| With the clocks going back this weekend, here’s something to fill the extra hour of darkness. Lelo’s bestselling Enigma Double Sonic, now on discount. Sleek, premium design that offers three times the fun – stimulation for your clitoris, G-spot and A-spot. Plus special 10% discount for early Black Friday.
[Use Code POPBITCHLELO10] |
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| “J-Lo gave me a passion for White Russians” – Alexandra Burke |
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| Issue 1208 Free newsletter every Thursday subscribe
Email stories to us hello@popbitch.com
* Media moguls (heart) poppers
* Pete’s horny namedrop tango
* PLUS: Saying sorry to Baddiel AGAIN |
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| >> Push the envelope << |
| A Perry for his thoughts |
| The Contrarian Prize took place in London last night.
Seeking “to recognise individuals in British public life who demonstrate independence, courage and sacrifice”, it was won by Maggie Oliver, the whistleblower in the Rochdale child sex abuse case.
Grayson Perry showed up, but stayed for only five minutes before walking out. Nobody knew why, but speculation among the crowd was that he was unimpressed it was an alcohol-free event, and that the hardest liquor on offer was pomegranate juice.
Thereby suggesting Grayson will indeed go to the opening of an envelope – as long as it’s sponsored by Dom P. |
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| Six months ago Capital FM gave its breakfast show to a proper radio DJ, Jordan North, rather than have a celeb nepo-baby host. It has since added almost half a million listeners. |
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| >> Jam for curry << |
| My everchanging foods |
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The furore over the Mail Online feature on Dame Maggie Smith at London restaurant Lemonia in the days before her death, which turned out not to be Dame Maggie Smith at all, hasn’t done much to damp down media celeb spotting across Britain.Yesterday the Wolverhampton Express & Star had a heartwarming tale of how Paul Weller “swapped The Jam for curry”, pictured at The Khans restaurant in the city.
As it became quickly apparent that Paul Weller doesn’t sport a blond bob and wasn’t actually the person pictured alongside the restaurateur, the story was swiftly taken down.
[See here] |
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| Worst named podcast in the world? Gary Kemp and Guy Pratts’s interviews with music stars…”Rockonteurs”. Found a rival in shitness? email hello@popbitch.com |
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| >> Big Questions << |
| Who’s asking what this week? |
| Which former newspaper mogul took pity on a fellow ex-magazine editor before their BBC TV Question Time appearance by offering him a sniff of poppers? Supposedly it helps the nerves and perks you up in front of the cameras. |
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| DAYMADE is a twice-weekly draw where you can win holidays, home renovations, cars and much more. Pick five lucky numbers and try and match for prizes. Join thousands of winners every week, rated 4.6-stars on Trustpilot! Get your first entry for free with code POPBITCH.
[More details and sign up here] |
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| >> Strictly professional << |
| Horny namedrop tango |
| TOWIE’s Pete Wicks seems to be this year’s Strictly contestant who got the unlucky “are they – aren’t they” tedious tabloid “love triangle” card assigned to them by the show’s publicity brains.Is Pete dating his dance partner Jowita Przystal? Or is he actually seeing Love Island publicity-hound, Maura Higgins?
Does anyone care? Probably not. And certainly not Pete, who seems incredibly fond of telling almost anyone he meets that he once “shagged Rita Ora”. |
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| Spotted at Harrogate parkrun the morning after his talk at the Literary festival – Ros Atkins. In spite of looking a little the worse for wear from it, he knocked out a 5k time most centrist Dads would be proud of. |
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| >> Our kid << |
| It’s in the genes |
The support for next year’s Oasis reunion tour is predictably vintage. This week it was announced Richard Ashcroft will be taking one of the slots – no surprise there.
Liam says that the reason the tour hasn’t booked younger, newer support acts is because “there’s levels to this game”.
Oasis will also be supported by Villanelle, a band fronted by Gene Gallagher. The youngest son of Liam, aged 23 and a quarter. |
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| From tomorrow (25th October) every one of the original A-Teens will be over 40. |
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| >> Re-rewind<< |
| The old tunes are the best |
| The excitement generated by the Oasis revival seems to have infected the whole UK music industry. There’s now a C-suite version of putting the band back together.
Darcus Beese and Ted Cockle used to run Island Records before leaving for pastures new. Darcus for the U.S; Ted to Hipgnosis.
Now, however, they’re the latest golden oldie remixed for the next generation, back together on a new label project.
And, as among their greatest hits they can point to Amy W, Mika, Jessie J, Keane, The Mumfords and Sugababes, maybe they’ve got a little more mileage left than the Gallaghers. |
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Popbitch can help make your brand look good. Honest. Check out the old Popbitch Pot Noodle karaoke night starring Tony Christie, Carol Decker, Bradley S Club, Nikki Big Brother and many more. On second thoughts, maybe don’t watch this, but do get in touch for a chat about your party, event, awayday, corporate quiz or promotion: hello@popbitch.com
[OMFG – Pot Idol 2010] |
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| >> Housing crisis << |
| Jenrick’s room rage |
| Ambition over self-awareness usually explains why largely unheralded politicians put themselves forward to be political party leader. But perhaps Robert Jenrick threW his hat in the ring for an even more basic reason.New Milton Keynes MP Chris Curtis wasn’t able to move into his parliamentary office until just recently – because Robert Jenrick was very slow to vacate it.
Post election, Jenrick was being shuffled from his really nice big office to one described as “tiny and shit”.
Win against Kemi, however, and his housing status is likely assured once more. |
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| Plays of P Diddy tracks on Spotify have surged 36% since his arrest. |
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| >> SOFTtalk<< |
| Pennywise, pound foolish |
| BBC cutbacks season is here again, and an early casualty is interview show HARDtalk.In budgetary meetings over the years HARDtalk was discussed but never seriously at risk, for two simple reasons. It costs very little to make, “a rounding error in the overall BBC News budget”. And that it was inconceivable for a serious news organisation not to have a long-form interview slot like this.
And yet, there it goes.
Flagship current affairs show Newsnight was also recently gutted to save cash, though show veterans do wonder how much these cuts and changes actually achieve. Journalists, filmmakers and producers did get canned but the guest appearance fee was raised from £75 to £450 to attract talking heads. So, less Mark Urban and more Kwasi Kwarteng.
Not sure who got the best end of these changes but definitely not the viewer.
More: Farewell HARDtalk
[An ex editor writes] |
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| Days after Donald Trump did a shift at McDonald’s, the company’s stock tanked and an e-coli outbreak has infected 49 people across 10 different states, with one death. |
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| >> The art of Baddiel << |
| Another story, another correction |
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Popbitch has been around for 20+ years, and at this stage we sometimes think: surely celebs can’t embarrass themselves any further?
Luckily, David Baddiel exists, proving there is no bottom to the world of cringe. David once requested a correction from us; instead of being at a gig “with friends, talking loudly”, he wanted it made clear he “watched about 5 songs, then, for a short period, went to sit in the back bar where it is, I believe, acceptable to talk.” And also, they weren’t just friends he was with. They were Jonathan Ross and Jane Goldman.
Now it’s the Guardian’s turn.
An article about children’s books had the audacity to report that David Baddiel’s books had been translated into 26 languages and sold over one million copies worldwide.
A correction was quickly issued, saying actually they’d been translated into thirty languages, and sold more than 2.5 million copies.
It also failed to mention how humble their author was, so presumably another correction coming soon. |
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| Keir Starmer described installing his new cat flap in a bomb-proof door as “a little difficult”. |
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| >> A nom dem special << |
| Not featuring Keith Weed |
| We’ve uncovered a treasure trove of “nominative determinism” classics over the years and, despite us assuming we must be reaching the end, you lot always deliver.
This week?
Third place: Paddington Cat Hospital in Sydney is run by the vet, Dr Melissa Catt.
Runner-Up: NHS England’s director for prevention and long-term conditions, who this week warned the world about the risk of vaping addiction is called Matt Fagg.
Winner: London criminal barrister, prosecutor and member of the Rape and Serious Sexual Offences panel – Huw Edwards. |
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| Novelist, Private Eye stalwart and all round brilliant writer, Adam Macqueen, has a new book of ghost stories out. He wrote us one for our old iPad magazine; The Wrong Teletubby, which leads off this scary collection. Get in time for Halloween. If you dare.
[BUY HERE] |
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| >> Hmmms << |
| Bright spots in the internet slop |
| Vermouth inspired by Rimini’s legendary Discoteca Paradiso?
[Italodisco]
90s clubbing with Gordon Ramsay
[Weirdly hipnotic]
Going undercover in the dark world of influencer marketing
[Brilliant read]
Why are otters raiding urban garden ponds?
[Thank you BBC]
Can music be central to Brit culture again?
[Read on Substack]
Before Right-Wing Ibiza was even a thing, C4’s landmark documentary on the White Isle’s club scene
[Historic]
Rory Gallagher’s old Fender Strat just sold at auction for getting on for a million quid
[Bargain]
A loving and deeply respectful recap of the best brand tributes on the death of Her Maj
[Thank you River Island and Ann Summers] |
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| Thanks to: Slackhack, RL,CW, DF, badgerbingo, sexualealing, AA, GS, D, NB, BobbiFleckmann, HB, Scarlett O’Harder, AM, P, z, Meat4Kemi, JW, theabominablehoman, GS, OH, deep_stoat |
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Old Jokes Home
I try to say “mucho” when I’m around my Spanish friends.
It means a lot to them.
Still Bored?
Jay Slater’s mother has slammed TV sleuth Mark Williams-Thomas for seeking publicity over her son’s death. Mrs S.. this goes back a long, long way…
[Read The Defective Inspector]
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