Queen of Breakups: Love-Affair Friendships, Political Lesbianism & The Joy of Heartbreak with Rosie Wilby

Helloooo, and welcome to Season 8 of Mads World! You're about to listen to The Queen of Breakups: Love-Affair Friendships, Political Lesbianism & The Joy of Heartbreak Rosie Wilby!

This week I am joined by award-winning comedian, podcaster, speaker and journalist, Rosie Wilby. Rosie regularly appears on radio and TV commentating on sexuality, dating and love and was dubbed ‘the Queen of Breakups’ by BBC Radio 4 following the success of her podcast and book: The Breakup Monologues. She has extensively explored heartbreak in her podcast, in her hugely successful comedy shows, and in her first book, Is Monogamy Dead? Which was shortlisted for the Diva Literary Awards and longlisted for the Polari First Book Prize. She has written for publications including The Guardian, Sunday Times, and New Statesman, and has performed at major festivals including Glastonbury and Latitude.

In 2011, Rosie was dumped via email. Obsessing about breakups ever since, she embarked on a personal quest to investigate, understand and conquer the psychology of heartbreak. Part memoir, part investigation, The Breakup Monologues takes on the big questions about our life-changing separations in the modern age of ghosting, breadcrumbing and conscious uncoupling. In Rosie’s trademark immersive, investigative form, the self-styled ‘lesbian Louis Theroux’ puts her own relationship under the microscope in a ‘sex lab’ and explores how a split parallels the effects of withdrawing from a drug, why friendship breakups can feel like the worst endings of all, how polyamory changes the conversation about commitment, how breakups can sometimes be empowering and lead to exciting new life journeys... and how ultimately they can even help us to stay together.

In this episode we discuss the joy of breakups and embracing life after a breakup, love-affair friendships and friendship breakups, political lesbians and queerbaiting, and much more.

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Cover Art: Veredien

Music: The.Jones.Project_93