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Talk ’90s to me

Talk ’90s to me

Podmasters 48 Episodes Jul 27, 2026

Diving deep into a wild decade of chaos, creativity and hedonism – from Oasis to ‘Friends’, from grunge to girl power, from Kate Moss to alcopops to ‘Trainspotting’ and beyond. Join award-winning Observer journalist and Smash Hits graduate Miranda Sawyer as she meets the people who were really there for the decade of Cool Britannia, Cantona and the Chemical Generation. Talk ’90s To Me is a Podmasters production.

Episodes

Primal Scream! – Bobby Gillespie on ’90s rock, rave and getting loaded (and having a good time)
Primal Scream! – Bobby Gillespie on ’90s rock, rave and getting loaded (and having a good time) Jul 27, 2026 3912 Diving deep into all things ’90s… Primal Scream began the decade by smashing indie rock into acid house. Their euphoric classic Screamadelica made everyone briefly believe in a happier, kinder, more disco-psychedelic Britain. But there’s more to the Scream than Movin’ On Up and their late ’90s masterpieces Vanishing Point and XTRMNTR – now re-released as part of the “Bunker Trilogy”  –&n
Tony Hawk, RaD magazine, MTV and more – the rebirth of SKATING
Tony Hawk, RaD magazine, MTV and more – the rebirth of SKATING Jul 20, 2026 4371 Diving deep into all things ’90s… In 1978, skate died for good. Skateparks closed, toys went to landfill, boards gathered cobwebs and Tony Hawk couldn’t pay his bills. But then a new wave of skaters swapped the vert for the street, new fashion brands and magazines like RaD (Read and Destroy) and Thrasher were born, and skate culture began to take over the world. When an older, maybe less coo
Godfather of Britpop! – Producer Stephen Street on Blur, The Cranberries, Morrissey and more
Godfather of Britpop! – Producer Stephen Street on Blur, The Cranberries, Morrissey and more Jul 13, 2026 4032 Diving deep into all things ’90s… If you wanted the Britpop sound* you called Stephen Street – the legendary record producer, musician and band-wrangler who brought out the magic in Blur’s Parklife and The Great Escape, two colossal Cranberries albums, and Britpop classics from Sleeper, Catatonia and Shed Seven. Oh and before that he engineered a little-known record called Meat is Murder by T
ELIS JAMES of BBC 5Live – “Manics, Super Furries, terrible shoes and MY ’90s”
ELIS JAMES of BBC 5Live – “Manics, Super Furries, terrible shoes and MY ’90s” Jul 6, 2026 3990 Diving deep into all things ’90s… Stand-up comic, actor, prolific podcaster, 5 Live fixture and proud ’90s kid Elis James has led a hectic life, from playing in indie bands in his mum’s wedding dress to selling out the London Palladium. Today he’s here to talk about his ’90s – from his burgeoning obsession with music and the music press as a teenager to the real (read: not so great) fashion of the
Clueless! Why this ’90s classic is still the best teen film of all time
Clueless! Why this ’90s classic is still the best teen film of all time Jun 29, 2026 3200 Diving deep into all things ’90s. Observant, razor-sharp, and totally uncynical, there’s a reason why Clueless has stood the test of time. Often referred to as the best teen film ever, it takes Jane Austen’s Emma and transplants her into the plastic-chic world of 90s Beverly Hills. At its centre is Cher Horowitz played by Alicia Silverstone, a blissfully unaware teenager who – while desperate to i
Paula Yates – The life, loves and tragedy of a Big Breakfast superstar
Paula Yates – The life, loves and tragedy of a Big Breakfast superstar Jun 22, 2026 4963 Diving deep into all things ’90s. Big Breakfast presenter, tabloid icon and 50% of THE rock power couple, Paula Yates was one of the most fascinating and complicated figures of the 1990s. A journalist, presenter, style icon and gossip column fixture, she helped redefine celebrity culture with her unconventional Big Breakfast interviews. Her high-profile marriage to Bob Geldof, and later relationsh
Select Magazine – How the ’90s greatest music mag launched Britpop and reinvented Glastonbury
Select Magazine – How the ’90s greatest music mag launched Britpop and reinvented Glastonbury Jun 15, 2026 3682 Diving deep into all things ’90s. Not many images epitomise Britpop more than Suede’s Brett Anderson in front of a Union Jack with “Yanks go home!” emblazoned across his chest. Suede were not happy… but the readers of Select Magazine – the delinquent lovechild of Smash Hits and NME – loved it. In-your-face, colourful, and never taking itself too seriously, Select brought Oasis, Reeves & Mortimer,
Buffy the Vampire Slayer! – How a surprise monster hit redefined horror
Buffy the Vampire Slayer! – How a surprise monster hit redefined horror Jun 5, 2026 3919 This episode was recorded prior to the sad death of the brilliant Anthony Head on 5 June 2026. Diving deep into all things ’90s. Fangs for the memory! Buffy the Vampire Slayer began life as a teen horror-comedy film that came and went in 1992 with barely any impact. But five years later, creator Joss Whedon brought Buffy back for television, casting Sarah Michelle Gellar in the lead role and som
Cash, cocaine and chaos – The mad, bad ’90s music biz with author John Niven
Cash, cocaine and chaos – The mad, bad ’90s music biz with author John Niven Jun 1, 2026 3699 Diving deep into all things ’90s. The music business’s last hurrah of excess, extravagance and super-colossal expense accounts came in the ’90s – and John Niven was in the front row as an A&R man* at era-defining label London Records. His experiences of trying to sign the next big thing in a cloud of money and “stimulants” became the cult book and movie Kill Your Friends (the British American Psyc
Showgirls – Worst film of the ’90s or misunderstood gem?
Showgirls – Worst film of the ’90s or misunderstood gem? May 25, 2026 4077 Diving deep into all things ’90s. Paul Verhoeven’s camp, deranged, Vegas-based “erotic drama” Showgirls was a $45 million Hollywood gamble that became one of the biggest box office flops of the decade. Nominated for 16 Razzies, it got its lead actress Elizabeth Berkeley effectively blacklisted for almost 20 years. But thirty years later, things look very different. Once dismissed as pure camp exc
From Queen to Mogwai – John Robins on his ’90s music journey
From Queen to Mogwai – John Robins on his ’90s music journey May 18, 2026 3785 Diving deep into all things ’90s. John Robins was a child at the start of the ’90s and eighteen by the end of it. He talks through his early obsession with Freddie Mercury and Queen’s ‘90s releases, his controversial non-uniform day outfits and how his music taste evolved to the likes of Mogwai and Godspeed You! Black Emperor. Plus, he discusses his new book Thirst, which is out now.  Buy Thirst
Prozac Nation! – How one grunge-era depression memoir changed everything
Prozac Nation! – How one grunge-era depression memoir changed everything May 11, 2026 3549 Diving deep into all things ’90s… Elizabeth Wurtzel’s groundbreaking grunge-era memoir of depression, medication and alienation Prozac Nation divided opinion like few books ever have. How did it become the book of a generation? Does it stand up now? Did Wurtzel reinvent an old genre or start a new one? And would Lena Dunham’s Girls exist without it? Miranda Sawyer is joined by Sian Pattenden, cult

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