Introducing The Spill: That late night chat with friends, in podcast form

Have you ever had one of those days that screamed for a wine and chats sesh with your girlfriends?  Enter Image.ie’s new podcast, The Spill 

The Spill is hosted by our very own self-proclaimed agony aunts Sophie White and Rhona McAuliffe.  With a mix of discussion on current affairs, arts and culture and some healthy advice to our listeners, it’s the best place to unwind and deliberate the issues affecting Irish women today.

In light of the recent verdict of the Belfast rape trial, Rhona and Sophie began this week’s Spill chatting about rape culture and misogyny on a wider scale in Ireland. Sophie is shocked at some of the content of the Whatsapp messages exchanged in the rape trial, and wonders if her upbringing in co-ed schools contributed to her and her male friends’ positive perception of women, as opposed to those who regularly use such language. Rhona cites the “pornification” of culture we’re exposed to now more than ever as a crucial factor in rape culture and questions whether Irish men feel comfortable discussing sex. They both agree that “locker room talk” is never a valid excuse for using insulting language towards women.

Sophie has been chuffed all year long about her decision to minimise waste and (shock, horror) quit buying clothes/shoes/accessories for an entire year. For a serial impulsive shopper like her, it was a big leap to make but Sophie has made it work, thanks to her technique of “shopping her own wardrobe”. Rhona, on the other hand, finds the whole idea a little alien. Since she began working from home, she rarely feels the need to dress up and doesn’t view fashion and shopping as a “form of entertainment” like Sophie does. Is it dangerous to approach shopping as a hobby, or is it completely normal behaviour? And how does our love of ‘fast fashion’ affect our waste levels, which are having such a detrimental effect on the environment?

Rhona is Image.ie’s much-loved, resident agony aunt doling out weekly advice in her column Hit Me Up. This week, a woman in need of some advice didn’t just get Rhona’s help, she got Sophie’s too. Dissatisfied Customer from Wexford has been in a new relationship for nine months, and in almost every area, it’s going really well. But when it comes to sex, she and her boyfriend are not matching up. They only have sex in the doggy-style position, as he claims that this is the only way he can ejaculate, and there is no foreplay involved. This woman feels uncomfortable with the fact that her boyfriend won’t face her when he climaxes and has told him that she feels like “an object” during sex because of this. Can they come to a compromise, and save the relationship and their sex lives? Rhona and Sophie discuss the options.

Listen to the very first episode of The Spill on Soundcloud here: