The List is already being adapted for TV with Adegoke as executive producer. The various cliffhangers and twists suggest it was written with this in mind. It occasionally feels as though she is trying to shoehorn too many characters and subplots into one tale, but we remain invested in her main protagonists’ journey. This nuanced exploration of celebrity culture and online toxicity should win Adegoke new fans. Utterly compelling, immersive and addictive” - Sara Collins, author of The Confessions of Frannie Langton Yomi Adegoke is a multi-award-winning journalist and author. She is currently a columnist at The Guardian and British Vogue and is the former host of the Women's Fiction Prize podcast. I’d always wanted to write about whisper networks and anonymous online lists that made allegations of abuse, basically since 2017. That was when I first saw one – there were several different lists at that time that came out concurrently and affected different industries, from journalism to music. As a feminist, I was like, this is amazing and important and people are speaking truth to power. It means women can get their stories out there and protect other women, in a way that HR and the legal system often hasn’t when it comes to abuse in the workplace. Then, on the other hand, being a journalist – I used to work at Channel 4 News, so there are regulations and you’re very cautious of liability and you need the facts before you can report on something. So, I always felt really conflicted and uneasy about those lists. I thought I’d write a long read on it at first, but the issue felt a bit fraught. About a year later, I thought I’d write a play, but that didn’t really work. Then, I thought maybe if the story around it was fictionalised, it would create more fruitful conversations. There’s so much that went into this novel that might not have gone into a non-fiction piece. Once you knew what form it would take, how difficult was the writing process? I was doing the most navel-gazing – I was on my Van Gogh shit. I painted so many self-portraits, because all I could really see was me?” I laugh, but she means it. Her paintings, she says, reveal her most natural talent.

To reach this entrance, enter the Royal Festival Hall via the Southbank Centre Square Doors. Take the JCB Glass Lift to Level 2 and exit to the Riverside Terrace. Turn right to find the Queen Elizabeth Hall main entrance. When you read the book you realize what an addictively bingeable TV show it would make. I know you’re creating and executive producing the series. What’s that been like so far? I’m sure those leading roles will be really sought-after. I saw that Sheila Atim and Arinzé Kene are narrating the audiobook? They’re incredible. So, Sheila and I share a best friend so I’ve known her for years. I’d had her in mind for Ola, specifically for the audio book, basically forever and I’d been meaning to ask her but then she announced she’d be in The Woman King [laughs]. I was like, oh god, her life’s changed and now I’m never going to be able to ask her. Then, I saw her at an event and asked her in passing – I didn’t even finish what I was saying, and she said, “Yomi, I’ll do it.” She’s excellent – her impressions of Frankie, Ola’s boss, are exceptional [laughs]. And Arinzé – [his play] Misty was amazing. I couldn’t stop speaking about it for like two years. Could we see them in the show, or do you have other actors in mind? You can also use the external lift near the Artists' Entrance on Southbank Centre Square to reach Mandela Walk, Level 2.Reading through her columns, watching her successfully debate at the Oxford Union (arguing against the rise of hookup culture) and absorbing her many podcast appearances, it’s obvious Adegoke’s perspective is sorely needed in the culture. Nonetheless, today she claims that she’s actually a perennial “fence sitter” devoid of spicy opinion. A persistent fear of being turned into a meme or cancelled has, she says, made her shrink away from social media while admitting she needs it to “curate” her online self. I'd describe this as a finger-on-the-pulse hot and buzzy book but also as one that could have been more polished as a fictional vehicle to carry the important social commentary and debate. cheap thrills). Is fiction alright, but for a book that can arguably be based on real stories (examples) of women speaking up about sexual abuse/assaults, to be told false accusations to be vengeful, is just harmful. Considering there are cases where these women aren't believed. That's where I begin to have problems with this book because even while it tried to do it with surprisingly interesting points of view and debates, it became boring, superficial narrating, annoying underdeveloped characters, and what the main point was.

Ola Olajide, a high-profile journalist, is marrying the love of her life in one month's time. Young, beautiful, successful – she and her fiancé Michael seem to have it all. everything about this book just made me very sad. what was the message? sometimes, very rarely, men are falsely accused of bad things. and it might be because they're cheating on you with a woman who has an insane boyfriend. and sometimes, very rarely, other men are accused of things (homophobia, violence) and it's TRUE but it's nuanced because they're actually secretly gay themselves!!! and if you call them out for the ways they were homophobic while in the closet, they might kill themselves so be careful. Bizarre [ laughs]. I literally never wanted to do TV again—I had a really difficult experience a couple of years ago with TV, but A24 were so encouraging and supportive and wanted me to be involved. It’s really early days now, but it’s been so exciting discussing it and making a start.

When you read the book you realise what an addictively bingeable TV show it would make. I know you’re creating and executive producing the series. What’s that been like so far?

Why couldn't he have just been the love-to-hate-him book villain that his personality clearly wanted him to be??? why do we end on good terms?? In addition, it's not ideal that the two men we get to hear about that are on The List (Michael and Lewis), have been put there for malicious reasons. This plays into the tired (and incorrect) narrative that women frequently accuse innocent men. I found that quite disappointing, to be honest. Also, we shouldn't only care about abuse if it happens to ourselves, or to those we care about, which is how I felt about Ola's reaction following Celie's disclosure. I think that with more considered editorial work, and some discussion with real victims, this could have been a better book. As with her character Lewis? Adegoke writes him as an ageing footballer accused of rampant homophobia who turns out to be secretly gay. “Lewis was a really interesting one for me, because that is quite literally an example I’ve seen play out on more than one list where it’s complicated by sexuality 100%.” The author clearly lays out that less than 1% of men accused are impacted while all victims are harmed 100% of the time. The debacle with Meg thee Stallion after being a victim of gun violence is all the proof I need that wr don't need to be worried about the impact of this type of public shaming on perpetrators.

It began as a crowdsourced collection of names and somehow morphed into an anonymous account posting allegations on social media. For Ola, I wanted someone who people could see themselves in. Ola is a feminist, a progressive who assumes she has the right answers and will always do the right thing. I wanted to explore what happens when someone with such strong beliefs and values is placed in a situation that truly tests their values. Rather than lazily lulling readers into an “It’s cancel culture gone mad” trap, The List holds up a mirror to our internal biases and deeply held beliefs around a number of prejudices, forcing us to ask ourselves: if someone close to you – say, your fiancé – was accused of an act that shattered your entire sense of morality in a public forum, how far would you go to defend them? Should you, at all? I’d always wanted to write about whisper networks and anonymous online lists that made allegations of abuse, basically since 2017. That was when I first saw one—there were several different lists at that time that came out concurrently and affected different industries, from journalism to music. As a feminist, I was like, this is amazing and important and people are speaking truth to power. It means women can get their stories out there and protect other women, in a way that HR and the legal system often hasn’t when it comes to abuse in the workplace. Then, on the other hand, being a journalist—I used to work at Channel 4 News, so there are regulations and you’re very cautious of liability and you need the facts before you can report on something. So, I always felt really conflicted and uneasy about those lists. I thought I’d write a long read on it at first, but the issue felt a bit fraught. About a year later, I thought I’d write a play, but that didn’t really work. Then, I thought maybe if the story around it was fictionalized, it would create more fruitful conversations. There’s so much that went into this novel that might not have gone into a non-fiction piece. Bizarre [laughs]. I literally never wanted to do TV again – I had a really difficult experience a couple of years ago with TV, but A24 were so encouraging and supportive and wanted me to be involved. It’s really early days now, but it’s been so exciting discussing it and making a start. I’m sure those leading roles will be really sought after. I saw that Sheila Atim and Arinzé Kene are narrating the audio book?From ambiguous faux pas to unequivocally abysmal transgressions, we’ve all sat in the peanut gallery, casting aspersions on those who have let us and others down, or callously abused their power, or in some cases, those we couldn’t wait to see take a fall. Slay In Your Lane: In Conversation with Yomi Adegoke and Elizabeth Uviebinené". Glasgow Women's Library. 23 August 2018 . Retrieved 10 November 2018. The List is, in many ways, a social media novel, and it looks at the idea of people, and women especially, feeling pressure to be “consistent” online. Why was that something you wanted to explore? The MCs weren’t likable at all. Not the main or side characters so I barely even cared about them. The issues mentioned in this book were not treated with respect. I didn’t feel any passion or love for the story from the author in the words. It feels very mechanical.