🗣️ Join the chat! Let us know what you think of the show, what you want more of, or what you think we’ve got totally wrong. Honest opinions, spicy takes, and topic suggestions always welcome.

Jo here (with Tasha, eventually)! Buckle up for episode 13 of Life's a SHITSHOW. This week, we’re chatting about my new book launch, the absolute farce that was today’s UK budget, and a bit of what’s hot in the news, plus the usual dose of rants and laughs.

We kick off with Tasha running late (as always), a Pepsi crisis, and a bit of football banter before jumping into the government’s latest tax grab disguised as a budget. We get straight into what the new minimum wage and tax threshold freezes really mean for small business owners and working families like ours—spoiler: it’s not good news. We don’t hold back on council tax, landlord taxes, or the sugar tax either.

Then we dive into the reality of claiming benefits, the stigma, and the real-life impact of PIP (Personal Independence Payment). I open up about living with ADHD, menopause, and why self-employment is a lifeline for people like me and Tasha. There’s plenty of honest chat about mental health, the welfare system, and why the system never seems to work for the people who genuinely need it.

We also cover:

• The cost of living madness and why energy bill “reductions” are just smoke and mirrors
• Social media banter (big up Aldi’s social team)
• My new book, What The Actual F*ck, and why writing about menopause, divorce, and cancel culture is so cathartic
• The joys of open-plan hotel bathrooms (spoiler: there are none)
• Christmas tree plans and why traditional red, green, and gold will always win
• A random world record involving pickle balls (don’t ask)
• A quick update on Candice Sewings and her global podcast drama

• The budget’s a shambles and working people are footing the bill (again)
• Claiming benefits is a minefield, especially with hidden disabilities and mental health
• Self-employment is often the only way for neurodiverse people to thrive
• There’s power in speaking up and sharing the messy, honest truth about life
• Christmas trees are serious business (and so is good banter)

Thanks for listening! Subscribe, leave us a comment, and let us know if you’ve read the book or if you’re also putting your tree up early. We’ll be back next Wednesday to help you get through the rest of the week, because let’s face it, life’s a shitshow, but at least we can laugh about it together.

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Amazon Books: What the Actual F*ck!

🗣️ Join the chat! Let us know what you think of the show, what you want more of, or what you think we’ve got totally wrong. Honest opinions, spicy takes, and topic suggestions always welcome.

Welcome 👋

Tasha and I are back, Pepsi Max in the wine glass, Yorkshire Tea on drip and absolutely no plans to disappear. If you were hoping we had gone quiet, unlucky.

Episode Summary

This week I share where I am with the book, endless proofreads and checking every line for defamation and libel while my brain keeps looping the same chapters. Tasha is riding high on Arsenal’s 4–1 win over Spurs while I am still catching the football on TikTok because I cannot get UK TV where I am.

We start with your comments, Christmas adverts and the “crap wrap with sprinkles” reaction, before I ambush Tasha with my AI “Michael Jackson Christmas” advert. She does not see it coming and it instantly becomes her favourite festive ad.

Then we get into the heavy stuff. Tasha talks through the UK’s first approved puberty blocker trial for children and why we both see it as child abuse, grooming and lifelong medicalisation. We share our own “tomboy” childhoods and how, in today’s climate, we would probably be pushed towards hormones instead of given time, love and proper mental health support.

From there we move into Candace Owens, Charlie Kirk’s assassination and the Becoming Brigitte investigation. We talk about the Macrons, French and Israeli links, TPUSA money trails and why we do not think Candace is “cracking up” at all. We see a determined, grieving woman with receipts, deadman packages and a very real target on her back.

We zoom out into Gaza, Zionism, global elites, digital IDs and the way words like “transphobic” and “antisemite” are thrown around to shut people up while children and civilians are harmed. We also rant about Labour’s budget, “Rachel from accounts”, vaccines, food, sugar, big pharma and why I now live on a “no label” diet while still necking Pepsi Max.

If you are tired of being gaslit by governments, media and institutions, this one is for you.

Key Takeaways

• My book is in its final proofread and my “tism” brain will not leave it alone.
• Tasha is buzzing over Arsenal 4–1 Spurs while I am still relying on TikTok for football.
• We see the new puberty blocker trial for children as abuse and grooming, not care.
• Our own “tomboy” stories show how easily kids could be pushed into medical pathways.
• We think Candace Owens is uncovering serious corruption around Charlie Kirk and the Macrons.
• Language is being weaponised to silence people while real harm continues.
• Digital IDs, global agendas and UK politics are turning into one big shitshow.

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🗣️ Join the chat! Let us know what you think of the show, what you want more of, or what you think we’ve got totally wrong. Honest opinions, spicy takes, and topic suggestions always welcome.

Welcome 👋

This week on Life’s a Shitshow it is just me and Tasha, no news, no doomscrolling and a lot of Christmas chaos. We are recording on a Thursday, nails hanging on for dear life, and leaning fully into festive adverts, troll comments and why we both feel so much lighter after stepping away from the headlines.

Episode Summary

In this episode we start with real life: ripped builder‑gel nails, clearing the house ready for Christmas trees, and why not watching the news for a week has made such a difference to our mood. We also celebrate the reaction to last week’s Michael Jackson episode, with thousands of views and shorts going a bit wild.

Tasha reads out some of the best and worst YouTube comments, including the men who appear in our notifications just to tell us they “do not care” while still typing essays. We talk about vitiligo, autopsy reports, double standards and why we are not here to tiptoe around people who cannot use the scroll button.

Then we move into full Christmas mode. I have lined up a selection of current UK Christmas adverts plus my all‑time favourite from ten years ago. Tasha has not seen most of them, so you get her genuine first reactions. We rate John Lewis, Waitrose, Tesco, Aldi and more, talk about why Aldi never miss with their campaigns, and compare short, punchy ads with the ones that feel like a mini film in the middle of your evening telly.

My personal favourite is the “Nan on the town” advert, which hits both of us hard for different reasons. We talk about loneliness, intergenerational friendships and how much those older family members mean to us. Somewhere in the middle we also manage to cover Bluetooth “Keir Starmer is a wanker” announcements, the idea of creating our own rival Christmas adverts for the Facebook page and memories of our old network marketing days where everything was a competition.

We wrap up with shout outs to Deb’s book Letters and Avil’s new salon in Spalding, why supporting small local businesses matters, and some ideas for future episodes: autism and neurodivergent kids, the education system, menopause, raising teenagers and empty nest syndrome.

Key Takeaways

• A week away from the news has made both of us feel noticeably lighter and happier.
• The Michael Jackson episode and shorts have taken off, bringing in a wave of new listeners and some very vocal commenters.
• We are not here to entertain bad‑faith arguments in the comments; if you do not care, you can keep scrolling.
• UK Christmas adverts are basically a national sport, and Aldi continue to nail the humour and heart.
• The “Nan on the town” advert is a perfect mix of loneliness, connection and proper messy nights out with your favourite older relative.
• We are planning a head‑to‑head Christmas advert challenge of our own, with listeners voting on the winner.
• Supporting small businesses like Deb’s book and Avil’s salon is one of the best ways to push back against big corporations.
• Future episodes will dig into autism, neurodivergence, menopause, raising teens and what happens when the kids finally leave home.

Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/lifesashitshow

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lifesashitshow_/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCUM54nmV343FFp8YkcnZPTw/

Website: https://lifesashitshow.com