Everything
The best podcast to listen to right now, a book on an Australian legend and a rom-com on Amazon that’s actually…good? This is what we’re watching and reading and doing this week at ICON.
WATCH THIS
With all the buzz surrounding Barbie, Oppenheimer and Tom Cruise’s death-defying stunt work in the latest Mission Impossible, streaming has sort of taken second place as drag ourselves back to the cinemas. But last month, Amazon surprised even the most cynical of critics with their new rom-com, Red White and Royal Blue.
In a world of Heartstopper and Call Me By Your Name, Red White and Royal Blue might seem like a light touch but the truth is it’s depiction of certain aspects in coming out, of being gay, is more realistic than either of the former works.
Starring Taylor Zakhar Perez (The Kissing Booth) and Nicholas Galitzine (The Craft: Legacy) in the lead roles, it’s a sweet without being saccharine modern love story. Yes, it’s a familiar trope of opposites attract but it also handles its queerness in a way that is supportive and pragmatic. Also, Uma Thurman as President of the United States complete with a Texan accent is literally the future that liberals want.
READ THIS
Spend enough time online and you’ll eventually come across the classic video of a man being arrested for, as he describes it, “eating a succulent Chinese meal”. The man, and the footage of his capture by Queensland police, spawned a multitude of memes and was part of a 1991 news report called “Democracy Manifest”. The video set off a series of conspiracy theories about the robust, Shakespearean figure as he yelled his innocence while being bundled away. Turns out truth is stranger than fiction.
That man was Jack Carlson and a new book, Carnage by Mark Dapin, looks at Carlson’s life before the footage. His time spent with underworld crime figures including murderers and a remarkable career as an actor in the theatre.
LISTEN TO THIS
The podcast revolution has meant having to sift through the sounds of hundreds of dudes all convinced they’re the next great comedian. But occasionally, a true gem comes along. Enter The Basement Yard...
@thebasementyard GOTTA GO HARD
Hosted by Joe Santagato and series regular Frankie Alvarez, the premise is…nothing. It’s purely observational absurdism which makes for hilarious listening. If you enjoy sitting in your living room with your mates talking the weirdest suff, unfiltered, this is the podcast for you.
