Collins Word of The Year; Iceland's Banned Xmas Ad; & Why Do 46% of Men Remove Their Body Hair?

It's World Kindness Day and Dolly has a beautiful poem to kick us off, whilst Pandora has a new Spotify suggestion for everyone who went nutty for French Chill (a lot of you, quite frankly).


We discuss some shocking stats from intelligence agency Mintel: 46% of men remove their body hair, up from 36% in 2017. Columnist Barbara Ellen calls this "an equality of anxiety", whilst we proffer different takes for why we think this is happening. Is it the fusion of porn culture and pop culture? Or is it the pressures of hyper-masculinity?


Also this week we discuss Collins dictionary's word of the year - who use software to scan 4.5 billion words on the internet to find the ones that have made the most impact that year. The winner for 2018 was 'single-use.' But what were the other contenders? Are you a plogger? And, sidenote: can YOU do the Skibidi? With over 62million views, we implore you to give this Russian rave video a watch on YouTube.


Lastly on this week's agenda, Iceland's banned Christmas ad, which has been banned on grounds of being political, after the supermarket re-branded a Greenpeace advert warning against the dangers of palm oil. Should the ad have been banned? And what do we know of palm oil?


E-mail: thehighlowshow@gmail.com
Tweet: @thehighlowshow


Good Morning Jazz on Spotify https://open.spotify.com/user/spotify/playlist/37i9dQZF1DX71VcjjnyaBQ?si=fPT3z_VuSti-bZBSfccYPQ


Like Women, Men Are Now Suffering in Their Pursuit of the 'Perfect Body', by Barbara Ellen for The Observer https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/nov/11/men-suffer-as-much-as-women-in-their-pursuit-of-the-perfect-body


Victoria's Secret is Trying to Change With The Times. Or is it? By Vanessa Friedman for The New York Times https://www.nytimes.com/2018/11/09/fashion/victorias-secret-liberation-in-corsets-and-spike-heels.html


Nick Cave on grief, for The Red Hand Files https://www.theredhandfiles.com/communication-dream-feeling/


Yes I Have White Parents. But I Have African Ancestry Too, by Anthony Ekundayo Lennon for The Guardian https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/nov/10/white-parents-african-ancestry-anthony-ekundayo-lennon


Anthony Ekundayo Lennon and The Left's Dilemma About Race, by Toby Young for The Spectator https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/p06lh7gk/informer-series-1-1-no-sleep-till-brooklyn


The Informer, on BBC iPlayer https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/p06lh7gk/informer-series-1-1-no-sleep-till-brooklyn


The Sinner Season 2, on Netflix https://www.netflix.com/title/80175802


To The Woman Crying Uncontrollably In The Next Stall, by Kim Addonizio