I HATE MY GIRLFRIEND

“That phase when you start hating your girlfriend is crazy” – these words opened a Twitter thread that spiralled into a debate among men on how to manipulate their girlfriends into breaking up.

Male loneliness is often discussed as an individual problem, seemingly harmless to the wider social fabric. But in the long run – does society have a responsibility here? Where does the feminist view of heteronormative love stand? Perhaps we are not talking politics, but it hits close to home.

This radio play turns tables, trapping its own characters in a no-exit situation, where they say only what the director allows, exactly when she allows it. In contrast, we hear deliberate babble, the sound of pages turning, ambient studio noises, and singing – elements that express the characters’ stolen freedom. Between the lines unfolds a battle between gender roles, between sexual and emotional dominance, between dysfunction and understanding. This is the noise of characters coming alive.

The radio play I Hate My Girlfriend won the award for Outstanding Artistic Achievement in the Student Play Category at the 2025 Radio Play Festival, in recognition of its outstanding direction and authentic generational testimony.