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BBC Radio 4

Woman's Hour

Davina McCall, one of TV’s most popular presenters has a new book out, Birthing, co-written with the midwife, Marley Henry. Davina joins Anita Rani to talk about her stellar career so far, including hosting Big Brother for 10 years, campaigning for better menopause care and building a fitness empire. What makes her tick? And what drives her forward to clear hurdles such as an usual childhood, drug addiction and most recently, brain surgery for a benign tumour that she nicknamed Jeffrey.

Funding of at least £2 million a year needs to be restored to help combat Female Genital Mutilation in the UK, according to a new report by the Women and Equalities Committee. It says that access to health services for FGM survivors in the UK is inconsistent and a postcode lottery. Anita hears from the Chair of the Women and Equalities Committee, the Labour MP Sarah Owens and from Hibo Wardere, the educational lead and co-founder of the charity Educate Not Mutilate.

Last month Scottish history was made at the Glenurquhart Highland Games as the World Female Heavy Events Championship was held for the first time. The Championship brought together women from across the globe to compete in the heavyweights, including tossing the caber. As we reach the end of the season, athletes Elizabeth Elliott and Emmerleigh Barter, who competed in the games, join Anita Rani to discuss how it felt to compete at this level on home soil.

If you're making your way through Essex on the train in the coming days, you might notice poems being read over the PA system, with young women and girls sharing how they feel about their accent. It's part of a new project from the University of Essex and c2c Rail, celebrating the Essex accent. Anita is joined by Dr Tara McAllister-Viel who led the project and the comedian Esther Manito who is from Essex.

Presenter: Anita Rani
Producer: Rebecca Myatt

Davina McCall, Highland Games, Essex accents

For decades thousands of pregnant women across the UK were prescribed the drug Diethlystilbestrol or DES, a synthetic hormone that was meant to help prevent miscarriage. But the drug left a legacy of life-altering health problems for some of their children, including infertility and rare cancers. Anita Rani speaks to ITV Social Affairs Correspondent Sarah Corker who has investigated what they are calling a medical scandal that continues to devastate lives, talking to the women who say more must be done to help those exposed to the drug as new concerns emerge over the impact of DES on a third generation. 

Author Heather Morris wrote The Tattooist of Auschwitz, which went on to become one of the bestselling books of the 21st century. Her new novel, The Wish, follows Jesse, a 15-year-old with terminal leukaemia who wants to have a digital 3D recreation of her life for her family and friends. To accomplish this, she connects with Alex, a lonely CGI designer. The book explores their unlikely friendship and its impact on both of their lives. Heather joins Anita to talk about mortality, family, healing through connection and what it means to be remembered.

Last week we heard from three women who have had a loved one take their own life. They spoke honestly and movingly about what happened to them in the immediate and long term aftermath of such a loss. Today we are taking a look at the historical context of suicide. Anita speaks to BBC New Generation thinker Dr Stephanie Brown, who is Lecturer in Criminology at the University of Hull and doing research in this area. 

In 2023 Sophie Ellis-Bextor’s Murder on the Dancefloor went viral on TikTok after Emerald Fennell used it in a key scene in the film, Saltburn. That resurgence, along with her popular Kitchen Discos that got lots of us through the lockdown set the scene for her bravely titled new album, Perimenopop, which is released tomorrow, a celebration of womanhood in middle age. Sophie joins Anita in the Woman's Hour studio.

Presenter: Anita Rani
Producer: Corinna Jones

Sophie Ellis-Bextor, Pregnancy drug DES, Novelist Heather Morris

On 22 August, the High court rejected Noel Clarke’s claim that accusations against him by more than 20 women were false and part of a conspiracy.
The writer, actor and producer of the Kidulthood trilogy sued the Guardian News & Media over seven articles and a podcast published between April 2021 and March 2022 in which women accused him of sexual misconduct. He was seeking £70 million in damages. In a high court judgment with a 220-page document, Mrs Justice Steyn rejected Clarke’s claims, and ruled the newspaper had succeeded in both its defences: of truth and public interest. Nuala McGovern is joined by Katharine Viner, editor-in-chief of The Guardian, along with Lucy Osborne and Sirin Kale, the investigative journalists who uncovered the story. 

Finding the perfect bra can be quite difficult at the best of times but what about after breast cancer? A study by Portsmouth Hospital and the university is looking at how to develop better bras to cope with changes after cancer surgery and radiotherapy. Associate Professor Edward St John is a breast surgeon at the hospital and an academic at the university. He joins Nuala along with Celeste Ingram, a patient taking part in the research. 

We’ve all heard of the fight or flight response in the face of danger, but there's also freeze, and then there's fawn, also known as people pleasing, or appeasing. Clinical psychologist Dr Ingrid Clayton has written about this in her new book, Fawning - Why the Need to Please Makes Us Lose Ourselves and How to Find our Way Back. Nuala spoke to Ingrid about her own teenage experiences that made her want to help others overcome this form of trauma response and what fawning looks like in practice.

The Irish comedian Emma Doran is about to tour Ireland and the UK with a new stand up show, Emmaculate, and it's her third and biggest one yet, with new dates being added just this week. If you haven't caught Emma on stage you might know her from social media where her caustic takes on parenthood or schoolyard and workplace politics have hundreds of thousands of followers. She's a mother of three and she's also written a book called Mad Isn't it? which tells the story of how she got unexpectedly pregnant at 18, and after a decade of young parenthood eventually found her way into comedy. Emma joins Nuala in the Woman's Hour studio.

Presenter: Nuala McGovern
Producer: Andrea Kidd

Noel Clarke libel case, Bras after cancer, Comedian Emma Doran

Jung Chang’s Wild Swans, the epic family memoir that followed the lives of Jung, her mother and grandmother through China's 20th century, was banned in mainland China, but was a smash hit worldwide upon publication in 1991. Now Jung’s sequel, Fly, Wild Swans, brings her family’s story up to date. She joins Nuala McGovern.

The Labour deputy leadership race could be an all-woman affair, with all current declarations coming from female MPs. Nuala gets the lowdown from Kitty Donaldson, chief political commentator for The i Paper.

The All Party Parliamentary Group report on PCOS - or polycystic ovary syndrome - has found that women face prolonged delays in diagnosis, fragmented care, and limited access to treatments. The condition is also expected to undergo a name change later this year to more accurately reflect what it is. Nuala hears from Chair of the APPG, Labour MP Michelle Welsh and Caroline Andrews from PCOS charity Verity.

Royal Artillery Gunner Jaysley Beck took her own life in 2021, after filing a complaint against Battery Sergeant Major Michael Webber. He had pinned her down and tried to kiss her at a work social event. An inquest into her death earlier this year determined the Army's handling of the complaint played "more than a minimal contributory part in her death". Webber has now pleaded guilty to sexual assault at a pre-trial hearing, and is awaiting sentencing. Jaysley's inquest in February this year heard that her line manager also harassed her, with the Army failing to take action. Jaysley's mother Leighann McCready and her solicitor Emma Norton, from the Centre for Military Justice, join Nuala.

Janet Willoner, aka the Tree growing granny, has grown more than 4,000 trees in her garden. She forages for seeds, grows them, and they eventually grow in forests in her local area of North Yorkshire. She has been nominated in the BBC’s Make a Difference Awards in the Green category. She speaks to Nuala.

Jung Chang, Labour deputy leader race, Jaysley Beck's mother.

The fallout from Angela Rayner's departure continues to dominate the headlines today as Labour's National Executive Committee is expected to meet to agree the timetable for the race to replace Rayner as the party's deputy leader. Since the reshuffle, women fill three of the four great offices of state for the first time, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, the Home Secretary, and the Foreign Secretary. To discuss the role of women in Labour’s reshuffled cabinet and the party's future leadership - as well as Rayner's legacy - Nuala McGovern is joined by Lucy Dunn, political correspondent at The Spectator, and Rachel Cunliffe, Associate Political Editor at The New Statesman
 
As the 50th anniversary of Papua New Guinea's independence from Australia approaches later this month, we hear why the country is currently one of the most dangerous places in the world to be a woman. Two-thirds of women in PNG have experienced some form of sexual violence in their lifetime, which is almost twice the global average. Tahina Booth is a former elite athlete and founder of Grass Skirt Project who is trying to break the cycle of gender-based violence through sport. Tahina joins Nuala along with Joku Hennah, a journalist and activist who regularly speaks out about all forms of gender-based violence - including domestic and sexual violence, and killings related to sorcery accusations.
 
Playwright Danusia Iwaszko has spent 17 years running writing workshops in high-security prisons. Her new play Penned Up draws on that work, following a teacher who helps a group of men find their voices through theatre. Over the course of the 10-week programme we see the humanity in these inmates, as well as the cracks in our criminal justice system.
 
You may have seen articles and social media posts branding creatine supplements as the ‘secret weapon’ for women, claiming they can ‘boost brainpower’, and ‘level up’ our lives, especially during the menopause or perimenopause. But what is creatine? Should we all be taking it - and what impact might it have? To find out more, Nuala is joined by GP Dr Fionnuala Barton and registered dietician Laura Clarke, who specialises in the menopause.
 
Presented by: Nuala McGovern
Produced by: Sarah Jane Griffiths

Angela Rayner fallout, Do we need to take creatine? Papua New Guinea

Actor Robin Wright joined Nuala McGovern to discuss directing and starring in new series The Girlfriend, based on the book by Michelle Frances. Best known for her award-winning role in House of Cards and much-loved movies such as Forest Gump and The Princess Bride, Robin plays Laura in the psychological thriller, a protective mother who is deeply suspicious of her son’s new girlfriend Cherry, played by Olivia Cooke.

Woman's Hour spoke to women who have had the experience of someone close to them taking their own life. They spoke frankly and honestly to reporter Jo Morris about what happened, both immediately in the aftermath of a death by suicide but also reflect on the long-term impact. We hear from Eloise, who was just 14 when her dad Damian took his life two years ago.

Who was Scotland’s first, largely forgotten, female MP? The Duchess of Atholl had campaigned against votes for women but in 1923 she stood for election herself, and won. Her biographer Amy Gray joined Nuala to address the many contradictions of this pioneering politician. In her new book, Red Duchess: A Rebel in Westminster, Gray argues that Atholl hasn’t received the credit she deserves for championing the welfare of women and children at home and abroad and for challenging the appeasement of Nazi Germany - a decision which ended her political career.

This week sees many children heading back to school and settling into a new school year and they might be reuniting with old friends, or even introducing you to new ones. But what if you don’t like your child’s friends? Anita is joined by comedian Ria Lina and parenting coach Sue Atkins to discuss.

New research from Oxford University has revealed that teenagers who suffer moderate or severe period pain, are more likely to experience chronic pain as adults. What is the link at play and how can we treat women who suffer from their teen years into adulthood? We hear about the findings from Katy Vincent, Professor of Gynaecological Pain and Consultant Gynaecologist and explains what this can teach us about mitigating pain in sufferers.

There's a new woman deciding what's hot and what's not in the world of fashion. Chloe Malle has been appointed as the head of US Vogue - the biggest job in the industry - replacing the formidable Dame Anna Wintour. Nuala was joined by Financial Times fashion editor Elizabeth Paton to discuss.

Presenter: Anita Rani
Producer: Dianne MacGregor
Editor: Andrea Kidd

Weekend Woman’s Hour: actor Robin Wright, life after a parent’s suicide, disliking your child's friends

In the last of our series on life after suicide, our reporter Jo Morris meets Stef whose mother took her own life when Stef was 19. On experiencing severe depression as she approached the menopause herself, Stef found herself considering ending her own life. This has led her to thinking her mother’s death was also menopause related.
So is there a link between menopause and women who choose to end their own life? Research in this area is all relatively new, but our guest Professor Pooja Saini, professor of suicide and self harm prevention at Liverpool John Moores University, joins Anita Rani to talk about the work she's done in this field.

Italian fashion designer and billionaire brand owner, Giorgio Armani, has died at the age of 91. Known for helping to redefine both women’s and men’s suits for a modern audience and rewriting the rules of power dressing, how exactly did he empower and reshape the way in which women dress today? Fashion writer and biographer Justine Picardie tells Anita about the legacy he leaves behind. 

This week sees many children heading back to school and settling into a new school year and they might be reuniting with old friends, or even introducing you to new ones. But what if you don’t like your child’s friends? From playdates to birthday parties and encounters at the school gates, is there anything you can really do if you find yourself in this situation? Anita is joined by comedian Ria Lina and parenting coach Sue Atkins to discuss.

Presenter: Anita Rani
Producer: Corinna Jones

Menopause and severe depression, Disliking your child's friends, Giorgio Armani

It has been four days since the huge 6.0 magnitude earthquake struck the mountainous eastern region of Afghanistan, near the city of Jalalabad. Over 1,400 people are reported to have been killed by the initial quake and its aftershocks, with over 3,000 injured. While already living their lives under the restrictions imposed by the Taliban, how are women and girls affected by this disaster? Nuala McGovern talks to Mahjooba Nowrouzi, senior journalist for the BBC’s Afghan Service.

After the fall of the Taliban in 2001, Afghan women judges set out to reform the country, tackling corruption and presiding over cases such as violence against women and children. When Western forces withdrew four years ago, these judges were targeted by the Taliban and many fled Afghanistan. In her new book, The Escape from Kabul, the journalist Karen Bartlett tells the story of some of those women and how international judges from around the world banded together to help them escape. Karen joins Nuala along with Fawzia Amini, one of Afghanistan’s leading judges and women’s rights campaigners, who came to Britain with her husband and four daughters after the Taliban returned. 

Is navigating friendships and the pressure not to be too demanding making women lonely? Journalist Chante Joseph talks to Nuala about how adopting the role of a “low maintenance friend,” once a source of pride, ultimately left her feeling isolated along with the journalist Claire Cohen. 

Two councils in South Yorkshire are introducing new policies to make night-time venues safer for women. In Sheffield, there will be a Women's Safety Charter, while in Rotherham, councillors are set to approve a new programme to tackle harassment and drink spiking. So how big a problem is the harassment and what is being done?
Nuala is joined by Rob Reiss, a Sheffield city councillor and Kayleigh Waine project manager of Sheffield Safe Square and manager of Katie O’Brien's an Irish Bar in Sheffield City Centre.

The play ‘Invasive Species’ is about a young woman attempting, for the sake of ambition and survival, to force herself into various moulds that do not fit who she truly is. Nuala talks to Maia Novi who stars in the London transfer of her own semi-autobiographical dark comedy in which she plays herself, an ambitious Argentinean actor who will stop at nothing to achieve the American dream. She joins Nuala to talk about the themes of the play. 

Presenter: Nuala McGovern
Producer: Rebecca Myatt

Afghanistan earthquake, Friendship anxiety, Invasive Species play

There's a new woman deciding what's hot and what's not in the world of fashion. Chloe Malle has been appointed as the head of US Vogue - the biggest job in the industry - replacing the formidable Dame Anna Wintour. Financial Times fashion editor Elizabeth Paton tells Nuala McGovern more.

Scotland Correspondent for BBC News, Lorna Gordon brings us an update on a landmark tribunal case this week involving nurse Sandie Peggie who objected to a trans woman doctor using the women’s changing room at an NHS Fife hospital. 

Sabrina Carpenter’s new album Man’s Best Friend has caused a stir recently due to its provocative artwork, plus nine out of the 12 tracks on the album are marked as explicit. We explore if it's still controversial for female pop stars to embrace their sexuality in this way with critics Jude Rogers and Jacqueline Springer.

This week Woman's Hour is talking to women who have had the experience of someone close to them taking their own life. They speak frankly and honestly to reporter Jo Morris about what happened, both immediately in the aftermath of a death by suicide but also reflect on the long term-impact. Today we hear from Eloise who was just 14 when her dad Damian took his life two years ago. 

Presenter: Nuala McGovern
Producer: Simon Richardson

American Vogue's new editor, Sandie Peggie tribunal, Sabrina Carpenter's lyrics, Life after a parent's suicide

New figures from the latest Femicide Census out are out today. It records the killings of women. It shows that 122 women, that’s more than 2 women a week, were killed by men and boys in 2022. Most women were killed by a current or former partner, but it also reveals that 10% were killed by their sons. To discuss the findings Nuala McGovern was joined by the co-founder of the Femicide Census, Dr Karen Ingala Smith.

New research from Oxford University has revealed that teenagers who suffer moderate or severe period pain, are more likely to experience chronic pain as adults. What is the link at play and how can we treat women who suffer from their teen years in to adulthood? We hear about the findings from Katy Vincent, Professor of Gynaecological Pain and Consultant Gynaecologist and she explains what this can teach us about mitigating pain in sufferers.

Eve Myles is a Welsh actress, whose television roles include Ceri Lewis in the BBC Wales drama series Belonging, Gwen Cooper in the BBC science-fiction series Torchwood and the formidable lawyer Faith Howells in the bilingually produced drama series Keeping Faith. Eve discusses her character Fran in The Guest - a new four-part, propulsive thriller on BBC One. It centres on the toxic and beguiling relationship between a successful business owner, Fran and her employee, Ria.

Between 1949 and 1976, thousands of pregnant women and girls in the UK were sent away to "prison-like" homes run by the church and state and had their babies put up for adoption. This week sees ITV’s Long Lost Family Special: The Mother and Baby Home Scandal - which follows three families as they search for their relative. One of those is Jean who was 16 when she was sent to a mother and baby home in 1956. After giving birth she unwillingly handed over her baby for adoption. Jean’s eldest daughter, Cathy was found by the programme. We hear from Cathy and the programme’s director Helen Nixon.

Who was Scotland’s first, largely forgotten, female MP? The Duchess of Atholl had campaigned against votes for women but in 1923 she stood for election herself, and won. Her biographer Amy Gray joins Nuala to address the many contradictions of this pioneering politician. In her new book, Red Duchess: A Rebel in Westminster, Gray argues that Atholl hasn’t received the credit she deserves for championing the welfare of women and children at home and abroad and for challenging the appeasement of Nazi Germany - a decision which ended her political career.

Presenter: Nuala McGovern
Producer: Kirsty Starkey

Femicide Census, Period Pain, Eve Myles, Forced Adoption

Elizabeth McGovern, best known in the UK for being Lady Cora in Downton Abbey is in a play in London at the moment called Starry Messenger. Elizabeth plays the wife of a man going through a mid-life crisis. Plus the latest Sadie and the Hotheads news. 

From President Trump’s state visit to D-Day celebrations, we reflect on a week of ceremony with Jess Brammar Executive Editor, HuffPost UK, Sarah Elliot Chair of Republicans Overseas UK, and Bonnie Greer, columnist with the New European newspaper, playwright and critic.
 
We continue our look at women sports coaches as part of coaching week with tennis coach, Francesca Lewis. She fell in love with the game when she was just 8 years old, and she went on to compete in tournaments right across the world. But it was as a tennis coach, rather than a player, that Francesca really found her calling. She now trains some of the best junior players in the world at Swansea’s Regional Player Development Centre.

Presenter: Jenni Murray
Producer: Helen Fitzhenry

Elizabeth McGovern, Trump's visit to D-Day: Decoding state ceremony

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