If I Speak - podcast cover

If I Speak

Novara Medianovaramedia.com
Ash Sarkar and Moya Lothian-McLean sort the personal from the political, tackle listener dilemmas and air their opinions on the frustrations of modern life.
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Episodes

27: I’m in big trouble! Your dilemmas answered

Ash and Moya dedicate a whole show to answering your dilemmas! Featuring a woman questioning her age-gap relationship, an infuriating parent who won’t budge on politics, a ghosted lover plotting her revenge, a loner who wants to start socialising, and a low-earner who resents her rich friends. You’ve only got a few weeks to grab your ticket for our live show at the London Podcast Festival on 15th September, with a very special guest… available from kingsplace.co.uk . Email your missed connection...

Aug 19, 20241 hr 4 min

26: I’m so sorry, I’m English

Moya has a big theory for Ash – but the script goes out the window when they start talking about the far-right violence engulfing the UK and unpacking their own emotional reactions to English racism. After that: playing matchmaker with the first batch of Missed Connections. Content note: This episode includes discussion of racist language and violence. Remember, we’ll be at the London Podcast Festival on 15th September with a very special guest. Grab your tickets now from kingsplace.co.uk . Emai...

Aug 13, 20241 hr 12 min

25: I hate the way that you walk, I hate the way that you talk

Prompted by Kendrick’s anthemic Drake diss, Ash claims we’re living through the summer of the hater. But what does it mean to hate so hard? Plus: a listener who feels rejected by her English in-laws. Email your missed connections and dilemmas to ifispeak@novaramedia.com Got your tickets for the If I Speak live show yet? We’re at the London Podcast Festival on 15 September. Tickets available from Kings Place now. Music by Matt Huxley....

Aug 06, 20241 hr 14 min

24: Help! What’s my purpose in life?

Moya and Ash butt heads over the lure of individualism and living a political life. Plus: Moya enters her busy-body era with a new segment, Missed Connections! Tell us about the brief encounters you just can’t shake, and we will hunt them down and make them bae. Email us your missed connections with as much detail as you can recall, and send those – and your dilemmas – to ifispeak@novaramedia.com Come and see If I Speak live at the London Podcast Festival on 15 September! Tickets available from ...

Jul 30, 20241 hr 10 min

23: Surviving your Saturn return

Moya and Ash debate the power of astrology and explain how they survived their ‘Saturn return’ era. Plus: Ash’s best anti-procrastination techniques. Come and see If I Speak live at the London Podcast Festival on 15 September! Tickets available from Kings Place now. Got a problem? Tell us: ifispeak@novaramedia.com Music by Matt Huxley.

Jul 23, 20241 hr 5 min

22: How will I know if I really want kids? w/ Renay Richardson

Ash and Moya are joined by podcast entrepreneur and single mum Renay Richardson to talk about the realities of solo parenting, from being blocked from adopting to the shortage of Black sperm donors. Plus: a harrowing faux pas. Come and see If I Speak live at the London Podcast Festival on 15 September! Tickets available from Kings Place now. Got a problem? Tell us: ifispeak@novaramedia.com Music by Matt Huxley....

Jul 16, 20241 hr 22 min

21: What does it take to be effortlessly cool?

Ash has a theory of cool that involves nonchalance, style and timing – but Moya’s not so sure. Plus, advice for one listener who wants respect in their situationship, and someone dealing with a newcomer to the family. Come and see If I Speak live at the London Podcast Festival on 15 September! Tickets available from kingsplace.co.uk now. Got a problem? Tell us: ifispeak@novaramedia.com Music by Matt Huxley.

Jul 09, 202454 min

20: Skinny is back in fashion. FFS!

The return of low rise jeans was a harbinger of something worse: being seriously thin is back in fashion. But why now? Moya and Ash have a Big Theory. Plus: the brown girl moisturising protocol. CW: weight, dieting, eating disorders, cosmetic procedures. Come and see If I Speak live at the London Podcast Festival on 15 September! Tickets available from kingsplace.co.uk now. Got a problem? Tell us: ifispeak@novaramedia.com Music by Matt Huxley

Jul 02, 202456 min

19: We’re boiling with rage

Moya has a big theory about why everyone’s on such a short fuse these days and Ash responds to a listener with a debilitating crush. Plus: science or magic? We’re going to Glastonbury! Moya will be joined by Shon Faye and a LEGENDARY special guest a live recording of the show, and will host two Radical Connections sessions to get you matched up. Find us on the Nomad stage in Shangri-La. Got a problem? Tell us: ifispeak@novaramedia.com *Gossip, elevated.* Music by Matt Huxley...

Jun 25, 20241 hr 2 min

18: Why does everything feel so disposable?

Ash presents a big theory about disposability and social shame prompted by a wardrobe clearout, and Moya responds to a dilemma about dating while living with parents. Plus: spot remedies. Come and see If I Speak live at the London Podcast Festival on 15 September! Tickets available from kingsplace.co.uk now. Got a problem? Tell us: ifispeak@novaramedia.com *Gossip, elevated.* Music by Matt Huxley...

Jun 18, 202458 min

17: Feeling seen w/ Nicola Dinan

Moya and Ash talk to Nicola Dinan, author of Bellies, about why we crave external validation yet hate to be perceived. Plus: advice for a listener who got engaged while drunk. Come and see If I Speak live at the London Podcast Festival on 15 September! Tickets available from kingsplace.co.uk now. Got a problem? Tell us: ifispeak@novaramedia.com *Gossip, elevated.* Music by Matt Huxley

Jun 11, 202454 min

16: How do you recover after betrayal? w/ Chimene Suleyman

Moya and Ash talk to Chimene Suleyman, author of The Chain, about uncovering her ex-boyfriend’s secrets and why society lets abusive men get away with it again and again. Plus: a listener needs help with their sexless relationship. Come and see If I Speak live at the London Podcast Festival on 15 September! Tickets available from kingsplace.co.uk now. Got a problem? Tell us: ifispeak@novaramedia.com *Gossip, elevated.* Music by Matt Huxley...

Jun 04, 20241 hr

15: Dissociation is my superpower

Does the body keep the score? Ash and Moya explore the border between grief and trauma and how to embrace being emotionally messy when disaster strikes. Plus: an “accidental incel” writes in. Got a problem? Tell us: ifispeak@novaramedia.com *Gossip, elevated.* Music by Matt Huxley

May 28, 20241 hr 5 min

14: What does it mean to live authentically? w/ Oisín McKenna

Ash and Moya talk to Evenings And Weekends author Oisín McKenna about living authentically, intense female friendships, and how financial precarity limits our self-exploration. Plus: compulsory heterosexuality and suspicious new boyfriends. Got a problem? Tell us: ifispeak@novaramedia.com *Gossip, elevated.* Music by Matt Huxley

May 21, 20241 hr 12 min

13: I’m the problem, it’s me

What’s the difference between tactics and standards? Ash explains with a Big Theory about how we behave in relationships. Moya brings a dilemma from an anxious people-pleaser. Plus, Myers-Briggs. Got a problem? Tell us: ifispeak@novaramedia.com *Gossip, elevated.* Music by Matt Huxley

May 14, 202453 min

12: How to be a good friend

Moya and Ash get deep and meaningful on the subject of true friendship, and help a listener who’s feeling weird about dating a “normie”. Plus: blame game pass-the-parcel. Got a problem? Tell us: ifispeak@novaramedia.com *Gossip, elevated.* Music by Matt Huxley.

May 07, 20241 hr 1 min

11: Help! My partner’s too posh

Ash and Moya answer a Mystery Question about what they’ll do on the left-wing commune of their dreams, before helping a listener deal with class envy in their dating life. Plus: The Tortured Poets Department. Got a problem? Tell us: ifispeak@novaramedia.com *Gossip, elevated.* Music by Matt Huxley.

Apr 30, 202455 min

10: Do I have to be nice to my friend’s partner?

Ash and Moya ask if honesty is the best policy when it comes to our friend’s partners, before tackling two dilemmas about unwanted friendship and non-monogamous marriage. Plus: an important new personality test. Catch Moya in conversation with Yomi Adegoke, author of The List, at Intelligence Squared in London on 29 April – use the code SPEAK25 for 25% off tickets. Got a problem? Tell us: ifispeak@novaramedia.com *Gossip, elevated.* Music by Matt Huxley....

Apr 23, 202452 min

09: Should you ever shag a Tory?

Ash and Moya tackle the politics of sex appeal in response to the show’s first ever Mystery Question, and respond to a listener struggling with guilt after cheating. Plus: things not say in bed. Catch Moya in conversation with Yomi Adegoke, author of The List, at Intelligence Squared in London on 29 April – use the code SPEAK25 for 25% off tickets. Got a problem? Tell us: ifispeak@novaramedia.com *Gossip, elevated.* Music by Matt Huxley....

Apr 16, 202450 min

08: How to cultivate optimism

Moya and Ash think about how to stay hopeful when the future looks bleak, and give advice to listener whose marriage is suffering from major communication issues. Plus: Cowboy Carter. Got a problem? Tell us: ifispeak@novaramedia.com *Gossip, elevated.* Music by Matt Huxley.

Apr 09, 202447 min

07: What do straight men know about dating?

Ash and Moya talk to Matt Kendall from The Love Cupboard podcast about how straight men perceive the women in their lives. Plus, a dilemma from a listener who’s been evicted by her friends’ parents. Got a problem? Tell us: ifispeak@novaramedia.com *Gossip, elevated.* Music by Matt Huxley.

Apr 02, 202454 min

06: Do you owe your parents anything?

Ash presents her big theory about chosen families and what to do when your best friend is having a baby. Moya shares two listener dilemmas: can you live in a different city to your partner? And do you owe your parents anything? Plus, the wisdom of skunkworks. Got a problem? Tell us: ifispeak@novaramedia.com *Gossip, elevated.* Music by Matt Huxley.

Mar 26, 202456 min

05: Are we trapped in a fantasy?

Moya is joined by a special guest, author and journalist Shon Faye, to work out the lure of political fantasies and advise a listener who’s feeling guilty about inheriting money. Plus: trust issues and love-bombing. Got a problem? Tell us: ifispeak@novaramedia.com *Gossip, elevated.* Music by Matt Huxley.

Mar 19, 202451 min

04: Can you teach an adult to have empathy?

Ash and Moya tackle a Big Theory about how we punish criminals and respond to a listener who doesn’t know how to end a situationship. Plus: what the hell are ‘energy vectors’? Got a problem? Tell us: ifispeak@novaramedia.com *Gossip, elevated.* Music by Matt Huxley.

Mar 12, 202441 min

03: The dating trap

Is there such a thing as a sexual marketplace? Moya and Ash debate the dating trap for straight women and respond to a listener who’s too tired from work to change their life. Plus, a quick round of Shag, Marry, Kill. Got a problem? Tell us: ifispeak@novaramedia.com *Gossip, elevated.* Music by Matt Huxley.

Mar 05, 202441 min

02: Is my long-distance relationship doomed?

Ash and Moya respond to a listener embarking on an LDR across the Irish border, and tackle Ash’s Intrusive Thought about her cat Moussa. Plus, Moya has the best way to lance an infatuation boil. Got a problem? Tell us: ifispeak@novaramedia.com *Gossip, elevated.* Music by Matt Huxley.

Feb 27, 202439 min

01: Should I give my mum an allowance?

Ash and Moya respond to a listener who’s struggling to support her mum financially and wonder why people are being weirdly hyper-sexual online. Plus: the most common misconception about Moya, and the story behind Ash’s Twitter handle. Got a problem? Tell us: ifispeak@novaramedia.com *Gossip, elevated.* Music by Matt Huxley.

Feb 20, 202442 min

Introducing: If I Speak

On If I Speak, Ash Sarkar and Moya Lothian-McLean tackle the world’s social dilemmas (and some of yours). Every other Tuesday we lay bare the weird stuff we can’t stop obsessing over, debate our wildest notions, and invite our smartest friends to help us wrestle with life’s big questions. From dating disorders to online etiquette, family feuds to career conundrums, the personal gets political on If I Speak. Starting 20 February. Got a problem? Tell us: ifispeak@novaramedia.com *Gossip, elevated....

Feb 19, 20241 min
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