The Brunch round-up for September 12: The week and how it made us feel

This week, we’re psyched for Lollapalooza ’27, applying to Snoop Dogg’s company, saying goodbye to Chicken Shop Date and learning a new Super Mario game trick

In the chorus. The Lollapalooza 2027 lineup dropped last week, and everyone’s mad that their favs aren’t on it. We’re kinda sad about no RHCP. But we’ve got Limp Bizkit, 5SOS, The Manganiyar Seduction and Olivia Dean – one of the few female musicians to headline the festival. Come be the man I need, Olivia!

Ally Louks, who was trolled for her PhD dissertation on X, is publishing a book on the politics of smell. (INSTAGRAM/@DRALLYLOUKS)

Smelling revenge. Remember Ally Louks? The PhD student’s thesis on the politics of smell in modern and contemporary prose got her got trolled on X in 2024. Incels argued that studying the humanities was irrelevant and that women “always got useless degrees”. Anyway, Louks is now publishing a book, Under Your Nose, on the subject. Hope her haters get a whiff of this success.

Every day, we learn that Snoop Dogg has a new side hustle. He’s now hiring for his ice-cream company. (SHUTTERSTOCK)

The Victorious reboot drops next month, and we’re glad Trina Vega is getting all the love.

Making it shine. Only a month to go until the Victorious reboot drops, and for Trina Vega (Daniella Monet) to get the love she deserves. Vega returns to Hollywood Arts as a struggling actor, and the snarky new gen of artist protégées loves the lore. They’re also competitive and ready to kick ass on stage – something we didn’t see Tori and her friends do. So psyched for this.

After 12 years of awkwardly flirting with celebs over nugs, Amelia Dimoldenberg is ending her cult show. (INSTAGRAM/@CHICKENSHOPDATE)

Clucking sad. RIP Chicken Shop Date. After 12 years of awkwardly flirting with practically every star over nugs, Amelia Dimoldenberg is ending her cult show. She’s reportedly developing a romcom. Please let it feature her deadpan, clumsy banter. And can Andrew Garfield, Paul Mescal or Billie Eilish star in it? Hold the chicken.

Super Mario players discovered that if they jump to the top of the screen, they find fallen mushrooms. (SHUTTERSTOCK)

Taking a leap. That moment in Super Mario when a mushroom pops up and just... rolls right off the edge, disappearing into the bottom? So annoying. Now, 40 years in, players have discovered that if they jump to the top of the screen, they can pick up their mushroom. Let’s-a go!

Did you know you could pull a pro move called “rolling” in Tetris to keep up with the shower of bricks? (INSTAGRAM/@MYLESTETRIS)

Fitting it in. Most of us tap out at the higher levels of Tetris, when our thumbs can’t keep up with the shower of bricks. The pro move: To pull on a glove and start “rolling”. It’s a bizarre technique in which players drum their fingers against the back of the controller so fast it pushes the D-pad into the thumb, hitting inputs 30 times faster. Are we even playing the same game?

Nathan Fielder quietly made a documentary about scammer Elizabeth Holmes before she went to prison.

Drawing blood. Elite scammer Elizabeth Holmes has finally met her match. Nathan Fielder quietly made a documentary about the Theranos founder before she went to prison. Fielder knows how to blur reality and fiction: Participants on The Rehearsal thought they were auditioning for a real singing show. He’s tricked Congress lawmakers, pilots, producers. Who blinks first on You Can See Everything, Holmes or Fielder?

From HT Brunch, September 12, 2026

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