On this episode of the podcast, Emma sits down with porn performer, director, editor and producer, Vex Ashley, to find out how she went from cam-girl to running her own independent porn platform, and why she considers sex such an interesting and important topic for us to discuss.

After rejecting being demoted to ‘muse’ while at art school and then getting naked online as a cam girl, Vex started up the independent porn platform called Four Chambers back in 2013 in order to expand the idea of what sex on film could do, be and say.

The platform explores the intersection between sex, psychology, technology, art history and well everything in between and Vex is both behind and in front of the camera, something she sees as key to the way she works.

"I'm pretty hardline on this", she told us previously, “if you're making money off of asking people to fuck on film, you should yourself have fucked on film.”

Book tickets to the next live recording of the Sex Talks podcast here.

And subscribe to the Sex Talks Substack here.

So we’ve all heard of attachment styles right?

Attachment theory tells us that the emotional attachments we form with our primary caregivers in infancy can influence our interpersonal relationships later in life.

Whether we’re anxious, secure, avoidant or disorganised, our attachment style can have a pretty big impact on how we show up in our romantic relationships.

Since attachment styles have of late been getting a lot of airtime on social media and we wanted to understand more about the science behind the theory and delve a little deeper into the research underpinning the internet’s favourite relationship theory.

To help us do just, Emma was joined in the podcast this week by psychotherapist and author of ‘Anxiously Attached: Becoming More Secure in Life and Love’, Jessica Baum.

You can take the attachment style quiz here; find out more about Jessica's work here and buy her brilliant book here.

Book tickets to the next live recording of the Sex Talks podcast here.

And subscribe to the Sex Talks Substack here.

In this episode, Emma sits down with writer and author, Elise Loehnen, to discuss her best-selling new book, On Our Best Behaviour: The Price Women Pay to be Good.

Together they unpack the web of myths and cultural expectations that prop up patriarchy and keep women chasing an ideal of perfection that is neither achievable nor really desirable.

"Women," Loehnen explains, "'have been trained for goodness. Men, meanwhile, have been trained for power.'

Elise is the former chief content officer of Gwyneth Paltrow’s company Goop, where she oversaw its blog, newsletter, book imprint and podcast as well as its Netflix documentary series, “The Goop Lab.”

In 2020, Loehen decided to step down from her position with the company and On Our Best Behaviour is her firstly solely by-lined book. She has ghostwritten 12 other titles.

Book tickets to the next live recording of the Sex Talks podcast here.

And subscribe to the Sex Talks Substack here.

What does the number of hours women spend doing housework have to do with the orgasm gap?!

According to bestselling author and the founder of the Everyday sexism campaign, Laura Bates, a lot.

In this episode, Emma sits down with Laura to discuss the systemic ways in which gender inequality remains entrenched in our society - from the social pressure on women to deprioritise their pleasure, to the routinisation of casual sexism, to the rise of extremist, misogynistic ideologies.

But it is not all doom and gloom, they end the discussion looking at the reasons for staying hopeful and what we can all do to fix the system, not the women.

Book tickets to the next live recording of the Sex Talks podcast here.

And subscribe to the Sex Talks Substack here.

In this episode, Emma sits down with award-winning comedian and best-selling author, Sara Pascoe, to discuss the topic of her recent book, 'Sex, Power, Money'.

Together they explore how capitalism shows up in the bedroom, how money shapes modern day relationship dynamics... and why some women still want men to buy them dinner; why there remains so much stigma around those who work in the sex industry and why Sara is still is still afraid of men.

Did writing the book help her overcome her own sexism towards men? Listen to find out.

Book tickets to the next live recording of the Sex Talks podcast here.

And subscribe to the Sex Talks Substack here.

*TW: This episode discusses eating disorders and sexual assault.*

"If your experience of pleasure happens in your body, but you're in a body that you hate.... how are you supposed to access pleasure? You have to pick whether you're going to punish your body forever or if you're going to forgive it."

In this episode of the podcast, Emma is joined by her (former) sex therapist, Aleks Trkulija, to chat through some of the key issues they covered in the therapy room, including:

• Should you have sex when you don't want to?
• How do body image issues affect sexual function and desire?
• Why does shame play such a prominent role in sex?
• What are the most important things we should be unlearning when it comes to our relationship to sex?
• What is a pleasure journal?!
• And how can we improve the relationship we have with our bodies?

If you are affected by any of the themes discussed in this podcast Samaritans are open 24/7 for anyone who needs to talk. You can visit some Samaritans branches in person. Samaritans also have a Welsh Language Line on 0808 164 0123 (7pm–11pm every day).

116 123 (freephone)

jo@samaritans.org

Freepost SAMARITANS LETTERS

samaritans.org

Are you dating with a scarcity mindset?

Do you end up chasing people who just aren’t that interested in you?

Are you staying in a relationship, whether platonic or romantic, that doesn’t make you happy, just because you don’t believe there is anything, anyone better out there?

You can change that. You can cultivate a new mindset - one that will help you find and build the relationships you truly want in your life.

2024 is the year to stop settling and in this episode, Emma-Louise is joined by manifesting queen, Roxie Nafousi, who is here to help you do just that.

With special thanks to Tinder UK for sponsoring this podcast episode and the Sex Talks Live series partner, The London Edition.

If you want to attend a LIVE recording of the Sex Talks podcast head over to this link.

In this episode, Emma-Louise is joined by evolutionary anthropologist, Dr Anna Machin, to discuss the topic of love - why we love, how we love, what's happening in our brains and in our bodies when we fall in love....

If you've ever felt like you're going a little crazy when in the early stages of romance, Dr Machin explains why. In a similar vein, she also breaks down some of the most enduring cultural myths surrounding love and romance, outlining why we get this topic so very wrong. The idea of 'the one'? Bullsh*t. But there is a biological explanation for the notion of soulmates.

If you're curious to learn more about the ideas discussed in this episode make sure to read Dr Machin's book, Why We Love, which we found fascinating.

Finally, if you want to join a live recording of the Sex Talks podcast you can find details here.