Why we wear what we do: Desert Island Dress podcast gets guests talking about the meaning behind their favourite garments

“Often, when people would talk about their favourite songs they’d link in garments they were wearing at the time. Garments seem to be a big part of that memory register.”

It sparked the idea of doing a similar programme based solely around clothing — a project which stuck with Flynn after she moved back to Ireland and became a lecturer in fashion and luxury goods at TU Dublin.

“I had been thinking of the ‘Desert Island Dress’ project for quite some time. At the end of 2022, my mam passed away and I read the book Faith, Hope And Carnage. It’s an interview series between Nick Cave and Sean O’Hagan the music journalist. Grief, hope and creativity is a big part of the book. After reading that I thought, ‘It’s time’.”

She teamed up with a colleague, the consumption studies lecturer Dr Dee Duffy to bring it to life.

“We’ve worked together for the last few years and have a lot of discussions surrounding fashion and why we wear what we do,” Dr Duffy says. “Then one day I went into the office and Katriona was talking about this project. I had done podcasting before and thought it would be great as a conversation piece.

“One week we interview a guest and then the next week it’s just us two having a post-analysis chat.”

The duo ask their guests to choose four items of clothing to speak about on the podcast; this may be something from their childhood, a particularly beautiful garment or even a comfort piece that makes them feel safe.

Flynn says: “It’s not just about fashion, it’s about memories and storytelling. Sometimes fashion can be quite isolating, like a private members club almost.”

Dr Duffy says: “This is about everyday stories. Everybody gets up and gets dressed in the morning. We want to know why they chose that garment, why they held onto it. It’s an insight into those formative moments in life, transitionary periods, ways people see themselves.”

Their first guest, Dublin drag queen Davina Devine, chatted about her first drag outfit from 2002, telling the podcast: “It was like sportswear meets fashion, everything was asymmetric. So half-leisure, half-glamour. I wore denim hot pants and a grey off-the-shoulder top with a neon pink logo. I thought, ‘This is it!’ I was only 19 and I was very body conscious. When I look back now I was actually so skinny. As you get older your perception of how you look changes.”

The conversation proved educational for the hosts. Flynn says: “We learned so much about the drag community through Davina and the pieces she brought up.”

There is a lot of emotion surrounding our clothing, something the podcast taps into.

“It’s a very emotive process, I think it takes people by surprise,” Flynn says.

“We recommend everyone does it as an exercise. My friend sent me a picture of a T-shirt she had for 10 years which she then put on her 10-year-old daughter. It was a lovely continuation.”

​Find the Desert Island Dress podcast on Spotify and desertislanddress.com