beth ditto basically rules Originally uploaded by mo pie I had to recycle my favorite Beth Ditto fashion picture, because I have just heard the awesome news that Beth is designing a fashion line for Evans, a size 14-32 retailer in the UK. That’s right, I said designing, all Project Runway and stuff. That definitely […]

Filed under: Beth Ditto, Celebrities, Fashion, Fat Positive, International | 17 Comments »

We wrote about Deborah Voight all the way back in 2006. You might remember her as the opera singer who was fired for being too fat, and who had gastric bypass surgery. She was recently rehired to sing the same role that she was fired for, back in the day. The New York Times has […]

Filed under: Art, Celebrities, International, Music, Theater, Video, WLS | 22 Comments »

Has there been more uproar lately about celebrities gaining and losing weight, or have I just noticed it more? Three posts I ran across today in quick succession: 1. “Carnie Wilson’s War” (with video from the Tyra Banks show, of course) is Carnie’s battle with her weight after her highly publicized weight loss surgery. 2. […]

Filed under: Britney Spears, Carnie Wilson, Celebrities, Feminism, Guest Post, International, Oprah, Tyra Banks, Victoria Beckham, WLS | 18 Comments »

It was only a matter of time before fat people were being blamed for people who are starving, as if we could send all our Big Macs and Oreo cookies directly to them. UN food agency chief Jacques Diouf said today that billions of dollars are being wasted on feeding obese people in the West […]

Filed under: Advocacy, Fatism, Food, International | 46 Comments »

Originally uploaded by mo pie Or “overweight nude” as CNN calls it. The artist is Lucien Freud, and the painting was just sold for $33.6 million, making it the most expensive painting ever sold by a living artist. The model for the painting is Sue Tilley. (A picture of her can be seen here; the […]

Filed under: Art, Cold Hard Cash, Fat Positive, Fatism, International | 36 Comments »

I’ve been going through my mailbox from when I was out of town, and here’s one of the stories that I missed: sixteen-year-old Chloe Marshall won the title of “Miss Surrey” and is the first plus-size girl to compete for the title of Miss England. “Everybody thinks you have to be a tall, slim blonde […]

Filed under: Fat Positive, Fatism, Feminism, International, Meta | 41 Comments »

venus of willendorf Originally uploaded by mo pie Last week, I was in Vienna. One of the things we did there was to visit the Museum of Natural History, specifically to see the 25,000-year-old Venus of Willendorf. (I had no idea this piece was in Vienna; my husband was the mastermind behind the pilgrimage.) I […]

Filed under: Art, Feminism, International, Old Timey, Personal | 16 Comments »

Sometimes I feel that items for this blog are self-explanatory. Like the description of this Japanese video game. A young woman who was once svelte and lovely has binged on too many sweets and pastries. As a result of extreme indulgence, her waistline has blossomed and her weight has surpassed 220lbs (100kg). When she reaches […]

Filed under: Fatism, Feminism, International, Kids, Tidbit, Weight Loss | 30 Comments »

In 2004, Aishwarya Rai was called the most beautiful woman in the world. And hey, I’ve seen Bride and Prejudice; I don’t disagree. But apparently, she’s… well, Bollywood Fat. In 2005, one source posted a picture of her showing her belly and said in tones of shock and horror: Is this is the petite, pretty […]

Filed under: Celebrities, Gossip, International, Movies | 29 Comments »

the big ballet Originally uploaded by mo pie In the comments, msruth mentioned Russia’s “Big Ballet” and on her advice, I went to go take a look and read all about them. The Big Ballet is a troupe of dancers from Russia who weigh a minimum of 220 pounds each. I highly recommend clicking on […]

Filed under: Advocacy, Art, BFD Classic, Exercise, Fat Positive, Feel Good Friday, International, Theater | 18 Comments »

It’s a hit song and dance on the Ivory Coast, and it’s all about shaking… well, your bobaraba. While the dance has been embraced by both sexes, DJ Mix says it was inspired by women. “We made it as a tribute to women, because African women are defined by the shape of their bottoms,” he […]

Filed under: Fat Positive, International, Music, Race & Ethnicity, Video | 5 Comments »

Here is a little hard-to-hear clip of Mika (as in “Big Girl, You Are Beautiful“) with Beth Ditto at the Brit Awards. (Thanks to cynth for finding this better quality clip for us!) Here’s a better picture of Beth’s red dress. Hopefully that will make up for the fact that there was a porn link […]

Filed under: Beth Ditto, International, Music, Tidbit, Video | 11 Comments »

Kira Cochrane, a British writer with a column in the Guardian, hates the diet industry. And although she is “at best, reluctant about diets, and, at worst, disgusted by the very notion,” she’s going on a diet. And here is her introduction to the new column, and it is is definitely worth a read. I’m […]

Filed under: International, Magazines, Media, Weight Loss | 32 Comments »

In the world of health care, that is. We die sooner, so we cost less! Okay, so that’s not exactly a generalization that anyone around here agrees with, but hell. It’s better than “you fat people are costing me health care money and that’s why it is acceptable that I am shaming you.” Here’s the […]

Filed under: Cold Hard Cash, Health, International, Science | 19 Comments »

Today, Kristen brought this article to my attention, and it’s good news for those of us who believe in trying to be healthy at every size. Taking exercise, not drinking too much alcohol, eating enough fruit and vegetables and not smoking can add up to 14 years to your life, a study says…The findings held […]

Filed under: Food, Health, International, Science | 16 Comments »

This weekend, a car full of us drove to Los Angeles and back. On the return trip, we stopped at In-N-Out Burger, which sparked a conversation about fast food chains. We agreed that while the ubiquitous McDonald’s is not that tempting, In-N-Out is another story. We were happy the only one in town is at […]

Filed under: Advertising, Food, Health, International, Personal, Question | 58 Comments »

Maybe we can declare this fat suit week at Big Fat Deal! We talked about J. Love in a fat suit (in the wake of Tom Cruise and Posh Spice fat suit news, oh god, is this a trend or what) and now, there’s more! First of all, there’s a Santa in Scotland who is […]

Filed under: Celebrities, Fat Suits, Fatism, Hairspray, International, Kids, Movies, Renee Zelwegger | 9 Comments »

I read a book recently that is both wildly popular and fat positive: The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency. I wrote about it in my book blog: The heroine (Mma Ramotswe I think is the spelling) is one of the best characters ever, seriously. How much do I love her? And sure, I’m biased because […]

Filed under: Books, Fat Positive, International, Movies, Race & Ethnicity | 15 Comments »

Thanks to Kimberly and CoryGlen, I now know that (some) Australians are crazy. Not only are they trying to ban Santa’s “ho, ho, ho” catchphrase (for being frightening and “too close to ‘ho,’ a US slang term for prostitute”) now there’s a proposed fat tax on people flying on airplanes. To be fair, this is […]

Filed under: Cold Hard Cash, Fatism, International | 21 Comments »

This game is so insane that I have no idea what to say about it. The object is to fling, like, hot dogs at Paris Hilton. She eats them and gets fatter and fatter; the fatter she gets, the higher your score. At the end, you can give her “sympathy liposuction” and watch her deflate. […]

Filed under: Celebrities, Humor, International, Paris Hilton, Uncategorized | 24 Comments »

Feeling like you don’t fit into the social norms for weight (meaning that you feel too fat or too skinny) can cause stress and depression, according to a new study discussed here. If I’m reading this correctly, it’s not based on whether you are, in fact, too fat or too thin, but whether you perceive […]

Filed under: International, Science | 7 Comments »

We don’t have a category for “Thinism” or “Weight Gain” and maybe we should. Miss England has been told to gain weight if she wants to win the Miss World title. Supposedly, this is to set a better example for the youth of tomorrow. Which is, of course, binge eating. Miss England says: Miss World […]

Filed under: Eating Disorders, Feminism, International | 15 Comments »

In order to lose weight, a significant percentage of British women turn to drastic measures… like cocaine. And that’s not the only shocking statistic in this little (not at all scientific) poll! Thirty seven per cent had taken slimming pills, 15 per cent had taken speed or cocaine and 26 per cent had used laxatives […]

Filed under: Feminism, Health, International, Meta, Weight Loss | 12 Comments »

french and saunders Originally uploaded by mo pie Weetabix’s recent post about fat characters on television made me go Google Dawn French to see what she’s up to these days. I found this hilarious promo shot from the new French & Saunders, with Dawn French as Amy Winehouse and Jennifer Saunders as Britney Spears. According […]

Filed under: Celebrities, Dawn French, International, TV | 32 Comments »

There’s no way really to put a positive spin or a clever title on this bit of research, which shows a link between childhood rape and obesity in women. Researchers surveyed about 2,500 men and women aged 21 and found 7.5 % had had intercourse against their will before the age of 16. While the […]

Filed under: Advocacy, Biggest Loser, Eating Disorders, Feminism, Health, International, Kids, Science, TV | 40 Comments »