A bright pink cultural history of Barbie
The Story
The Times
3.9 • 1.6K Ratings
🗓️ 18 July 2023
⏱️ 29 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
It’s one of the most anticipated movies of the year. After months of bright pink promo ‘Barbie’ - starring Margot Robbie and directed by Greta Gerwig - finally hits the big screen this week. Little girls have been playing with the doll for 64 years... but she's not without her controversies. So, is life in plastic really still fantastic?
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Guest: Hadley Freeman, columnist, The Times.
Host: Jane Mulkerrins, Associate Editor, The Times magazine.
Clips: Warner Bros. Pictures, Aqua, CNN, BBC, News 12, Barbie Collectors, CBC.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | If you grew up in the 90s, chances are you'll recognize this song instantly. |
| 0:24.2 | You might even know all the lyrics. |
| 0:30.7 | It was by a little-known Danish band called Aqua, and one of the many reasons why it became |
| 0:37.0 | so popular wasn't just because of its catchy tune, but because it featured someone, millions |
| 0:43.3 | of young girls and women all around the world grew up to love and loathe. |
| 0:49.8 | She appeals to your absolute worst base instincts. |
| 0:57.1 | You know, she is a sexy doll with sexy boobs and sexy hair and sexy outfits. |
| 1:14.7 | In the 64 years that she's been around, Barbie has been on a lifetime of adventures. |
| 1:21.0 | She's had more than 250 careers, traveled into space, and run for President multiple times. |
| 1:28.0 | Who knew Barbie beating Hillary Clinton to the punch by announcing an all-female ticket? |
| 1:34.3 | For the first time ever, Mattel is pairing its presidential Barbie with a female vice-president |
| 1:40.9 | Over the years, she's been blonde and brunette, white and black. |
| 1:46.0 | She's been curvy, petite, she's used a wheelchair and had a prosthetic leg. |
| 1:51.6 | And today, Barbie is more inclusive and more diverse than ever before. |
| 1:56.8 | Strictly winner Rose Ailing Ellis has teamed up with Barbie to release their first doll with hearing aids |
| 2:03.3 | and as parts of a new collection of dolls, including a kendo with vitiligo, a doll with a prosthetic limb |
| 2:10.2 | and another with a wheelchair. |
| 2:14.0 | And if the 1990s dedicated a song to her, 2023 is taking things up a notch. |
| 2:23.2 | Some things have been happening that might be related. |
| 2:27.1 | A movie about Barbie and her plastic, fantastic universe is tipped to be the hottest film this summer. |
| 2:45.6 | So, what is it about an 11.5-inch doll invented more than six decades ago that still appeals? |
| 2:56.6 | How has she remained one of the top-selling toys globally, even in an era of high-tech gadgets and social media? |
... |
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