How Do Our Sibling Relationships Shape Us? With Catherine Carr

For many of us, our relationships with our siblings are the longest of our lives. They shape our earliest experiences of love, rivalry, identity and belonging. Yet despite their lasting influence, they are often overlooked in favour of relationships with parents, partners or children.

In this episode, journalist and critic Mythili Rao speaks with broadcaster Catherine Carr about the overlooked significance of sibling relationships. Together they explore how these lifelong bonds shape who we become, from birth order and family dynamics to estrangement, grief and the challenges of caring for ageing parents.

Why do we place so much weight in birth-order stereotypes? Are only children really different? And what happens when sibling relationships break down? Drawing on personal stories, psychological research and expert interviews, Carr challenges familiar assumptions and examines how changing family structures, falling birth rates and longer lives are reshaping what it means to be a sibling today.

Catherine Carr is a broadcaster and journalist. She is the author of Who's the Favourite?: The Loving, Messy Realities of Sibling Relationships.

Mythili Rao is a journalist, critic and podcaster whose work explores literature, culture and society.

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