Ruby Franke Doc, A Lottery Podcast & 'The Traitors UK' Is Worth It
Recommendations for your weekend!
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Read
The “Summer House” x “Southern Charm” x “Morning Toast” spritz drama that’s currently playing out on “Summer House” explained. (Allie Jones for The Cut)
Sorry, I didn’t read much this week!!!
Listen
“Scratch & Win”
This podcast centered on the rise of the most successful lottery in America—which is randomly in Massachusetts—was incredibly well reported, and I learned a lot from it. One or two of the episodes felt a little tangential to the main event, but overall it succeeded in both tracing the history of gambling/the lottery in this country and the variety of factors that have gotten it to the state it’s in today.
Watch
“Devil in The Family: The Fall of Ruby Franke” (Hulu)
What a wild ride this was. Family vlogger Ruby Franke seemed to be living an idyllic life with her husband and their millions of children in the suburbs—the operative word there being seemed. This doc is both about her very specific, chilling story and also a cautionary tale about the ways in which the dissonance between images we strive to present on social media and our realities can come to a head in dark and catastrophic ways.
“The Traitors UK” (Peacock)
So, I haven’t started the third season of “The Traitors UK” yet, but it dropped on Peacock right around the time that the third US season came to an end—and I’m about to jump in. I loved the first two seasons of the British iteration of the show, which has the same format and oftentimes the same missions, but it casts regular people instead of reality stars, which raises the stakes. The money actually matters here. Claudia Winkleman also brings a totally different—but still just as delicious and campy—vibe as the host than her American counterpart, Alan Cumming. If you’re already missing “The Traitors” after last week’s finale, try this out. Season 2 was especially great!
Self-Promotion
“Real Housewives of Atlanta” Premiere & “RHOBH” Break Down
The woman behind the hilariously on-point TikTok account “Hot Bravo Takes” joined me on the show this week to discuss the great season 16 premiere of “The Real Housewives of Atlanta” and the latest episode of “The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills,” which has totally hit a wall. She had me in stitches!
“Southern Hospitality” Season 3 End-of-Season Deep Dive
Sam Bush helped me break down the third season of “Southern Hospitality,” which felt like a true breakthrough moment for the underdog Bravo show. If you’re sleeping on this one—don’t!
“The Traitors” Season 3 End-of-Season Deep Dive
Sharon Tharp, who is a total reality competition show expert, joined me to break down season 3 of “The Traitors.”
Currently
At home in the city this weekend! Saw Paul Mescal in “A Streetcar Named Desire” at BAM last night, and it was fantastic. It was a little long for me, but the production brought something new to the classic, and the acting was bar-none.
Hoping to see Steven Soderbergh's very well-reviewed new movie co-starring Cate Blanchett and Michael Fassbender, “Black Bag,” this weekend, too!