s almost easier to list the roles she hasn’t played than the ones she has.
Owing to the ongoing SAG-AFTRA actors strike, we don't talk about any of her acting roles. Instead, this liberates us to have a fascinating chat about life, fame, womanhood and everything in between. We talk about her failures to look after herself, her addiction to work, how she coped with global celebrity in her 20s and how this affected the way that she saw herself. Plus: why she thinks wellness culture is making us ill and why her natural instinct when someone tells her what to do is to say 'F** off.'
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Gillian's healthy soft-drink range, G-Spot, is available to buy here. (Not an ad but it tastes EXCELLENT).