Grap Grrrlz

This episode has it all: poor mental health, burnout, bad sound quality with a can-do attitude. We also talk a little bit about wrestling too, specifically our trip to see Eve's Wrestlequeendom 2 and our thoughts on Session Goth Martina, Charlie Morgan's farewell, and our introduction to Stardom. But mostly we talk about a very relatable subject: when you are too depressed to watch wrestling, with some additional rants about capitalism, chats about internalised misogyny, and Gentleman Jack. Content warnings for talk about the diet industry and fatphobia as we absolutely tear down the abhorrent current Cancer Research fat shaming ads. I swear this is a wrestling podcast.

This is a real emotional episode as we pay tribute to one of our fave wrestlers and lover of butts and meat: Kris Wolf. We talk through the emotional rollercoaster which was her retirement show at Pro-Wrestling Eve and why it was maybe our favourite wrestling show of all time. Seeing her friends say goodbye to her in the ring was a LOT. Friendships in wrestling is honestly what attracted us to this ridiculous form of entertainment forever. The loyalty, emotional bonds, jealousy, and inevitable betrayal ending nothing but deep-seated respect is a thing of beauty and keeps us coming back for more. From our love of Kris Wolf to saying goodbye to Dean Ambrose, to why fans lack of respect for Sasha Banks is based on racism and sexism, to why all wrestlers should join a union. It's a real humdinger.

Zines and wrestling are our two loves and in this episode we chat diy self-publishing and who controls the narrative of wrestling history with Heather Bandenburg. Heather is a wrestler, a ref, a zinester, wrestling historian, and all round rebel grrrl hero and we chat about not knowing who the Undertaker is and why it doesn't matter and her upcoming book Unladylike: a Grrl's Guide to Wrestling.

The first live wrestling show we ever attended was a Burning Hearts show, so it's fitting that they are our first ever guests on Grap Grrrlz! Burning Hearts are an inclusive womens wrestling collective based in London, and Jane, Heather, Kayla, Paloma, and Mischa join us to talk about running things in a diy way. From finding venues, running training sessions, and putting on shows, Burning Hearts' diy ethos runs throughout. We chat about the practicalities of creating a safe space for women to train and learn from each other, and how it's really not important to even know who The Undertaker is at your first wrestling session. Fun fact: did you know that resident Grap Grrrl Shahnaz is currently training with Burning Hearts? We spend a good 15 minutes of this episode describing in heartfelt joyous detail the day that Shahnaz made her debut in the ring. Hosted by Holly Casio and Shahnaz Zarif. Music production by George Phillips

Let's be real, Total Divas was our gateway into the world of wrestling and we won't hear a bad word against it. In our second episode we chat all things Total Divas and the levels of fiction and kayfabe in reality tv. And I mean, if you don't watch Total Divas, are you even a WWE fan? We chat about how the show foreshadowed Daniel Bryan's smug vegan fascist heel turn years before it happened in the ring how those luxury holiday episodes seem like total nightmares, and the absolute wonder that is Natty. Hosted by Holly Casio and Shahnaz Zarif. Music production by George Phillips

Holly and Shahnaz used to play in a queer feminist Buffy the Vampire Slayer themed punk band (it was as amazing as it sounds), and they watched wrestling in the tour van until their obsession took hold. The first episode of Grap Grrrlz looks at what it’s like to step outside of the queer diy punk bubble and into the world of wrestling. Holly and Shahnaz discuss what to do when wrestling shows feel unwelcoming, how to get into fandom without caring about being seen as a fake geek girl, and the wonder of Total Divas as a 101 guide to women on the wwe main roster. Some important disclaimers: We skim over the reality of diy punk communities a little bit in this episode. In an effort to highlight how jarring it can feel to go to cis white male dominated wrestling shows for the first time, we don’t fully acknowledge how diy punk communities are also rife with racism, abuse, sexism, with many people feeling marginalised and unsafe in those spaces. Our point still stands that wrestling spaces are worse though. Hosted by Holly Casio and Shahnaz Zarif. Music production by George Phillips.

Grap Grrrlz theme song. Produced by George Phillips