Everything Is Content - Everything In Conversation: Our 2026 Pop Culture Hot Takes

Episode Date: December 24, 2025

Happy Christmas Eve EICherubs! 🎄For this mid-week truffle episode we're diving into our Christmas plans, our pop culture predictions from the beginning of this year AND our very fresh, very hot ones for next year ft. Timothee Chalamet, White Lotus, Charli XCX and Taylor. Join us for some big swings on upcoming marriages, break-ups, film debuts and casting forecasts. And more importantly share your thoughts in the DMs and Spotify comments!Thank you SO MUCH for listening all of this year. We love this podcast and the incredible community that's come with it. We have the Friday episode for you and will then be going on a mini break before diving straight into the news, celeb goss and viral trends with you in 2026.Before you go, could we request a lovely review wherever you're listening and could you share us with a friend (or enemy)? Word of mouth is huge for us. Lots of love O,R,B xxxxxx Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

I'm Beth, I'm Ruggira, and I'm Anoni. And this is Everything in Conversation. An extra chocolate truffle episode to get you through to the main dessert on Friday. For this very special Christmas Eve episode, we're diving into our 2026 pop culture predictions, everything from celeb hookups and breakups to bizarre trends and announcements. Remember, if you haven't already, we say it every week, but it's, it's more important because it's Christmas Eve, so it's our present. Please, could you give us a follow on Instagram and TikTok at Everything is Content Pod?

And also a lovely review wherever you're listening to this, that is the other thing that is topping our Christmas list this year. But first, what are your gali-welly's Christmas traditions and what are you most looking forward to for Christmas 2025? Oh my gosh, I want to, I want to be cozy. I can't wait to wear pajamas all day, apart from on Christmas Day, but I want to just be wearing pyjama adjacent things, tracksuits, cozy clothes, I'm going to have a glass of wine

on the go, I'm going to be petting the family dog it's going to be so wonderful I'm so excited. Oh, and obviously being horizontal as well. What about you, Beth? Exactly the same. I cannot weigh.

I think it's because we have been working very, very hard and I just, I'm going to hit the wall and I think I need to gradually, I basically should have been horizontal for the last week to practice because I'm not getting up. I think what I'm going to do,

what I normally do is I wear precisely one nice outfit over Christmas, on Christmas Eve for maybe an hour and half and then I get into something so soft. I put a glass of wine in one hand, a little snack in the other, and I just mooch about, I'm so excited. I'm going to put a mince pie in the microwave till it explodes. Microwave, mince pie. Oh, honestly, it gets like molten hot in the middle. It is so delicious. One hot, one cold, the cycle repeats forever. I think it's basically going to be about

snacking, drinking, being merry. That laptop is going in a drawer. I might put it in the garden. I might bury it under the shed. And I'm not going to open it for at least two days. I cannot wait. What about you and only? Do you have like a wholesome Christmas? Will you see your nieces?

Yeah, we're doing Christmas with my sisters, which we've done for the last few years, which I really enjoy. And what I'm most looking forward to is I always end up cooking anyway. But at my parents, my mum would always get really over one. We'd end up having Christmas lunch at around 8pm. So I have come up with like time scheduled. Like potatoes are going in at 12.30.

The carrots are going in. and I want everything militantly planned. We're going to eat the roast when Bonnie wakes up from her nap at 2.30. I'm going to have, I just, I like being in control of the kitchen section. The food is my favourite part of Christmas. I've already planned to have leftovers to make for the sandwiches on Boxing Day. All I'm thinking about is the meal and I just love being in control of the kitchen. So that's what I'm really looking forward to.

My mum always gets us matching pyjamas every year. I know it's a bit bad because of the fast fashion, but I love it. And they're really cute this year. They're like, she's already got them. They're stripy with little bears on. and I'm very excited to see how excited my nieces are. But it was funny because I'm with my niece at the minute and I said to my brother-in-law,

I was like, Matilda's like not that buzzing about Christmas as I was when I was little. And he was like, the problem is she thinks they use the term present all the time. So everyone's like, got you a present, but it could be like a sticker.

So the concept of presents to her is just like that's something I get eight times a day, which is obviously when you're little, that's really exciting. So it's actually quite sweet. And then I said to her, what's the thing you're most excited about for Christmas? And she said for Auntianones to be here.

So spending time with the babies and being quite controlling in the kitchen. Do you know that I have lasagna for Christmas? You did. We need to go into this. You need to talk about it more because you mentioned it in something we were doing and I never got around fighting with you about it. No, share the law, please. It's a relatively new tradition.

I think because my dad used to cook and it was always like, he got it great, but he was in that kitchen the whole time and it was like the list, similar to yours probably. It was like, this time this has to. to go in. Then my brother and my older sister did the cooking one year and like we all to get out of the kitchen. It was just a faff. Like it is a fath. It's a labor of love, but it's a fath. And I'm not that fuss about turkey. We rarely had it. And then the last few years, I think my mom was just like, I think we had one of those cook lasagnas, which are like expense.

They're like 50 pounds of lasagna, but you get a lot. One veggie, one meat lasagna, roast potatoes. You can still have like the best bits about a Christmas dinner. You just don't have it centered around a bird. And I, it's changed the game. I'm really excited for that Christmas lasagna. But yeah, I think it is illegal, but I love it. Do you still have gravy then? But you separate the gravy from the lasagna and just like drenched the potatoes and the veg in it?

No, but that's actually a good idea. I would have lasagna with gravy and I'm not afraid to say that. That's so many like meaty taste together. That's so confusing to me. I would put gravy on anything so that does not offend me whatsoever. I do think it's interesting.

On Miss Me, Makita Oliver and Jordan Stevens were talking about Christmases and they did an episode where people writing in about stuff and Jordan Stevens like it's so funny the shame people feel for not eating this like preordained meal it's like your mentor even though I am offended I also I'm only joking because it is ridiculous to be like you have to eat turkey I do love the tradition of it because I love a banquet and I am a big piggy and I just want to eat my sister was like I just hate it when mum gets like too much food and I scowled at her because I was like no I want potato dough from was and rose potatoes and cauliflower cheese and like

everything that's necessary. But yeah, you don't have to have this Christmas meal. I mean, Christmas is kind of a hoax. I mean, it literally is a hoax. Oh, 100%. Wait, what do you mean? It's just sort of made up, isn't it? But I love it.

I really, really enjoy it, but it is bullshit. It is one of the capitalist holidays that I am like, oh, I've got a bit of time. I've got a lot of time for it. I'm such a Christmas kid. I just, I was thinking the other day, like, what a spectacle of Christmas was. and like how I used to go to the pub on Christmas Eve and get absolutely battered. And then I'd kind of wake up the next morning, fine.

Like I'd come in, make a show of myself, fall up the stairs, full downstairs, full sideways off the stairs. Go to bed, no glass water in sight. Wake up and be like, presents please. Like, I had the stamina, which I will not be doing that again this year. But I was thinking, like, it was a full production. Like, the whole town was in the pub for one night of the year. Merriing, merrymenting.

I don't get how people do that. Like, I get, you know, being 18 to 22, you're resilient, your liver's like, yeah, let's go. But people are doing that in their 30s? And I'm like, are you not literally dying on Christmas Day? Is that not so difficult to exist? And also the second thing I was going to say is one year I spent Christmas with my friend who's gone A in, and we had Jalof Rice along with all the traditional Christmas bits.

And tell me who was going up for Jolof Rice over Turkey. It was so delicious. On the going out, I didn't know this was a thing because I've always grown up in quite remote countryside, but if I want to go to the pub, my mom does have to drop me off. I didn't know that people went to the pub on Christmas Eve. And I remember finding out about this. And one of my friends was like, yeah, I literally always get in at like 3M on Christmas Eve.

First of all, I would get so told off. And second of all, I wouldn't be able for it. I couldn't do it. What have you bump into Santa as well? That is such a good point. Because that's about when he arrives, I think. I've even, I'm being so controlling to the point where I'm like, we're only going to have the drinks wise

because sometimes what would happen is you get a bit too excited. I think one year we did shots with breakfast. And then everyone was just fucked and the dinner was like that. And I was like, we're rationing, we're having a glass of champagne with breakfast, then we're having lunch, and then the boozing can commence post-lunch. Because I think everything goes a bit wayward if you go too heavy, too hard. Yeah, shots of breakfast, it's going to go wrong. I can't. It definitely would have been my influence.

I think I'd come back from uni and was like, let's do a shot. Oh, yeah, good bars and breakfast. It does also like spare on, because I was working out. You know when like all the families together and your adults and you don't see each other and like the first few days is bliss and you're like, this is amazing. I love you so much. And then kind of hits. maybe like day four, day five when you're like, I've spent too much time with you.

You go from like, you're getting on like a house on fire to being like, I'm going to set this house on fire unless you get out of it. It's so, it's literally one hour perfect. The next hour you're like, I will bite you like a rat. This is why, because Christmas always used to have quite a lot of tension in our house and sometimes I wouldn't always enjoy it. But since we've been doing it my sisters with her kids,

that's gone away. And also it's really condensed. I'm getting their Christmas Eve. I'm off again on the 27th. Then it's like really, hopefully touchwood, nothing can go wrong. Whereas obviously when you're younger, you'd get home on like the 22nd. You might be there until New Year's Eve.

That is a bad idea. Agree. Slip in, slip out, get on that train back home. So 2025 has been a huge year for pop culture. But I actually forgot we made quite a few predictions about what we thought would unravel. And let's see how good our forecasting actually went down. TLDR turns out not so great. To be fair, started off strong.

I can't remember who said this, but somebody predicted Taylor and Travis are going to get engaged, but somebody did also say they might break up, which obviously did not come true. Well, there's still time. True. It's not over here.

My bet still could come good. Just kidding. I actually thought they would get engaged. We also said that Beyonce and Jay-Z might break up, and then we were immediately worried that they would sue us. I don't know why. I'm not sure they're listening, which they also have not, to my knowledge,

none of my none of our mutual friends have said that they are on the rocks they are still sturdy but I don't know I just think maybe 2027 we go again no wait 2020 what's next year

I think they've been like kind of stronger than ever recently yeah just from like pictures I see online we said that Wicked was going to be nominated for loads of Oscars

I can't even remember I don't think it was you know I think it got like best costume And I also don't think that it really won anything. But there were, have we had noms for Wicked for Good? They're not, not yet. I can't imagine they're coming. Yeah.

I'll eat my hat. I'll eat my witch's hat. Wasn't there something that Ariana got that Cynthia didn't get though? And people were up in arms out about it, but I can't remember what it was. It could be one of those Tony's, the Emmys. I actually don't know about the American award system. It's the Oscars for me, so. My favourite piece of Laura's, the director of, Parasite when he was nominated for an Oscar called it one of those local awards.

Love Bongchunho is honestly, yeah, he also did the thing about basically like Americans can't read subtitles or something like, my catty king. Oh my God, I'm so glad that this prediction of mine did not come true. Chapel Rowan not turning up to Prima Vera. I saw her, I cried. I shared it on the podcast. So, so glad that I was wrong. Yeah, I'm really happy for you that you were wrong because you loved Prima Vera.

And I am glad that, because I don't know if I said this, but I'm glad that I was wrong too, I didn't go to Glastonbury and Eminem didn't perform. We said he was going to wait. Why did we think? Yeah, we did. But why did we think he was going to perform? Was there someone there that he wouldn't perform with? There was really something going on.

Like everyone was saying that he was going to perform. Then obviously we should have predicted that OAS were going to perform. But maybe OASTS hadn't announced there at all when we did this. They must have not done. Oh, wow. But yeah, there was a reason. I think it was just everyone was like, I'm sure Eminem was going to have to be at Glastonbury. He wasn't, was he?

No, no, no, no. I think we would have heard. Another thing we thought, which, when we said JoJewa might get a face tattoo, she's not got a face tattoo, but it was a very big switch up, and she has a boyfriend. So I think that was quite, that was so left field, we couldn't have even fathomed it. But I think they're still going strong. Yeah, I thought they broke up. Oh.

Let me check. Oh. What? Still strong. Married. If you say married, I'll cry. Oh, no. Sorry.

I saw Chris Hughes and Joanne. see was double celebration as engagement and baby, clicked on it, plans emerge. Oh. But I swear they broke up. I swear there was a bit where they were single anyway. They're back together. They're having a baby. However you feel about it, we did wrongly predict that Northwest would launch a podcast,

but I don't think that we're not going to get more stuff from her next year. If it's not a podcast, something's coming. I think more's going to come. I think an album. I think there will be. If she hasn't already, I do think that she actually will follow her father's footsteps into music. Like I'm really, as much as they don't really want a 12 year old to be famous, I'm really enjoying, she seems to enjoy her fashion, she seems to be enjoying getting out there. So I'm kind

like, okay, good luck. I'm terrified for you, but I do feel like she will be a very, very famous person. She did collaborate on childlike things from FK Twigs. Of course. So we did, she didn't launch a podcast, but she did, I mean, it's near enough. We'll tick that one. That was, we got that. That is so not even a quarter point, but we'll take it we also thought that love island would get cancelled and that actually just seems to have gone from strength to strength they just keep putting out like love island all stars love island winter so actually it's like the unbeatable beast it's like the hydra growing new heads so i actually don't think i'm going to nix that prediction for next year i don't think it's going anywhere

it's been personally cancelled by me i've not engaged in any love like moya tried to talk to me about love island recently and i was like i honestly have no idea she was like it was really good i was like it doesn't exist give it a tick then we'll get a tick for that that one also do you remember last year we were talking about Maya jama getting a new partner and then we got to the point where we said the new partner should be you and only oh yeah maybe bisexual era yeah oh my god i don't remember this has that happened well i would love to be no but she is with she has got a new partner mm-hmm a very rich footballer and they're engaged and they're not oh oh no she got engaged no so she was engaged to that other guy then she broke up with him

to get the stormsy then she broke up the stormsy and now she's with her new guy rich footballer they seem very happy. Oh, big tick. Is that right? She wasn't with him last year, was she? No. We also thought that Hawk Tour would do a skim's collab. She does, actually, Hawk Tour seems to vanish completely after her crypto scandal.

But we thought that she was coming for the big times. We thought that she was going to be in a Kim Kay advert. We were sorely mistaken. Also, Amy Lou Woods, I feel like, because White Lotus hadn't come out, it'd come out in the beginning of this year. I think I remember seeing that she was cast in it and I was like, there's going to be big things for Amy Lou Woods. do skims. And that was wrong, but she also definitely became a main character of this year,

I'd say. I reckon she got offered and said no. Because of integrity. She does have intense. She loves commenting on things. She commented on the Sydney-Sweeney American Eagle with a vomiting emoji. So she's, maybe she's too woke for skims. I love her. I want to protect her at all costs. We did predict that Gen Z were going to get really into like 2006, 2009 looks. Like our next is crackle nail varnish, tights with shorts. I actually think this is going to happen. I think it's still, it's coming. I think we're getting there. We're edging over closer. Also, but the tights with shorts thing, I have to say, I do, I am planning, because I just bought a pair of microd denim shorts in a charity shop. I am planning on wearing those for tights.

Will you wear them with like an American flag, racerback tea? Because that was the look. We mentioned this last time, the sneakers with a little heel in them. That was my go-to look for going to the club. No. I'm thinking more, Jane Birkin, sort of like, long, black ponelette they're dark denim and then like a spotty tight i love that your references like no mine's gonna be jane burkin yeah mine's gonna be jane norman you're also gonna be jane burkin oh i love jane norman and kukai got to miss those guys so we did horribly in our predictions but i think we're gonna put it back by predicting everything that's gonna happen in 2026 has anyone got one that they are for sure sure about okay so we're gonna talk about timetay

I think an engagement for him and Kylie, I think it's coming. They seem stronger than ever. He said that he's interested in having kids. And I think being a kind of de facto figure in her life with her kids, I think they probably will move to the next step. Yeah, 100%. I do think that they will get engaged and then start planning for a bit.

I thought they might adopt a baby. I don't know why I thought that, but I just kind of thought she has two children. I think they're both. I think that there is an altruistic streak that I do think that they will have. They'll do a little Millie Bobby Brown and turn up one day. with umbebe she's got two what's the second one wolf or something

so it was called wolf and then they changed the name but it's her second child a boy with Travis Scott oh I only know about stormy I think that Ben Affleck and Jalo are not done I think there'll be something else I don't know whether it'll be another engagement and relationship a legal battle I just know

there will be another fascinating chapter in the Ben and Jalas saga He just loves his, he loves his gens. I agree. And I'm actually, I'm so here for it. I think on pregnancies, I think Taylor Swift is going to have to get pregnant. There was a blind item on Dumois. Maybe Dumas that said an A plus plus singer is currently pregnant and everyone is debating. Obviously, this is completely unconfirmed, but people are already like, oh my God, it's Taylor, oh my God, it's Ariana, oh my God, it's Lady Gaga.

There is going to be a big pop girlie that is out of tough. Maybe I either. I do think she's ready. I think she'd put that final album out. We didn't like it. But I think that was her kind of like full stop. Take a break. Get married.

Have a baby. Come back. The cycle repeats. I agree. And like on that note, I think she probably will have a royal wedding level wedding next year. And it's going to be, there'll be a documentary about it.

And I think it will have the 360 experience content wise. We're going to feel like we were there from the beginning. And it's going to be all the BTS. What is she going to sell us? actually in relation to the wedding because she's got to sell her something. Oh my gosh, a wedding album maybe. We'll see.

I feel bad for saying she has to be pregnant. I don't mean that. I mean like in the culture it feels like that's what's coming. I also predict that Adele, we're not going to know, but she's going to start writing her next album because she's 37, which means 40 has to be coming.

Oh, so fun. She could even be writing it right now. I was going to predict that 40 is going to come out, but she's not, she's not that age, so it's not. Oh, that's a good one. alter time that is i really hope that one comes true because in the next few years i feel like i just need some adele she is like the opposite of like the pop styles putting out putting out she puts that quality but it takes and frustrating a long time i agree um with the white lotus casting

i feel like there's been rumors about charlie's going to be in it and i just think when there's been rumors there's always been fire with that specifically i feel like all the rumors from last year came true so i think she's going to be in it i'm trying to think who else could be in it i think they like who are some left field people who would love miriam margaly's you know what i feel like she could do it they always seem to have like an insane roster of like very diverse types of actors in it i would love that jonathan bailey i think he's too big i think he's too big i think we've lost the chance forever at having jonathan bailey pay i don't know who he'd play i was going to say like a rich asshole but actually i think he is too personable for that you know who i think could do it

and I think is like big enough but still could be like a big get, Olivia Coleman. Oh, that would be stunning. Yeah, she would be good. I've watched so much Olivia Coleman recently. I can't even tell you. I know, me too. Do you know what I, I've got one. And this is slightly out there, but I think Drake will go public with an AI girlfriend,

who would the first to do it in the first half the year. Then I think in the second half, his AI girlfriend will break up with him. Like defying its own programming, it will explode rather than spend another second in his company. I just think what tracks. for him, I think he's going to get an eye girlfriend. I think people are going to start putting steak on their face for skin care. We've had beef tallow and I think it's going to be next up literally slabs of beef on your face as a facial.

I wonder if something to do with like body trends actually being like being in a bigger body will start becoming in fashion because people are like reacting to the e-zempickness of everything and if people are going to come forward and be like, actually it's not cool to be skinny. yeah or like eye wrinkles or like what do they call them crow's feet which i think are just the nicest part of the face i love pros feet i think people will try and get those back i think there will be hopefully we'll get to that point people where do you know what it's weird that i look like i haven't aged a day in my 40 years of living i want my wrinkles back i want movement in my face maybe it'll be like buckle fat insertions i must exist already because i think people went too far and then realized

oh this is aging me quite a bit this i was going to lose this anyway i think people are there must be away. I think that's a pretty good list. But what I actually want to hear is all of your predictions for next year in the Spotify comments. We're going to reply. We're going to fave the ones we think will come true. And we might even read some of them out next year if they're extra compelling. Thank you so much for listening to Everything is Content this year. It's been the pleasure of our lives to report and analyze pop culture with you. Thank you for doing so. But if you haven't already, please do give us a follow on Instagram and TikTok at Everything is Content Pod. And And why not end the year by leaving us a review wherever you listen if you haven't already?

We'll see you on the Friday episode for our final episode of this year. Bye. Bye.