In the great spirit of wonderfully ghoulish shows like The Addams Family & The Munsters, Pissi Myles and her sister in all things sinister Sam Baxter are keeping their spooky in the family. As actual siblings, they are part of the most modern of families, and now they are hosting the fantastically frightful and instantly addictive podcast My Spooky Gay Family. For my ongoing series #PodSaveTheQueen, I sat down with both Myles and Baxter and we chatted about keeping the fright in family, why doing a podcast showcasing the macabre and scary has been a blast all year round and who they both agree would be an amazing guest!
Michael Cook: So tell me about My Spooky Gay Family; it is a family affair and a very unique angle for a podcast.
Pissi Myles: Well thank you! We’re a very unique family (laughs) Sam Baxter: Unique is one way to put it. PM: The podcast came about because Sam and I are two of five siblings, and of the five of us, four of us are gay. SB: And all of us are spooky. PM: Sam and I are also Pagan, and super into horror movies, queer culture, and all kinds of spooky stuff. We’re both funny people, and we would have these really long, entertaining conversations about horror movies and everything gay, so one day we said “This is funny, we should be recording this”.
MC: Growing up, was horror and scary part of the entertainment that you consumed?
PM: Absolutely, we all loved horror and Halloween growing up. Especially Sam! SB: I’ve been into horror movies for as long as I can remember. We saw a lot of things as young kids that we probably shouldn’t have, like IT and Puppet Master and Scream. It sparked this real love of the genre in both of us. PM: And royally fucked us up, so what do you do with that?! You tell people the stories, cause they’re really funny.
MC: What made you want to take the passion and turn it into a podcast? How has the experience been?
PM: Well my husband (David) would always say, “You guys are so funny! You need to get other people into this conversation.” He loves to make me hustle. (laughs). SB: Yeah, David was definitely the idea man. PM: It’s been an amazing experience. We’ve got so many dedicated listeners, who we love so much. We recently started a Patreon so that we can have more involved events with our listeners, and it has been such a joy to get to know everyone and get them in on the jokes!
MC: You have featured everything from Clue to Star Wars on the podcast. What to each of you defines truly “spooky”? Any guests you would each love to have on the show?
PM: Oh, I would love to get Lady Bunny on the show! Just show us your diaper drawer, That’s the definition of spooky! SB: I think spooky is anything that gives you that little knot of fear in your stomach, even if it’s only for a moment. There are a lot of people I would love to have on, but my number one obsession is Elvira Mistress of the Dark, I like to think she’d appreciate what we’re doing. PM: Oh yes, I second Elvira.
MC: What are some of your favorite scary films, television shows, etc for each of you?
PM: God, we talk about this all the time on the show. (Laughs) I say all the time how much I love the original Halloween, and Scream, and Trick ‘R Treat is definitely a favorite. SB: It’s so hard to pick but I think if I had to, I’d have to say Jaws, Friday the 13th and Trick ‘R Treat.
MC: Sam what is it like having a spook-tastic sibling like the global phenomenon that is Pissi Myles as a brother?
PM: It’s very easy, and enjoyable. (Both laugh) SB: It’s never boring. (laughs) Honestly I’m always so proud of him, everything he does is amazing I think my other siblings and I are Pissi’s biggest fans. PM: I’m glad this is in print, I’ll always have proof she said it!
MC: Fear has been an overwhelming feeling for many this year; how do you get past fears?
PM: For me it’s definitely comedy. If I can make something funny, it stops being scary. I did a whole TED talk about it! Also, donuts. SB: Medication. ( Both laugh) And what Pissi said.
MC: Where do you want to see the podcast go? Live shows maybe?
PM: I absolutely want to do live shows! I think that horrifies Sam, she definitely likes being able to do this in my dining room. (laughs) SB: I don’t think I’m horrified by the idea as much as the thought that I couldn’t do it in my laundry day shirt anymore. (laughs) PM: I would just love to be able to travel this show around and get to know all of our listeners. We love meeting the people who like the things we do. And maybe we could get an Elvira-style movie deal would be great! SB:I definitely want to interact more with our listeners, they’re such a fun spooky little family. it feels really great to know there are other people out there like us. I’d also like to do some video stuff, maybe paranormal investigations and things like that, I think it would be a blast.
Follow “My Spooky Gay Family” on Instagram