Dolly Alderton/Pandora Sykes

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Personally I also think houses look nicest and most personal when they are given a chance to evolve over time. If you've already stuffed it full of ornaments etc it can't avoid looking like a showroom. I wonder if her house actually feels homely.
 
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haha tbf, so we can not be accused of falsehoods, the house was actually £1.4M so I suppose with all the changes and labour maybe closer to 1.5M in total. Are the tiles seriously £25 each?? It strook me that they don't even go with the cupboards
 
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I agree with your summary and would like to give some balance to the criticism (that I'm very much part of) - yes she came from money but she does give a good platform to underrepresented groups and she's not just lying on her back being fed grapes all day when 7 months preggo like I would love to do - she certainly shifts her weight around and makes herself useful
 
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True on the house price, I was rounding up (slightly)!

Tiles (but as someone mentioned, she could be getting trade prices on some things. Not sure if would apply here): https://www.devolkitchens.co.uk/shop/handmade-tiles/devol-emerald-green-london-tiles

I totally agree about them not going with the units. I love a mismatched look as much as anyone, but this just looks like a clash of two very distinct styles with nothing bringing them together - and the colours don't look good together at all.
 
Wow, thanks for the link! The tiles are lovely, it's a shame they don't go with the units, but there is something about the hague blueish hue they went for that just doesn't fit, or perhaps it's the tile placement.

While those tiles are really expensive, part of me doesn't actually mind because they are handmade and I believe if people can afford to avoid mass production, they should. It's cool to support the ceramic industry. (But also, so as not to deter any budding renovators, that same website features handmade tiles for £5 each so, £25 must be the high end haha)
 
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She has referred to her neighbourhood like it’s some rough part of North London a few times on the podcast, when she lives in the Queens Park side of Kensal Green. Which, as someone has already pointed out, is where the, ahem, moneyed elite head to when they’ve outgrown their Notting Hill flats and want to start a family.

£25 per tile is quite something!
 
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this just proves how insanely out of touch she is, in what world is a £300 lamp the economic option!? I don't bregudge people with money spending it on things they like, but she just has no clue what is normal for most people... if she did she would have said something like "i know this is expensive, but a cheaper option would be..." or something

This reminds me of an (I think) MP in Australia claiming the reason millenials couldn't buy houses was because of spending money on avocado toast
 
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tbf Queen's park has some rough bits, although I remember going there about 7 years ago and honestly sometimes I was shook!
 
Re the ‘mismatched’ tile colour against the kitchen - it’s exactly how Devol have it in their showroom in which is near Farringdon tube station ... it’s pretty much a direct lift of the show kitchen. I sound like a stalker here, I’m honestly not ... it’s just when I saw her kitchen I immediately thought it wasn’t that original due to the display in the showroom. It’s actually really nice in real life - the tiles a AMAZING.
 
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I have to agree. As much as it makes my eyes water her background and privilege, she does a lot more than many people in that position. They both do use their podcast to offer women in less privileged positions a platform. They promote female charities and that’s worth something. Not sure if anyone listened to Otegha on their author special last week, but it was an uncomfortable feeling that she was talking directly to them, saying that kind of activism was not enough. Not sure how to word it exactly but I think Pandora did well, she didn’t seem to let it affect the interview.
 
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I also agree that they’ve done a lot with their platform and walk the walk as well as talking the talk. For years now they’ve featured WOC and have not participated in all white panels etc (I haven’t fact checked this but I remember them mentioning it on a podcast literally years ago and being impressed as it was quite a new idea at the time and way more progressive than other white people). They do annoy me at times but they certainly have been thinking about these issues for a long time and I don’t think any of what they’re doing is performative.

I think Otegha is quite good friends with them in real life, particularly Dolly, I didn’t get the sense that what she was saying was aimed at them in particular but YMMV.

I do think they’re aware of their privilege and do reference it a lot so some of the criticism in this threads seems unwarranted. I don’t think pandora does position herself as an everywoman but she does downplay it -she seems to accept general middle class wealth privilege but not that she’s probably from a more elite background. But I can kind of sympathise with that view - if you already have the privilege of not ever having to worry about money and you’ve acknowledged that, does the extent to which you don’t have to worry really matter?

generally agree they have lost their way quite a bit. They seem so intent now on proving that they’re intellectual heavyweights when they were so much more interesting doing what they do best which is just light hearted cultural commentary. I also thought Ghosts was bloody awful even though I really wanted to like it! Dolly is a brilliant writer but unfortunately a distinctly average at best novelist.
 
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Could not agree more. Although what is YMMV?
 
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I’m with you on the their principles and sharing their platform (which is not insignificant in terms of numbers) with authors of different backgrounds. They have always done this and I remember Reni Eddo Lodge being on right at the beginning. I’ve just had a look through the episode descriptions and (without re-listening to them all) I feel they used to tackle weightier subjects than they do now. I’m wondering if they are victims of their own success in someways - you know in the way that pop stars who started off in one way (less commercial) end up being a watered down version of what they once were? I wonder if there’s an element of them being cautious about expressing their take on certain events in society for fear of repercussion? I wouldn’t blame them if that was the case to be honest - social media can be an awful place. I imagine if Pandora was to read the comments on here about her background and see that her parents house had been discussed and looked at on google earth it would make her feel extremely uncomfortable and anxious. I know I felt uncomfortable with that part of the discussion. Saying that I did pass comment on her kitchen tiles and feel a bit bad about that (I know it’s only her kitchen that she has showcased in magazines etc).
I guess my point is that there could be a number of factors contributing to this recent losing of their way. Global pandemic, significant changes in general awareness across society around racism, sexism (to name just two). Fear of being cancelled - look at Clemmie Hooper. I’m going to go back and listen to a few earlier episodes I think and try and put my finger on it.
 
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Dolly seemed to be a bit over it in the most recent episode. I think she has no interest in discussing tv shows how
 
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Also definitely agree with this- I think it used to feel less formal and polished which made it more fun
 
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Where can you see the before pictures?
 
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House listings on the open housing market are no longer private when you know the area and general date of sale, both of which pandora has made public. While I think she shouldn’t have, I’m sure we are harmless here
 
Dolly seemed to be a bit over it in the most recent episode. I think she has no interest in discussing tv shows how
I agree, I thought it sounded like she was in a mood with pandora and panda pops kept trying to smooth it over. In my mind (based on nothing) Dolly is in lockdown 2.0 with her new beau. She’s sore about something pandora has done and has the shits with the podcast.

Regarding the previous episode, I agree that Pandora navigated The interview well considering a lot of the content could’ve hit a nerve. I think she’s quite good at interviewing although they are always non-confrontational by nature.

When she discussed acknowledging her skinny privilege and white privilege as a fashion journalist she left out her posh/ wealth privilege. I know they reference it generally but ultimately they have their jobs because they are rich white girls who have contacts, speak the right way and feel at home In the right places. They both have great qualities and the podcast used to be something special when they actually shared opinions.

I think neither of their recent books will stand the test of time and that’s the shame in it. Their books and others from similar authors take up space that should go to talent. I don’t want to waste any more money on mediocre books that have a huge publication and are praised to the hilt by seemingly every other times/ guardian columnist and women in floaty dresses haunting twitter echoing the clunky, over the top ‘literary’ style they’ve just read and given 5 stars in goodreads (after tagging author in a insta pic of book with coffee/ socks). Instead I want actual talent to make it through to recommendations.

To end on a positive, I still value podcast and tv recs and really enjoyed the Diana episodes of ‘you’re wrong about’.
 
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