Tag: Hannah Witton

  • Becoming a Podcast Person

    Becoming a Podcast Person

    A million years late to the game, I have finally delved into the wonderful world of podcasts. I think there’s always been a lot of content out there that intrigued me but I never knew when exactly to listen to podcasts. I prefer working and writing in pin-drop silence, in my downtime or on the train I read, when I drive I sing and when I walk the dog I listen to music and *sometimes* pretend I’m in a OTT music video… I was pretty set in my ways and didn’t much like the idea of mixing those habits up.

    In the end, it took a podcast I couldn’t resist to finally get me to reassess when I could make time for podcasts. What was it? About Race with Reni Eddo-Lodge. I’ll get into the why and wherefore in a moment, but for me, About Race was a gateway drug into the world of podcasts. I tweeted asking for recommendations a few weeks ago, but please, let me know what else is good. For now though, here are the podcasts I’ve started with.

    (Oh, and if you’re interested, dog walking is now podcast time. It’s fine, I can do the music video thing in the car too).

    About Race – Reni Eddo-Lodge

    Earlier in the year I read Eddo-Lodge’s debut non-fiction book Why I’m No Longer Talking to White People About Race. You’ve probably heard of it because it’s been a huge success. It is brilliant. The history of race in the UK is long and complicated, rich and relevant, and I somehow got to university before it was ever really mentioned to me in an educational setting – that’s maddening.  While I loved Why I’m No Longer it left me wanting more… And then the podcast came along and was even better than the bloody book.

    https://twitter.com/renireni/status/994464605312311296

    About Race is a discussion about the racial history of the UK from the ‘recent past’ to now with political, cultural and academic guests who explore the ins and outs of key events in British race relations, how we can learn from disasters, repeat success stories and so much more. Guests range from Akala to Lily Allen’s mum Alison Owen, Diane Abbott to Gabby Edlin, Owen Jones to Meera Syal, Laurie Penny to Nish Kumar. It really is amazing and is essential listening if you want to better understand 2018 Britain.

    Here’s hoping a second series will be coming soon!

    My Dad Wrote a Porno – Jamie Morton, James Cooper & Alice Levine

    Surprise to no one, when I mentioned I was dabbling in the world of podcasts, this was recommended to me by a number of people, I can’t imagine why… I’ve known about it for years but I’ve always been intimidated by the fear of never being able to catch up. Again, surprise to no one, catching up hasn’t been that difficult – how could it be when it’s so funny? My Dad Wrote a Porno is pretty well-known now (they’re doing live shows at the Albert Hall) but in case anyone doesn’t know the premise; Jamie’s father, “Rocky Flintstone,” has self-published his erotica Belinda Blinks. Jamie and his friends then rinse the novels on an extraordinarily popular podcast. What’s not to love?

    Banging Book Club – Hannah Witton, Lucy Moon & Leena Norms

    While I’m not a book club fan myself, there was no way I could avoid a podcast on books about sex. I’ve just been dipping in and out of this one as and when I’ve read the books they cover. So far, I’d say it’s pretty banging.

    Project Pleasure – Anouszka & Frankie

    Having followed Project Pleasure on Twitter for a while, when I finally opened up to podcasts it was at the top of my list. I’ve really enjoyed what I’ve heard so far – sex positive conversations where female pleasure is a priority. Sex educator Alix Fox features occasionally, as they discuss sex ed, porn, masturbation, sexuality, periods and lots more of the good stuff.

    Unexpected Fluids – Alix Fox & Riyadh Khalaf

    This one is much less intimidating because I actually found it around the time it came out (recently) so there’s not as much pressure to catch up. It’s a podcast about bad sex – again, right up my street isn’t it? So far, the first couple of episodes have been, as the title would suggest, more about icky/sticky/funny sex than the depressingly painful sexual chit chat I spend so much time talking about, which is a much needed break. Alix Fox is one of the hosts and Hannah Witton features, suggesting that the world of British sex podcasts is a rather small one. This does mean you occasionally get the odd identical anecdote.

    My Gilmore Girls inspired mantra for dating is: “every bad date is a good anecdote for the next,” and Unexpected Fluids applies this to sex. Except it’s more, “every bad hook up is a good anecdote for a BBC podcast.” Standard.

    Ctrl Alt Delete with Emma Gannon

    I won’t lie, most of my motivation for this podcast came from the fact that Dawn O’Porter features on multiple occasions and I love her. Reni Eddo-Lodge also features but I’m yet to listen to that episode. The talk with O’Porter that I’ve listened to so far, was particularly interesting to me because like in the more personal episodes of About Race, there’s a lot of talk about freelancing and I need as much advice as I can get. All the conversations about going freelance, from this podcast, About Race and the one below, have been really morale boosting which is so refreshing when so many people tell you, “you’re totally doomed.”

    https://instagram.com/p/Bf0rOlcH7Fu/

    In Good Company with Otegha Uwagba

    Again, you might’ve heard of Uwagba because of her hugely successful “Little Black Book” – a career handbook for creative working women. She’s also the founder of Women Who. Her book is still on my TBR for now, but I was led to her podcast by About Race, which signal boosts other great podcasts at the end of each episode. Again, I’m here for the freelance chat, but it’s also great to hear real, gritty, serious and amazing success stories from women in creative businesses.

    https://www.instagram.com/p/BexpyuKHjjD/?taken-by=oteghauwagba

     

     

  • Non-Fiction Reads 2017

    Non-Fiction Reads 2017

    Shortly after I made the decision to name this blog Fictitiously Hilary I suddenly became aware that I was in a non-fiction phase. Smart thinking Webb. The phase came to somewhat of a startling halt in the last couple of months where the escapism benefits of fiction have been required. Having said that, non-fiction has still accounted for about a quarter of my 2017 reads – so I think the books in question deserve a blog!

    At present, my non-fiction TBR (to be read) pile does not exist, which is a really nice position to be in going into Christmas and the New Year.  There are several reasons why I’m happy about this, which I’ll explain at the end of this blog, but let’s go through my 2017 Non-Fiction Reads first, shall we?

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    Scrappy Little Nobody – Anna Kendrick

    As I’ve badgered on about before, I have an unexplainable love for actresses’ autobiographies and Scrappy Little Nobody was no exception. I’ve always been a fan of the sarcastic Anna Kendrick and it was nice to have some insight about her extraordinary childhood and remarkably ordinary young-adulthood. Her discussion about revealing magic numbers at the beginning of relationships was a high point for me. My review of SLN can be found here.

    Fifty Shades of Feminism – Lisa Appignanesi, Rachel Holmes & Susue Orbach

    I’ve read a few feminist essay collections and this is definitely one of my favourites. The discussions are intersectional as they cover, like the title suggests, the many shades of feminism that can, do and must exist. I also talk about FSOF here.

    Hunger Makes me a Modern Girl – Carrie Brownstein

    I still think I got this book by accident, thinking it was something else, but it was a happy accident. I really enjoyed Carrie’s life story and the positive messages she takes from it. My review is here.

    Animal – Sara Pascoe – Hilary’s 2017 Non-Fiction Fave

    Gah, I just loved this book. Being able to write about evolutionary and social factors of human sexuality and relationships in a funny, readable and understandable way is a rare talent and Sara Pascoe does it so well. I hope I can write a book like this one day! I mention this in here.

    Doing It – Hannah Witton

    Like I said in my review, I didn’t learn anything new in Doing It but it’s a book I wish I could have had as a teenage girl. If young people had access to a book like this I think they would grow up with a much healthier, sex positive and safe attitude towards sex.

    Girl Up – Laura Bates

    I’ve followed Laura Bates and the Everyday Sexism movement for years and while I did enjoy some parts of Girl Up a lot, like Doing It, I didn’t learn much but would have appreciated having it when I was younger.

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    Wishful Drinking – Carrie Fisher
    Shockaholic – Carrie Fisher
    The Princess Diarist – Carrie Fisher

    The late great Carrie Fisher dominated the non-fiction reads I took to South America on my Kindle last summer and I couldn’t have taken a better companion. My love of Star Wars and actresses’ autobiographies has nothing to do with why I love Carrie’s writing. It is so unique, so funny and so dark in a really intimate and brave way. Only makes you even sadder that Carrie and Debbie Reynolds are no longer with us. WEEP. (P.S. I saw the Last Jedi last week and, unsurprisingly, Carrie was amazing).

    Curious Pursuits – Margaret Atwood

    I bought this book years ago and only read the couple of chapters relevant to my coursework but I finally got around to reading it cover to cover this year… and I didn’t quite make it cover to cover. The first two thirds of the book I loved, but the last one I skimmed through the essays and articles I found the most interesting. It’s weird, with Atwood’s stuff I’m either totally bowed over and in love or a little “meh”. Hearing her talk at New Scientist Live this year was a definite highlight though!

     

    Radical Hope – Letters of Love and Dissent in Dagnerous TImes – Carolina de Robertis

    I read this as I was recovering from the disappointing laparoscopy in August and it was really nice to distract myself from the horrors of my uterus to the horrors of Trump, mostly because the letters in the book are written with such a profound sense of hope that thing’s will be OK, good even. If you want your faith in humanity restored, this is the one.

    Where Am I Now? – Mara Wilson

    Here we go again with another actress’ autobiography… except Mara Wilson is so much more than just the girl who played Matilda. This book is testament to her talent as a comic and a writer. Really enjoyed it. She is also ace on Twitter if you weren’t aware.

    Sweetening the Pill – Holly Grigg-Spall

    I wrote a blog discussing my mixed reaction to this book. While at the time it really motivated me and made me realise that I don’t have to feel guilty for not liking the pill anymore, I do think it’s important to be sceptical about this subject – to ask more questions. It’s hugely sensitive and it would be foolish to write-off the huge benefits hormonal contraception has offered the world, but equally foolish to accept that it’s the best we can do.

    Sex at Dawn – Christopher Ryan and Cacilda Jethá

    I was so excited for this book – science in action, learning about human sexuality and the flaws with it, but I was actually really disappointed. Like I said with Animal making these topics understandable and enjoyable is a hard task, one that I’m not sure this book achieves. However, I did enjoy the evolutionary observations between humans and bonobos when it comes to sex and relationships.

    The Female Eunuch – Germaine Greer

    As I’m sure you can tell by this point, my non-fiction hype had really distinguished and The Female Eunuch didn’t help. I was, again, really excited to read this, as I’d been promised a book that had awoken a generation of women to the feminist cause. I wish I had read it a few years earlier because so many of the ideas seemed a bit samey, which is obviously because the book, and Greer herself, inspired much of what has been written since. Yet the stuff since has developed, and those developments are vital.

    Unfinished Business – Anne-Marie Slaughter

    I really didn’t like this book at first. Slaughter repeatedly addresses the privileged point she is writing from but then continues to write from it and some of the issues discussed seem a little trivial because of that perspective. However, later on in the book she makes a few interesting points about art creation and human creation, flexible work and freelancing, which was actually kind of insightful. But I still wish I had a pound for every time she writes “my Atlantic article”…

    My early frustrations with this last read further irritated my feelings towards all the non-fiction I’ve read this year. What’s my problem with it? For the most part, it’s all really white and fairly heteronormative. I think it’s understandable to write from your perspective, but to only read from that same perspective is small-minded and, quite frankly, boring. So in 2018 I hope my non-fiction reads will be more intersectional in every way possible – we can’t change the world if we don’t escape our own little bubble, can we? Recommendations for 2018 are greatly appreciated!

    Let me know what you think by sharing, commenting, or getting in touch on Twitter or Instagram! 

  • Witton educates on sex without vilifying it – Review: Doing It

    Witton educates on sex without vilifying it – Review: Doing It

    I first came across Hannah Witton on YouTube some years ago, 2012/13 I think. I subscribed and watched occasionally, and thought her Hormone Diaries was such a great idea. While, I confess, I haven’t followed it as avidly as I wish I had, the beginning of it was remarkably similar to my own hormone experience, in fact I must go back and continue watching to see just how similar it has been.

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    A week or two ago I was reading Animal (brilliant, highly recommend) by comedian Sara Pascoe when I saw Witton tweet out a video of hers featuring Animal  in the thumbnail. I watched and was fascinated to find that our sex related bookshelves were quite similar. This particular video was part of the promo for Witton’s debut book Doing It – I had no idea she was writing a book! The book was out at the end of the week so I preordered it.

    An Adolescent’s Guide to Sex and Sexuality

    Doing It is a super refreshing guide to sex. I say ‘guide’ very loosely, a bit like the Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy except it’s an Adolescent’s Guide to Sex and Sexuality. It covers everything from LGBTQ+ relationships to contraception, body confidence to consent, masturbation to sexting.

    For the most part it is all written by Witton, but there are many contributive essays by guest writers. I think my favourite thing about the entire book is her repeat insistence on readers to ‘check your privilege’. It is such an important message, and Witton explains it so clearly yet eloquently that there’s no doubt about what she means. She uses her privilege to promote the voices of others, as the guest writers discuss very personal issues from situation specific perspectives. While in Doing It this is specific to LGBTQ+ and other sex specific scenarios, the mantra of ‘check your privilege’ is brilliant.

    What stands out for me with Doing It is how sex positive it is. The book deals with everything one expects from a ‘let’s talk about sex’ genre of book; STIs, consent, contraceptives and the nitty gritty biology, but unlike other books of its kind it also talks about how good sex can be. Rather than just the ‘don’t have sex, you will die’ narrative young people have drilled into them (pardon the pun) Witton instead proposes: sex is great, fun and exciting, don’t do these things, try out these other things, off you go and enjoy yourself on your own or with another consenting individual(s).

    It’s not patronising either, which is nice. It explains almost everything in a readable and simple tone, yet in places, such as consent and sexting, it explains the exact details of the law, so everyone can understand where the legal, not just moral, lines are – fab!

    There could be more said about everything in the book (Hannah, if you write another, hit me up for a little more about menstruation?) but for the most part it’s a pretty extensive handbook on sexuality, for everyone. Plus, if there had been more detail there would have been less room for Witton’s cracking anecdotes, and no one wants that.

    I can’t say I learnt a whole lot of new information, but I wish I could have read something like Doing It when I was 15/16/17. I live in some sort of weird student bubble where I don’t seem to know anyone between the ages of 1 and 18, but if I knew a teenager I would definitely give them this book.

    The beauty of books like Doing It and Pascoe’s Animal is that they are brutally honest, inspiringly detailed but, most importantly, accessible. They cut the crap of scientific and legal jargon and make sexuality understandable.

    Witton talks about hoping one day being able to contribute to a national curriculum for sex-ed (same, Hannah). I can’t help feeling that if Doing It became compulsory reading for all year 9s in the UK, we would see a generation develop with a far healthier attitude to their own bodies, the bodies of their peers and lovers, and a generally healthier attitude towards sex.

    Top work, Witton.

    4.5/5

    P.S. bravo to both Witton and Pascoe for their sketches of human anatomy *leads round of applause*.