Could it be magic?: Inside Britain's boyband machine

<p>The 90's is often heralded as the era of Blur, Oasis, Pulp - but this decade belongs as much to boybands as it does to Britpop. But what was behind these manufactured groups? What does this era reveal about Britain's relationship with class and masculinity? And will Robbie Williams' legacy be a CGI monkey?</p><br /><p>Tom Gatti is joined by senior commissioning editor at the New Statesman, Anna Leskiewicz and writer Emma Garland.</p><br /><p>Read: <a href="https://www.newstatesman.com/culture/film/2025/01/robbie-williams-anti-redemption-arc" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Robbie Williams’ anti-redemption arc</a>, by Emma Garland</p><p><strong>LISTEN AD-FREE:</strong></p><p>📱<a href="https://www.newstatesman.com/politics/2022/06/newapp" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Download the New Statesman app</a></p><br /><p><strong>MORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:</strong></p><p>❓ <a href="https://www.newstatesman.com/podcasts/2022/10/you-ask-us" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Ask a question</a> – we answer them every Friday</p><p>⏰ <a href="https://morningcall.substack.com/subscribe" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Get our daily politics newsletter</a> every morning</p><p>✍️ <a href="http://saturdayread.substack.com/subscribe" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Enjoy the best of our writing</a> via email every Saturday</p><hr /><p style="color: grey; font-size: 0.75em;"> Hosted on Acast. See <a href="https://acast.com/privacy" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: grey;" target="_blank">acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>