Woman's Hour: Daily Podcasts

Mexico election, Queenie actor, Breast milk donor

Claudia Sheinbaum will become Mexico's first woman president after an historic election win. BBC Journalist Laura Garcia joins Nuala McGovern to discuss what this moment means for the women and girls of Mexico. A new immersive exhibition, Connecting Hearts, by Swansea University, the Human Milk Foundation and artist Leanne Pearce,…

3 Jun 6AM 59 min

Weekend Woman’s Hour: Ruth Jones, Netball Super League, FGM ban at risk in Gambia, Muses, Hadestown creator Anaïs Mitchell

Ruth Jones joins Nuala McGovern to talk about playing the Mother Superior in a West End production of Sister Act. She discusses getting out of her comfort zone by appearing on stage for the first time since 2018 and working on her fourth novel. Plus what can fans of Gavin…

1 Jun 11AM 53 min

FGM ban at risk in Gambia, pioneering Qawwali dentist, TV’s Queen of Books

Politicians in The Gambia are debating whether to overturn the ban on female genital mutilation. Activist Fatou Baldeh MBE tells Anita Rani about the impact this discussion is having on the ground and in other countries around the world.Dr. Janine Bradbury is an award-winning poet and critic and a Senior…

31 May 8AM 57 min

Weekend Woman’s Hour: British cyclist Lizzy Banks, Show-women, Love bombing, Infected blood scandal

On 28 July last year the British cyclist Lizzy Banks received an email from UK Anti Doping to say she had return two Adverse Analytical Findings. The letter stated she faced the prospect of a two-year ban unless she could establish the source. Thus began a ten-month journey investigating, researching…

30 May 6PM 58 min

Ozempic, Netball Super League, Olivier award-winner Cassidy Janson

As prescriptions for weight loss drugs in the UK increase, Woman’s Hour explores how safe online prescriptions for things like Ozempic and Wegovy are. Fashion stylist Jeannie Annan Lewin tells us how she buys the drugs and how they have helped her. Anita Rani is joined by Alima Batchelor, from…

30 May 6AM 53 min

Hadestown creator Anaïs Mitchell, Perfume’s Darkest Secrets, the return of Loaded magazine

Grammy and Tony award-winning songwriter Anaïs Mitchell is the creator of the musical Hadestown – a genre-defying retelling of the Orpheus and Eurydice myth blending folk music and New Orleans jazz. With productions on Broadway and now at the Lyric Theatre in London, Anaïs performs live in the Woman’s Hour…

29 May 7AM 56 min

Ruth Jones on Sister Act, Women and Renting, Couples Who Disagree About Having Children

Ruth Jones is live in the Woman’s Hour studio to talk about playing the Mother Superior in a West End production of Sister Act. She discusses getting out of her comfort zone by appearing on stage for the first time since 2018 and working on her fourth novel. Plus what…

28 May 6AM 57 min

Muses

From the Pre-Raphaelites to Picasso, Vermeer to Freud, some of the most famous Western artwork involves an artist’s muse. So who are the muses who have inspired great art? How do they embody an artist’s vision? And why has the muse artist relationship led to abuse of power? Nuala speaks…

27 May 5AM 58 min

Climate medal winner, India's election and women voters, celebrating composer Clara Schumann

Valérie Courtois was recently announced as the winner of the 2024 Shackleton medal for her work revolutionizing climate conservation in the Canadian arctic, most notably for her vision connecting Indigenous Guardians as ‘the eyes and ears on the ground’ to preserve ecosystems. As a member of the Ilnu community of…

24 May 6AM 59 min

23/05/2024

Women's voices and women's lives - topical conversations to inform, challenge and inspire.

23 May 9AM 57 min

Endurance runner Imo Boddy, love bombing, fake food artist

The endurance runner Imo Boddy has smashed the 45-year-old world record and become the fastest known woman to complete the UK Three Peaks. She joins Nuala McGovern live on the programme.Do you know what love bombing is? One of our Woman’s Hour listeners Lynn got in touch to say it’s…

22 May 7AM 57 min

Solving historic rape cases, British cyclist Lizzy Banks, Margaret Leng Tan

A new documentary on BBC Two is looking at how new forensic techniques can help police re-examine old cases involving sexual assault and rape, helping to convict perpetrators from decades ago. Cold Case Investigators: Solving Britain’s Sex Crimes tells the story of three cases that were re-examined. One is that…

21 May 7AM 56 min

Infected blood scandal, Anita Pallenberg, Feminist theatre

The long awaited final report of the public inquiry into the infected blood scandal is published today, The inquiry was announced in 2017 after years of campaigning by victims. From the 1970s to the early 1990s, approximately 30,000 people were infected with blood contaminated with HIV and Hepatitis C. Over…

20 May 6AM 56 min

Weekend Woman’s Hour: Royal Navy exclusive, Tamsin Greig, Period Tracker Apps, Formula One, Sleepwalking, Choral music

A female officer in the military says she was raped by a senior officer who was responsible in the Royal Navy for behaviours and values, including sexual consent. Speaking exclusively to Woman’s Hour, the female officer, who we are calling Joanna, reported the incident and her allegations to the military…

18 May 11AM 55 min

Lesbian bars, Director Amanda Nell Eu, World champion boxer, Lauren Price MBE

Period tracker apps claim to help you to predict when you might start your period and calculate the best time to attempt to conceive. The Information Commissioner's Office has said that a third of women have used one. A report out this week, however, has raised serious questions about the…

17 May 6AM 57 min

Women in Formula One, Monstrum, Sex education, Bridgerton dresses

Schools in England should not teach about gender identity, according to new draft guidance from the government, due to be published in full today. There is also a plan to ban sex education for under-nines. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has said the new guidance would ensure children were not "exposed…

16 May 11AM 57 min

Beth Mead, Women and choral music, Eating disorders

Over half of female footballers book pitches, only to find they’ve been reallocated to men. With twice as many women as men considering quitting the sport because of this, Arsenal forward and England Lioness Beth Mead tells Nuala McGovern about her concerns.A BBC investigation published today has highlighted the concerns…

15 May 7AM 56 min

Birth trauma, Sleepwalking, Lolita Chakrabarti

How many women have decided not to have more children after a traumatic birth? The UK’s first inquiry into traumatic childbirth has found that too often poor care is normalised, with devastating effects on women’s mental and physical health. Nuala McGovern talks to one Woman’s Hour listener who decided she…

14 May 6AM 58 min

Royal Navy Exclusive, Sarah Atherton MP, Tamsin Greig, singer-songwriter Lauren Mayberry

A female officer in the military says she was raped by an senior officer who was responsible in the Royal Navy for behaviours and values, including sexual consent. Speaking exclusively to Woman’s Hour, the female officer, who we are calling Joanna, reported the incident and her allegations to the military…

13 May 6AM 56 min

Weekend Woman's Hour: Foster caring, Liz Carr on assisted dying, Sabrina Ali on Dugzi Dayz, Rachel Chinouriri

The number of children in care is continuing to rise each year, and thousands of new foster carers are needed. The comedian and writer Kiri Pritchard-McLean has done just that. During lockdown, Kiri and her partner embarked on a journey to become foster carers in north Wales and she’s ‘evangelical’…

11 May 11AM 51 min