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What happens when two of Britain's biggest music stars become irresistible targets for the tabloid press? Former showbiz PR insider Lauren The Insider, who was also George Michael's goddaughter, joins Andrew Gold to examine the media treatment of George Michael and Elton John — and what their experiences reveal about the darker side of British celebrity journalism.

Lauren witnessed the publicity machine from the inside. She explains how enormous fame can create an extraordinary contradiction: the more successful you become, the more valuable your worst moments can become to somebody else. Relationships, sexuality, arguments, addiction, arrests and personal struggles can all be transformed into front-page stories — while the human being at the centre of them has almost no control over what happens next.

For George Michael, Lauren argues that the pressure became relentless. His private life repeatedly generated headlines, yet George also developed a reputation for fighting back, mocking his own scandals and challenging journalists who attempted to define him through controversy. Did his refusal to play the traditional celebrity PR game make him an even bigger target?

Then there is Elton John, another globally famous British musician whose relationship with the press has included extraordinary highs and bitter confrontations. Lauren examines how Elton and George navigated fame differently — and what their experiences taught her about the uneasy relationship between celebrities, publicists and journalists.

But Andrew pushes Lauren on the other side of the argument. Where is the line between legitimate reporting and intrusion? Global superstars depend upon publicity to sell records, tours and their public image. Does seeking attention when promoting your career mean surrendering privacy when things go wrong?

Lauren argues that it doesn't — and says understanding the machinery behind celebrity journalism changes how you read the headlines entirely.

Two extraordinary musicians. Decades of tabloid attention. And an industry in which a celebrity's most vulnerable moment could become somebody else's biggest story.

What did Lauren see from inside George Michael's world? How ruthless could the British media become? And what can George Michael and Elton John's experiences teach us about the true price of fame?

Watch the full podcast here: George Michael's Goddaughter: The Secrets ...

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