What does it even mean to be a feminist? Are all feminists angry man haters? Can you be a feminist and still wear floaty dresses? Who has the answers?

Comedian Deborah Frances-White didn't have them, was happy to admit she didn't have them, and following a conversation with a girlfriend over lunch, she decided she wanted to find out more.

Out of that lunchdate The Guilty Feminist was born, "a podcast that explores our noble goals as 21st-century feminists and the hypocrisies and insecurities which undermine them", as the opening voiceover says. Since 2016 the podcast has been downloaded more than 85 million times.

"When we started, the feminist movement was surging again," Frances-White says ahead of her Australian tour. "Hillary Clinton was running for president, women were coming forward to state they were assaulted by Bill Cosby ... there were other things happening too and I wanted to be a part of it but I wasn't sure I was doing it right, I wasn't sure how to do it, and I knew a lot of people felt the same way."

So rather than setting herself up as the expert, she decided the podcast should be about learning along the way. She'd find people who knew more than her, interview them, admit things, declare her shortcomings and look for ways to improve her "feminist self".

She's come a long way since she once attended a feminist protest march, ducked inside a department store to go to the toilet and got caught up checking out make-up, only to find the march was over when she came out.

Frances-White was born in Australia, growing up in Brisbane before she left for London, later studying English at Oxford University. Her first significant stand-up experience came at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in 2007, with a show entitled How to get almost anyone to want to sleep with you - not, perhaps, a terribly feminist angle, but all the power to you.

"I was funny at high school," she says.

"I did debating and I soon realised as third speaker I could just do lots of jokes."

She says comedy can be a useful medium when it comes to the expression of ideas, about feminism and a range of other issues.

"Comedy draws people in, it challenges them, but makes them laugh at the same time. Maybe it makes them think about things in a different way, maybe even think about things they hadn't thought about before, and if it's a pleasant experience, maybe that sticks a bit more."

The podcast has addressed issues including gender bias and sexuality, alongside hair removal, finances and periods.

Is there any issue she wouldn't talk about? We spoke before the recent US Supreme Court decision to overturn Roe vs Wade, surely the most important moment to affect women in recent years. Her social media accounts suggest she's as outraged as the rest of us.

"No words," she wrote on Instagram. "This is such devastating news. Can't believe this is happening."

"We don't make light of things," she tells me. "We might do a little comedy at the front of the show, but we love a gear change. Then we'll have a guest to bring it home, someone who can teach us about really important things, but we earn those moments."

She's a keen follower of the news, recent episodes of the podcasts have addressed the Will Smith Oscars slap, women's health care, gender inequality in the publishing world, and menopause.

"There's certainly plenty of things happening, which is good, but it's not, if you understand."

The podcast is, most times, recorded as a live show. After a few years locked away thanks to COVID, she says being in front of an audience is like "being told I can fly again".

She's a natural extrovert who gets her energy from other people. Lockdown was hard.

"I almost fell apart," she says.

Are women often too hard on themselves, I ask her. On each other?

"Women can be the most incredible human beings on earth," she says.

"Some of the greatest moments in my life have stemmed from other women supporting me, loving me.

"But there have been times when I've been hurt by women, disappointed in women, where women have judged me, or I've judged other women.

"It's what we strive to be next that's important, more and more women are keen to create environments that are supportive, where we help each other, where we collectively make our value undeniable."

She's gathered a fun girl gang for the Australian tour. English folk-singer Grace Petrie is coming with her, Australian comedians Cal Wilson and Steph Tisdell are also appearing.

"We just feel so lucky that so many wonderful women will come and play with us," she says.

"I think women are really thirsty for a space that is unapologetically female, a safe space, but one that's not boring, a space that's safe to talk and try and play and think."

I ask her if there are any women she'd love to get on the show at some point.

"I have a wish list, it includes Jacinda Arden, Malala and Greta Thunberg among others."

She asks me if I can name any Australians I think she should chase. I'm rather disappointed I can only come up with Ash Barty and Maggie Beer at the drop of a hat.

I'm a feminist ... but ...