The Real Does Not Efface Itself

Redefining Fashion, Ageing and the Future of Beauty

A podcast for Second Cup Story

8 hrs ago • 

Alex B./ Alex LR

Solor and the male ballet dancer

On the enduring legacy of Baryshnikov and the evolution of male virtuosity in ballet

Oct 12 • 

Alex B./ Alex LR

September 2025

Reviews that forget the book

When an Amazon review turns into gossip column

Sep 30 • 

Alex B./ Alex LR

When the concert stage becomes a catwalk

From Callas to Yuja Wang, couture and classical music strike a stylish chord.

Sep 24 • 

Alex B./ Alex LR

Navigating a terminal illness: the quiet grace of privacy

A reflection on illness and whether our pain belongs to social media

Sep 5 • 

Alex B./ Alex LR

1

August 2025

Enclothed at home

Why dressing up in private matters

Aug 17 • 

Alex B./ Alex LR

Flamboyant in the future tense

A Gen Z vision, a sixty-plus model, and the art of wearing someone else’s tomorrow

Aug 13 • 

Alex B./ Alex LR

1

July 2025

The mirror of our making: what the AI Guess model controversy really says about us

Who is really behind AI-generated beauty?

Jul 29 • 

Alex B./ Alex LR

Luxury and the weight of silence

Luxury brands speak of quality and sustainability, meanwhile workers pay the invisible price.

Jul 18 • 

Alex B./ Alex LR

The Substack dream and what they will not tell you

Why Substack's 'success stories' cannot be trusted

Jul 3 • 

Alex B./ Alex LR

1

June 2025

The shadow that walks with us

On mortality, denial and the strange intimacy of death

Jun 14 • 

Alex B./ Alex LR

1

May 2025

Keaton and the Kids: On Comedy That Crosses Generations

What a silent film screening taught me about humour, heritage, and the strange magic of falling down well.

May 30 • 

Alex B./ Alex LR