Dissecting Music from “The Holiday” and “Love Actually” (Bonus Episode!)

💐 Episode Summary Surprise! I hope you enjoy this special bonus episode of host Dinah Susan Alobeid chatting about the music and ideal funeral playlist offerings in two of her favorite holiday movies – Love Actually and The Holiday. From Aretha Franklin and The Beatles to the constantly-mentioned-on-this-show Frou Frou, let’s dig into a festive examination of music that would feel right at a funeral from these two treasured holiday films. Note: Mentioned in the show is the late, great singer Lynden David Hall who appeared in the wedding surprise band scene at the beginning of Love Actually.

💿 Songs Mentioned “Christmas Is All Around” by Billy Mack

“All You Need Is Love” by The Beatles

“Both Sides Now” by Joni Mitchell

“God Only Knows” by The Beach Boys

“Bye Bye Baby” by The Bay City Rollers

“Here With Me” by Dido

“Mr. Brightside” by The Killers

“Let Go” by Frou Frou

“Just For Now” by Imogen Heap

“You Send Me” by Aretha Franklin

You can listen to the Love Actually and The Holiday playlists on Spotify here: Love Actually: https://open.spotify.com/album/19RPbTaPIFbnAgjsjrmd6L

The Holiday: https://open.spotify.com/album/1wJZSN3VrWTR8OcFJ4lp9I

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🌹 About Play This At My Funeral Play This At My Funeral is a deeply fun, slightly macabre, always heartwarming show about the songs that shape our lives — and the ones we’d play at our funerals. Each episode invites a guest to curate the playlist for their own (hypothetical) send-off and share the stories that made those songs matter. In each episode, host Dinah invites a guest on to talk through the soundtrack of their life: the songs that have held them in moments of anguish, haunted them on the regular, and maybe just maybe even saved them. It’s a cozy, 45-minute-ish journey through meaningful lyrics, vivid memories, and the emotional mixtapes that mark our most human moments. Think Desert Island Discs meets Films To Be Buried With — but with more vibes and fewer survival scenarios. The show is created and hosted by Dinah Susan Alobeid and is edited and co-produced by Alice Marcondes.

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🎙 About the Host Dinah Susan Alobeid is a writer, dancer, and VP of Communications & Content by day (not always in that order). She’s the creator and host of the “Play This At My Funeral” podcast. Her fiction has appeared in Porter House Review, Five on the Fifth, and Reverie Literary Magazine and her nonfiction and poetry can be found in Spectrum Magazine, MediaPost, and more. She lives in New Jersey (even though she’s a born and bred New Yorker) with her partner and their rambunctious toddler.