
The Polyester Podcast
Is Blake Lively a bitch or being misconstrued? Will Elon ever stop cringing us out? And why is everyone using slurs again? Every week Polyester's head girlies Ione Gamble and Gina Tonic take you down a weekly rabbit hole of online discourse and pop culture - from trad wives and surrogacy to porn stars and unhinged press tours. Exploring the intersection of IRL and URL through a feminist lens, the Polyester Podcast is your weekly digest on absolutely everything everyone on the internet is talking about. With guests like Tavi Gevinson and Sofia Coppola collaborator Stacey Battat, and special episodes beamed into your ears from cultural centres like London’s Tate Modern and Barbican Centre, every Monday we offer a down-to-earth take from the front lines of the internet, feminism, and the weird world of celebrity it has spawned.Hosted by Editor in Chief Ione Gamble with Senior Editor Gina Tonic. Edited by Olivia Graham. Have faith in your own bad taste!Support our work and become a Polyester Podcast member <3Polyester is a self published, intersectional feminist arts and culture publication aiming to bridge the gap of URL cyberfeminism with the IRL world. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Latest episodes

Nov 23, 2023 • 27min
Dispatches From The Kardashian Simulacrum: Who's Allowed To Criticise The Kardashians?
This week, The Kardashians are leaning into the uncanny valley nature of their narrative construction, taking us behind the scenes on Kourtney's pregnancy announcement and Kim and North debating fashion as she gets dressed for the Met. Marie and MJ are questioning the hierarchies of who the family - and those around them - defers to. Is North being a brat or is she a creative with valid criticisms? Why do the Kardashians have so much respect for the traditional power structures in place around them? In a world where the KarJenners have posited themselves as world dominators, who gets to criticise the Kardashians and why is Kourtney so keen for it to be her?Catch up with season two of our Kardashian podcast series! We've teamed up with the genius behind Kardashian Kolloquium, MJ Corey, and her sister Marie, to breakdown the world of The Kardashians week by week.We've also introduced a new membership tier for fans of the pod. Support the podcast here! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Nov 20, 2023 • 46min
Live At the Barbican: How Feminism And Climate Change Are Irrevocably Linked
In an extra special live episode in collaboration with Barbican, we invited our art history columnist Zara Aftab to host a conversation with artist Rene Matic and journalist Diyora Shadijanova exploring their exhibition RE/SISTERS: A Lens on Gender and Ecology. The trio discuss the ways categorisation has diminished our connection to nature, the growing intersectionality of feminism relating to the climate and the importance of community care.You can visit the exhibition here: https://www.barbican.org.uk/ReSistersSupport our work and become a Polyester Podcast member <3Order Ione's book, Poor Little Sick Girls, here!Have an opinion and want to be featured on an upcoming episode? We want to hear from YOU! Leave a review, send us your thoughts on this episode to ione@polyesterzine.com, or drop us a DM on Instagram Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Nov 16, 2023 • 29min
Dispatches From The Kardashian Simulacrum: Tristan's Apology Tour
What is there to day? There’s an apology tour to squeeze out what’s left of the scandals. Then a lot of time being spent creating more structures and storylines about Kim working constantly, so we’re gonna show her being tired. What does that mean though? Why do we care? A way for The Kardashians to show us a version of true slices of life - the busy reality of trips to New York, meetings, appearances, disorientation at Tiffany's. We know though, smokes and mirrors, it's an approximation of the actuality of her busy life - let’s face it, a helicopter trip from Manhattan to Brooklyn. We don’t not have as many luxury hours in the day as The Kardashian’s. And again (and again) we see what they want to rise to the surface and stay there, we see the long game - in years but realistically (and dreadfully) in centuries. Catch up with season two of our Kardashian podcast series! We've teamed up with the genius behind Kardashian Kolloquium, MJ Corey, and her sister Marie, to breakdown the world of The Kardashians week by week.We've also introduced a new membership tier for fans of the pod. Support the podcast here!This piece was recorded during the 2023 SAG-AFTRA strikes. Without the labor of the actors currently on strike, the television series being mentioned here wouldn't exist. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Nov 13, 2023 • 29min
Why The Internet Hates 'This Is Not Your Mother's Mean Girls'
It's finally here: The trailer for the movie of the musical of the movie Mean Girls, but the promotion for 'Not your mother's Mean Girls' has the generations united in disdain. Why did they say that? And why is Regina George wearing combats? This week Ione and Gina are discussing nostalgia culture and the eroding of tweenhood.A statement by journalists: We condemn Israel's killing of journalists in Gaza and urge integrity in Western media coverage of Israel's atrocities against Palestinians.Support our work and become a Polyester Podcast member <3Order Ione's book, Poor Little Sick Girls, here!Have an opinion and want to be featured on an upcoming episode? We want to hear from YOU! Leave a review, send us your thoughts on this episode to ione@polyesterzine.com, or drop us a DM on Instagram Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Nov 9, 2023 • 33min
Dispatches From The Kardashian Simulacrum: Is Kim Copying Taylor Swift's PR Moves?
This episode they packed in a loooot of storylines. Lots of the Momager and with Kris needing to be everywhere at once, she finds new ways to do it. There’s questions about Kendall and talk of more Scaffolding to protect the privacy. And a bit more from the NPCs and how it feels to enter it and how it feels to be on the outside of it. Anand in the world of celebrity action this week we’ve got Kim and Taylor doing v similar PR moves and guess what, they both involve sports. But what we really wanna know? Did we see Kardashians at the Eras tour?Catch up with season two of our Kardashian podcast series! We've teamed up with the genius behind Kardashian Kolloquium, MJ Corey, and her sister Marie, to breakdown the world of The Kardashians week by week.We've also introduced a new membership tier for fans of the pod. Support the podcast here!This piece was recorded during the 2023 SAG-AFTRA strikes. Without the labor of the actors currently on strike, the television series being mentioned here wouldn't exist. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Nov 6, 2023 • 35min
Selena Gomez, Amy Schumer, & The Problem With Celebrities Getting Political Online
Why has Macklemore got a better take on war than Kier Starmer? This week Ione and Gina are taking a look at the culture surrounding celebrity opinions in relation to major political events. From back peddling to blindly sharing infographics, should we be turning to the feeds of the upper classes for news anyway?READ, A DANGEROUS CONFLATION: AN OPEN LETTER FROM JEWISH WRITERS, IN FULLACTIONABLE WAYS TO SUPPORT THE END TO GENOCIDE IN PALESTINE (UK)DEMAND A CEASEFIRE IN GAZA (US)Support our work and become a Polyester Podcast member <3Order Ione's book, Poor Little Sick Girls, here!Have an opinion and want to be featured on an upcoming episode? We want to hear from YOU! Leave a review, send us your thoughts on this episode to ione@polyesterzine.com, or drop us a DM on Instagram Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Nov 2, 2023 • 31min
Dispatches From The Kardashian Simulacrum: Is this Real Drama?
What stood out to you sisters? Fake drama on the show? Could they ever?There’s the relevance of incredibly empty and fluffy episodes when so much is happening outside of the show. A very tame Palm Springs for easter trip, some trouble in the grey gardens and it’s clearer than ever the show is just a bunch of scaffolding to shield the sisters from their reality. Kim tells the fam about her new role in AHS, there’s a humble brag - oh she loves taking on a challenge. Our sisters speculate on the impacts of the strike on Kim’s delivery of her new acting role and ultimately, why are we taking this at face value? Will there won’t there be a podcast? If there is, we’ll pick that up on the next episode of this podcast. See you there xxCatch up with season two of our Kardashian podcast series! We've teamed up with the genius behind Kardashian Kolloquium, MJ Corey, and her sister Marie, to breakdown the world of The Kardashians week by week.We've also introduced a new membership tier for fans of the pod. Support the podcast here!This piece was recorded during the 2023 SAG-AFTRA strikes. Without the labor of the actors currently on strike, the television series being mentioned here wouldn't exist. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Oct 30, 2023 • 31min
Why Do Women Love Being Redpilled?
Is the dirtbag left just conservatism and facism in a pretty outfit? More and more women are joining the alt-right under the guise of irony, playing a crucial part in the widening of political divides and making bank by broadcasting their bigoted opinions. With tradwifes going mainstream and shock-politics podcasts drawing in hundreds of thousands of listeners; Ione and Gina are examining what it takes for women to be indoctrinated into a movement that exists to belittle them.Support our work and become a Polyester Podcast member <3Order Ione's book, Poor Little Sick Girls, here!Have an opinion and want to be featured on an upcoming episode? We want to hear from YOU! Leave a review, send us your thoughts on this episode to ione@polyesterzine.com, or drop us a DM on Instagram Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Oct 26, 2023 • 20min
Dispatches From The Kardashian Simulacrum: The Goal is Always to Expand
First things first, a famous well loved . . . cat. In all the unreal-ness of the reality you can’t get more real than a cat, and a hiss. We’re used to the family FaceTiming to name drop - but this time the person on the other end is an important player in The Kardashian effort - the goal is always to expand. And we go behind the latest campaign, SKIMS soccer, with a live reaction from the sisters There's a light dive in American Horror Story, and force of will. Back with the family there’s a will they won’t they, live anaesthesia (wow) and the reality, basically, that the show is just collective tissue for the brands.Catch up with season two of our Kardashian podcast series! We've teamed up with the genius behind Kardashian Kolloquium, MJ Corey, and her sister Marie, to breakdown the world of The Kardashians week by week.We've also introduced a new membership tier for fans of the pod. Support the podcast here!This piece was recorded during the 2023 SAG-AFTRA strikes. Without the labor of the actors currently on strike, the television series being mentioned here wouldn't exist. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Oct 22, 2023 • 32min
Doja Cat & The Problem With People Pandering to Edgelord Celebrities
It seems impossible to go a week without Doja Cat stirring up a new controversy; from sporting a tshirt featuring an alt-right figurehead, to appearing in racist chatrooms and isolating her fanbase. As her behaviour appears to veer away from simple trolling and towards an actual endorsement of alt-right views, Ione and Gina are digging into why we continue to pander to celebrities that act in ways we don't agree with. From parasocial relationships and whether controversy helps or hinders celebrities, to what it means to be red-pilled and the conspiracy theories that emerge surrounding contentious figures. Support our work and become a Polyester Podcast member <3Order Ione's book, Poor Little Sick Girls, here!Have an opinion and want to be featured on an upcoming episode? We want to hear from YOU! Leave a review, send us your thoughts on this episode to ione@polyesterzine.com, or drop us a DM on Instagram Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.