Pairings

This week, Amile & Phoebe step into the artisanal streets of Crouch End to discuss Josh Silver’s Fruit Fly. They discuss the novel’s satirical look at North London’s liberal intelligentsia — from decanted supermarket hummus to distressed mirrors and Reddit writing formulas.At the centre of this world, where authenticity feels carefully curated, is Mallory Maddox. She is an author who attempts to escape her writers block & domestic dissatisfaction by appropriating the story of Leo (a young, vulnerable and homeless queer man).They interrogate the line between allyship and exploitation. They also explore the less visible power dynamics than can occur within marriage and close familial relationships.This episode pairs well with:Yellowface by R F KuangI Am Helen (Channel 4, 2026), dir. by Dominic SavageYou Can See Everything (2026), dir. by Nathan FielderAn effaciously written celebrity profile in a weekly women's mag.Learning how to cry on demand.A cheeky New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc picked up from Waitrose.Happy listening,A&P Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In their latest sit-down, Amile & Phoebe turn their attention to Clarissa, the Esiri brothers' star-studded adaptation of Virginia Woolf's Mrs Dalloway.They explore why they connected more deeply with the screen adaptation than with Woolf's original text. As in the novel, we follow Clarissa over the ourse of a day as she prepares for an evening soirée. Through this, we revisit unresolved feelings, old crushes and a chemistry that endures across decades. Meanwhile, Aisha and Septemus bring a change of pace and poignant tenderness to the story.This episode pairs well with:Clarissa (2027), dir. Chuko Esiri & Arie EsiriPast Lives (2023), dir. Celine SongMrs Dalloway by Virginia WoolfUnexpectedly getting emotional over old photographs.A hibiscus gin sour, served with a squeeze of fresh lime.Happy listening,A&P Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week, Amile & Phoebe immerse themselves in Caleb Azumah Nelson’s prize-winning debut, Open Water. Against the fluid, sun-drenched backdrop of South London, they explore the novel’s exquisite depiction of Black love, emotional safety & the familiar dizzying sensations of falling in love for the first time.They contrast the intimate sanctuary built through shared pizza slices and held hands with the disorienting weight of public surveillance and everyday incivility. Drawing on bird theory and the Gottman Institute's concept of “bids for connection”, they consider the small, often overlooked gestures through which we ask to be loved.In a world that so often makes vulnerability feel dangerous, what does it take to let someone truly see you?This episode pairs well with:Open Water by Caleb Azumah NelsonForever by Judy BlumeRye Lane (2023) dir. by Raine Allen-MillerPointing out a bird to your partner, to see how they'll respond.Listening to love songs during your luteal phase.Happy listening,A&P Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ahead of Taika Waititi’s film adaptation, Amile & Phoebe step into the quiet, disconcerting world of Kazuo Ishiguro’s Klara and the Sun.Moving beyond the usual AI dystopia, they explore the commodification of childhood, the pressures of parental ambition and the complicated burden of maternal guilt. What happens when parents can buy their children every possible advantage, including a machine designed to love them? Or even replace them?Through Klara, an Artificial Friend (AF), the novel raises unsettling questions about grief, human uniqueness and the ethics of trying to replace a dying child. Along the way, we explore what happens when our most intimate spaces become transactional, and what happens when an artificial shop-window model become the only character left who is capable of genuine, unselfish care.This episode pairs well with:‘The Idiot’ by Fyoder DostoevskyThe Dispossessed by Ursula K. Le GuinLars and the Real Girl dir. Craig Gillespie (2007)A limoncello spritz, for your own equivalent of Klara’s solar powerGetting your Furby out of the attic, to re-experience the original AFHappy listening, A&P Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

we needed extra time to obsess over the artistic architecture of the drama. consider this your post-viewing debrief! we dive into the visual language, immersive framing, and prop details that bring this relationship's unraveling to life on the screen. from the subtle horror of domestic kitchen scenes to that rain-soaked diner reset, we examine how kristoffer borgli uses the camera to turn a private crisis into a masterclass on visual tension. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.