The Way They Were

This week, Gráinne Maguire returns from SNL UK as we slip into the fallout between Sarah Jessica Parker and Kim Cattrall. On Sex and the City, Carrie and Samantha felt unbreakable. Off-screen? Pay disputes, mean girl accusations and contract disputes. We look at one of the most high profile hollywood feuds in a special platonic edition of The Way They Were!To get episodes ad free and early, join us our Patreon: ⁠⁠patreon.com/TheWayTheyWere⁠⁠ You can also access our exclusive bonus episodes every other week and take part in The Gossip our exclusive Patreon group chat! See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

On this special episode, Chantal and guest Michelle Shaughnessy zoom in on the glossy excess of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills and size up the franchise’s newest arrival, The Real Housewives of Rhode Island!Plus over on the Patreon we get into the Summer House drama, Jen Shah's post prison interview and Carole Radziwill's problematic relationship with Ghislaine Maxwell.To get episodes ad free and early, join us our Patreon: ⁠⁠patreon.com/TheWayTheyWere⁠⁠ You can also access our exclusive bonus episodes every other week and take part in The Gossip our exclusive Patreon group chat! See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Love might not cost a thing, but this one came with a lot of receipts. When Jennifer Lopez (back once again!) fell for Sean Combs in 1999, it felt like pop had engineered its own super-couple. She was shimmering on the brink of full-blown world domination; he was the Svengali of west coast rap. Tracksuits, champagne, Versace dresses and so much white clothing.Then came the nightclub shooting, the arrest and the cheating. This week, Chantal and Gráinne are joined by stand-up comedian Esther Manito to unpick J.Lo's first tabloid romance and ask why couldn't these two lovebirds make it work?To get episodes ad free and early, join us our Patreon: ⁠⁠patreon.com/TheWayTheyWere⁠⁠ You can also access our exclusive bonus episodes every other week and take part in The Gossip our exclusive Patreon group chat! See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Kanye West and Kim Kardashian were never just a couple they were a full-blown cultural event. From Paris Fashion Week to reality TV, Instagram meltdowns and frequent attempts to break the internet, their relationship blurred the line between love story, brand strategy and performance art. But how did two people from such different worlds become the defining celebrity power couple of the 2010s? This week on The Way They Were, Gráinne Maguire and Chantal Feduchin-Pate are joined by journalist and pop-culture encyclopaedia Tracie Egan Morrissey to unpack the rise and fall of Kimye. There’s a lot to get through because the lore runs deep, the details matter, and nothing about this relationship was ever simple.To get episodes ad free and early, join us our Patreon: ⁠⁠patreon.com/TheWayTheyWere⁠⁠ You can also access our exclusive bonus episodes every other week and take part in The Gossip our exclusive Patreon group chat! See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Tiger Woods sold perfection: serene, disciplined, surgically controlled. Golf’s ultimate good boy, engineered from childhood to never miss a shot. Off the course? A very different game was being played. On The Way They Were, we revisit the scandal that destroyed Tiger Woods' spotless image. Drugs, over 100 different women and the fateful night when Elin Nordegren smashed up his SUV with a golf club. This week, Gráinne and Chantal are joined by stand-up comedian Stuart McPherson, we ask how did the most managed athlete on Earth end up such a mess behind closed doors? Turns out even Tiger couldn’t keep it on par.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This week on The Way They Were, we’re unlocking one of our most popular Patreon episodes of the year and sharing it on the free feed. We’re doing something a little different today. Chantal swaps her mic for a magnifying glass and Gráinne pulls her fedora low as they step away from the usual romantic nostalgia and into the glittering golden age of Hollywood. This time, our sleuthing duo turn their attention to the tragic, endlessly puzzling story of Natalie Wood and Robert Wagner: movie stars, tabloid royalty, and the centre of one of Tinseltown’s most haunting mysteries. If you enjoy this kind of deep-dive, pop culture, history, mystery, and two hosts gently sparring their way through it, there’s plenty more where this came from. Join us on Patreon: ⁠⁠patreon.com/TheWayTheyWere⁠⁠ You can also access our exclusive bonus episodes every other week and take part in The Gossip our exclusive Patreon group chat! Happy New Year!See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This week on The Way They Were, we do the unthinkable: we go back to Love Actually. Gráinne and Chantal rank the couples from least offensive to “maybe we should call the police”, asking the big questions Richard Curtis never did. Who do we hate the most? Are half these characters quietly unhinged? What exactly is going on with Keira Knightley’s extremely youthful bride? And is the secretary secretly a feminist icon? (No.)Along the way we interrogate Christmas number ones, language barriers, workplace power dynamics, and why we will always, always cry during that Emma Thompson scene.The full episode is available now on our Patreon: ⁠⁠patreon.com/TheWayTheyWere⁠⁠ You can also access our exclusive bonus episodes every other week and take part in The Gossip our exclusive Patreon group chat! See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Effie Gray and John Ruskin looked like the perfect Victorian power couple: she, bright and brilliant; he, the era’s leading art critic. But behind the portraits was one of history’s strangest age-gap marriages. Unconsummated, uncomfortable, and the sort of story that would make Gen Z turn away in horror.This week on The Way They Were, Gráinne and Chantal team up with one of Britain’s best stand-ups, Ian Smith, to look at the grottiest couples we've ever looked at on the show.To get episodes ad free and early, join us our Patreon: ⁠⁠patreon.com/TheWayTheyWere⁠⁠ You can also access our exclusive bonus episodes every other week and take part in The Gossip our exclusive Patreon group chat! See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This week on The Way They Were, we’re catching up on all the heartbreak, hair dye, and high drama of the celebrity world. Lily Allen’s West End Girl has landed, a sharp, funny, furious record that lays her split from David Harbour bare. We talk through the fallout, the shock, and the pussy palace.Elsewhere, Ariana Grande’s got 'new' hair but no ponytail. What does it mean? Finally we’re checking in on a few of our favourite couples: JoJo Siwa and Chris Hughes (Gráinne’s not convinced they’ll make it) and Sutton Foster and Hugh Jackman (Chantal suspects there’s a touch of the 'David Harbour' about him).For extra episodes, ad free versions and early releases why not join our ⁠⁠⁠Patreon⁠⁠⁠? You'll even get a shoutout on the show and a chance to chat with Gráinne and Chantel in our gossip room!To celebrate Lily Allen's new album we are giving away 20 month long memberships to out Patreon! Click here for more info - https://www.patreon.com/TheWayTheyWere/redeem/A3154⁠⁠⁠patreon.com/TheWayTheyWereLearn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This week we step back in time to the 1940s to meet the literary it-couple: Truman Capote and Jack Dunphy. Truman was the sharp-tongued genius and Jack existed in his shadow. So how did the socialite and the introverted novelist make it work for so long?This week, Chantal and Gráinne are joined by the brilliant Jen Ives to unpack the devotion, destruction and divine madness of Capote and Dunphy’s decades together. Expect post-war passion, very posh best friends like Lee Radziwill and the Queen Mother, plus an emotional affair with a killer on death row.For extra episodes, ad free versions and early releases why not join our ⁠Patreon⁠? You'll even get a shoutout on the show and a chance to chat with Gráinne and Chantel in our gossip room. ⁠patreon.com/TheWayTheyWereSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

She was Hollywood’s “most agreeable” girl, he was cinema’s golden boy genius. Rita Hayworth and Orson Welles looked like the dream couple – but behind the glamour it was all drama, long distance, and the inability to separate work from pleasure. This love story from the golden age of Hollywood even features brilliant cameos from Hedda Hopper, Gloria Vanderbilt, and Judy Garland herself.Gráinne and Chantal take a trip to 1940s Hollywood with the fabulous ⁠Kevin Bennett⁠, host of ⁠The Big Smoke Variety Show⁠, in this very special episode of The Way They Were – as requested by our brilliant patron Lady K! Plus, we take a closer look at Charli XCX’s star-studded wedding and the Dawson’s Creek reunion.For early, ad-free episodes, bonus content, and access to our exclusive gossip chat room, join us on Patreon: patreon.com/TheWayTheyWereSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

She was the Vicar of Dibley and he the king of Comic Relief. Together, they were the King and Queen of British comedy. Dawn French and Lenny Henry were the nation’s funniest couple but behind the gags and the glitter, their marriage had ups, downs and an unforgettable night out with John Sessions. This week on The Way They Were, Chantal and Gráinne are joined by broadcaster, campaigner and author Natasha Devon to unravel the love story that made us laugh, broke our hearts, and proved that even legends can’t always make it work. Want our episodes ad free and early episodes? Fancy a shoutout on the pod? Howe about special bonus episodes every other week? Get all of this and more on our Patreon!See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Before the Frasier reboot, before the Tony Awards, before the dinner party from hell - there was just Kelsey and Camille. This week, comedian, agony aunt and Attitudes! host Bryan Safi joins us to revisit the unforgettable union of sitcom royalty and a dancer on club MTV who would go on to become "the most hated housewife in America". Was it true romance or simply a love bomb that blew up on national television? Bryan helps Chantal and Gráinne dig through the drama, the showbiz, and the pegging allegations in this very special episode of The Way They Were. Also if you're in Edinburgh this month you simply have to go watch Bryan's show: Are you mad at me?See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.