Fashion Neurosis with Bella Freud

Episode: Fashion Neurosis with Tessa Thompson
Date: October 22, 2025

Main Theme and Purpose

In this intimate, engaging episode, Bella Freud sits down with acclaimed actor Tessa Thompson to explore the deep connections between fashion, identity, childhood memories, and the social and emotional landscapes that shape who we are and what we wear. Through stories and thoughtful questions, they delve into family influences, the politics of style, gender and sexuality, navigating fame, and the emotional resonance of both costume and personal clothing.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Fashion as Self-Expression and Inheritance

• Opening Outfit Rituals (01:25–04:08)
  • Tessa describes her vintage Yves Saint Laurent skirt suit ("it felt both aggressively boxy or masculine and something that feels kind of feminine" [01:57]).
  • Discussion of experimental vs. lowkey dressing for significant occasions ("I thought I'd like to dress up for you...like a homage." — Tessa, [03:47]).
• Family Style Influences (07:14–09:30)
  • Tessa’s upbringing in a stylish, expressive household: father Mark Anthony Thompson, a musician with “extraordinary sense of style,” and her daring, creative mother—a former model who sewed her own clothes.
  • Both parents let Tessa dress herself from a very young age, fostering freedom.

2. Early Fashion Obsessions & School Experiences

• The Power of Early Pieces (09:50–11:14)
  • Tessa reminisces about her obsession with green suspenders and a boy’s suit from Paris ("I quite liked that it was boys clothes...like a costume or disguise" [10:29]).
• Navigating Bullying and Acceptance (11:50–13:46)
  • Stories of being teased for unconventional outfits (nicknamed “Granny Grip” for lace-up boots).
  • Her mother’s decisive response to bullying: “There was nothing wrong about me, just the place was wrong” (Tessa, [12:09]).
  • Importance of being in environments that nurture individuality.

3. Social Identity, Race & Community

• Racial Harmony in High School (13:53–18:25)
  • Creation of a high school “racial harmony” group for cross-racial dialogue (“We got basically 100 students together to talk about race,” Tessa, [14:09]).
  • The value and awkwardness in confronting perceptions and stereotypes in a structured, open space.
  • Early signs of Tessa’s drive to foster meaningful conversations—precursor to her love for storytelling and performing.

4. Performance, Gender, and Clothing as Transformation

• Desire to Play Nontraditional Roles (20:33–21:01)
  • Tessa reflects on wanting to play Romeo after playing Juliet, exploring the idea of gender-swapped roles in classic theatre.
• Iconic Fashion Moments: “Pynk” Music Video (21:06–24:44)
  • Revelations about the inventive costumes ("extraordinary pants that I burst out of...so much of that was just improvisation," [21:25]).
  • Reflections on her evolving relationship with color, especially pink: "There's something kind of lush and sensual and also private about that color" (Tessa, [22:06]).
• Fashion’s Influence on Gender Perception (25:01–27:32)
  • Fluidity in attraction and style: “I’ve never been really interested in labeling...I think it’s people first” (Tessa, [25:20]).
  • Early curiosity about gender and clothing: “I went to a park tucked all my hair in a baseball cap...dressing like a boy just to see what it felt like” [26:50].
  • Clothes as tools for empathy, transformation, and connection.

5. Family Connections, Heirlooms & Thrift

• Bonding through Clothing (27:32–29:14)
  • Shared parent-child sartorial experiences (“I still love taking things from my dad...it brings you something, some sort of extra strength,” [28:45]—Bella).
  • Stories of coveted family garments: platform shoes, velvet pants, and old shirts as symbolic tokens.
• Thrifting, Choir Gowns, and Aggressively Feminine Looks (31:53–32:49)
  • Family tradition of thrift shopping; glory of vintage gowns and how context enables more “aggressively feminine” dressing.

6. The Philosophy of Yes and No: Tattoos as Memory

• Tattoos with Meaning (32:49–34:50)
  • Tessa’s "yes" tattoo inspired by Yoko Ono’s conceptual art (“I like the idea of it being more for other people now...” [34:55]).
  • Tattoos as a way to reframe scarring: “If I’m going to be marked, I might as well mark myself with things...I don’t want to forget” (Tessa, [35:12]).

7. Emotional Weather and Dressing

• Clothes and Mood (35:32–38:22)
  • When low, Tessa prefers cozy clothes and staying in (“wrapped in blankets, something cozy” [36:31]).
  • Bella finds high shoes recalibrate her resolve and provide literal backbone ("a shoe gives me courage" [37:10]).
  • Even tidying in heels at home can feel empowering.

8. Identity, Armor & Tenderness

• Identity as Creation, Fashion as Signal (40:27–43:20)
  • Tessa cites Prince, Bowie, and Grace Jones as influences—people who made self-construction an art.
  • Shift from seeing fashion as “armor” to seeking less boundary: "I'm more interested in not having any armor, actually" (Tessa, [42:15]).
  • Both agree on the value of openness and vulnerability over protection.

9. Relationships & Attraction in Style

• The Politics of Partner’s Clothes (43:41–45:34)
  • Attraction remains despite dubious fashion choices, but “it complicates it and makes it more curious” (Tessa, [43:49]).
  • Over time, style within couples tends to influence and migrate.

10. Hedda Gabler and Female Agency

• Portraying Power (45:47–49:36)
  • On inhabiting Hedda: “She really has no issue taking up space...it freed me in some ways because I can be very conscientious and sensitive to what everyone needs. This [role] helped me question how much of that is me, or is convention” (Tessa, [46:18–48:46]).
  • Women’s social conditioning to ‘take up less space’; the generative side of “unsavory” feelings like envy and jealousy.

11. Superheroes & Inspirations

• Diane Keaton as Style Superhero (50:26–51:35)
  • Keaton’s playfulness, love of suits, and singularity as creative inspiration.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “It felt both aggressively boxy or masculine and something that feels kind of feminine.”—Tessa Thompson on her Saint Laurent suit [01:57]
• “There was nothing wrong about me, just the place was wrong.” — Tessa on her mother’s reaction to bullying [12:09]
• “We got basically 100 students together to talk about race…” — Tessa on high school activism [14:09]
• “I’m just attracted to people and who they are… sometimes gender hems us in, this idea of how we should behave or dress.” — Tessa [25:20]
• “Clothes have an incredible ability to literally make us move through space differently.” — Tessa [27:09]
• “If I’m going to be marked, I might as well mark myself with things… I don’t want to forget.” — Tessa on tattoos [35:12]
• “I think I used to see fashion as armor; that feels kind of antiquated now. I’m more interested in not having any armor actually.” — Tessa [42:15]
• “Attraction doesn’t end if I dislike what they wear, but it does complicate it, makes me more curious.” — Tessa [43:49]
• “This is a woman who really has no issue taking up space...helped me question how much of that is me, or is convention.” — Tessa on Hedda Gabler [46:18–48:46]
• “Diane Keaton…always been a real superhero to me…her great love of suits and all the fascinating things that she wore.” — Tessa [50:26]

Timestamps for Key Segments

• [01:25] Opening: Today's outfit and the psychology of getting dressed
• [07:14] Family influences: Style in the household
• [09:50] Early clothing obsessions: Suspenders & boys’ suits
• [11:50] Bullying, individuality, and parental support
• [13:53] Racial harmony high school group
• [20:33] Gender and classic roles: Wanting to play Romeo
• [21:06] “Pynk” music video and the meaning of color and costume
• [25:01] Gender, attraction, and using clothes to experiment
• [27:32] Intergenerational clothing and emotional heirlooms
• [32:49] “Yes” and “no” tattoos: Stories, meaning, and memory
• [35:32] Clothes and mood regulation
• [40:27] Fashion as identity, armor, and the search for tenderness
• [43:41] Romance, attraction, and partner’s fashion choices
• [45:47] Hedda Gabler: Method, power, and questioning convention
• [50:26] Superheroes and style icons

Overall Tone

• Deeply personal, warm, and reflective.
• A shared sense of curiosity and respect between Bella and Tessa.
• Mix of anecdotal humor and philosophical insight; conversations feel candid and lightly meandering, yet full of substance.

Conclusion

This episode is a thoughtful journey through the unspoken language of clothing, familial legacies, the ways we armor ourselves (or not), and the continual process of becoming—both through what we put on and what we let go of. Tessa Thompson, with guidance from Bella Freud, demonstrates how style can be both personal rebellion and collective storytelling: a means of discovery, protection, and ultimately, authentic connection.