A joint investigation by The College of Policing and Fire & Rescue Service and the Independent Office for Police Conduct has found that there are ‘systemic deficiencies’ in the way some police forces deal with allegations of domestic abuse against their own officers. We discuss with Deputy Chief Constable Maggie Blythe, National Police Lead for Violence Against Women and Girls; David Tucker, Head of Crime and Criminal Justice, College of Policing and Nogah Ofer from the CWJ. It's a big year ...
Jul 04, 2022•57 min
The overturning by the US Supreme Court of the landmark Roe v Wade ruling has prompted many of you to get in touch to share your reactions and experiences. But what does the law in the UK say about a woman’s right to an abortion? We hear from Professor Fiona De Londras, the Chair of Global Legal Studies at Birmingham Law School. Aparna Sen is one of India's best loved and most successful film directors. Her career has spanned 40 years and she's explored issues around mental health, sexual abuse ...
Jul 02, 2022•57 min
Aparna Sen joins us in the studio. She's one of India's best loved and most successful film directors. Her career has spanned 40 years and she's explored issues around mental health, sexual abuse and infidelity. Aparna is in England for the London Indian Film Festival. The number of NHS midwives in England has fallen by over 600 in a year, according to figures by the Royal College of Midwives. We talk to Birte Harlev-lam from the Royal College of Midwives, as well as a midwife in the West Midlan...
Jul 01, 2022•58 min
How do you heal and get through a break up? Annie Lord is Vogue’s dating columnist. She joins Emma Barnett to talk about her debut book, Notes on Heartbreak. A candid exploration of the best and worst of love, she talks about nursing a broken heart and her own attempts to move on in the current dating climate; from disastrous rebound sex to sending ill-advised nudes, stalking your ex’s new girlfriend and the sharp indignity of being ghosted. The overturning by the US Supreme Court of the landmar...
Jun 30, 2022•1 hr 7 min
Ghislaine Maxwell has been sentenced to 20 years in prison for helping former financier Jeffrey Epstein abuse young girls. We speak to Equality Lawyer Georgina Calvert Lee about her statement in court where she said she empathised with the victims, and hoped her prison sentence would allow them "peace and finality". The killing of Ashling Murphy in Tullamore, County Offaly in Ireland in January 2022 sparked a huge public outcry, and has been seen as a watershed moment in how the country tackles ...
Jun 29, 2022•58 min
An American pregnant woman who was on holiday in Malta this month couldn't get an induced medical miscarriage when she needed it because of the country's strict abortion laws. Andrea Prudente ended up going to Mallorca to get treatment, where she’s recovering in a hotel. She joined Emma. Zara Aleena, 35, was assaulted as she walked home in East London in the early hours of Sunday. The Met Police believe she was the victim of an "opportunist stranger attack". She died later in hospital. Emma spea...
Jun 28, 2022•58 min
Dame Kelly Holmes came out as a lesbian last week. The Olympic champion served in the army in the late 1980’s, when you could face prison for being gay as a member of the military. Dame Kelly spoke of her worry that she would still face consequences if she were to let her sexuality be known. It wasn’t until 2000 that a ban on being gay and serving in the Army, Navy or RAF was lifted. Emma Riley was discharged from the Royal Navy in 1993 for being a lesbian, she joins Emma in the studio alongside...
Jun 27, 2022•57 min
In a world exclusive, Kate Bush speaks to Emma Barnett about being discovered by a new generation and making it to number 1 in the UK singles charts 44 years after her first chart-topper Wuthering Heights. Running Up That Hill was first released in 1985 and its use in the Netflix hit series Stranger Things has made Kate Bush a social media and streaming sensation. The physical and emotional challenges of in vitro fertilisation, or IVF, never fade from your memory - whatever the outcome. But what...
Jun 25, 2022•57 min
On Wednesday the government announced plans to create a new ‘Bill of Rights’ to Parliament, that will replace the current Human Rights Act. It argues that these reforms will ‘reinforce freedom of speech, enable us to deport more foreign offenders and better protect the public from dangerous criminals’. But organisations that work with female victims of crime say this is a direct attack on women’s rights. They say the Human Rights Act is an important weapon when it comes to victims and survivors’...
Jun 24, 2022•57 min
The physical and emotional challenges of in vitro fertilisation, or IVF, never fade from your memory - whatever the outcome. But what happens when you have been lucky enough to have a child or children and you still have frozen embryos in storage you are sure you will not use. None of the choices you face are easy – to donate to another couple in need, or to science, to let them be discarded or continue to preserve them. We hear from Alison Murdoch, Professor of Reproductive Medicine at Newcastl...
Jun 23, 2022•57 min
In a world exclusive, today Kate Bush gives Emma Barnett her reaction to being discovered by a new generation and making it to number 1 in the UK singles charts 44 years after her first chart-topper Wuthering Heights. Running Up That Hill was first released in 1985 and its use in the Netflix hit series Stranger Things has made Kate Bush a social media and streaming sensation. We also speak to Caitlin Moran about how rare it is to hear from Kate and why she is inspired by her songs. A report out ...
Jun 22, 2022•57 min
As we celebrate the summer solstice on the other side of the world it's the shortest day or mid-winter. For the first time the British Antarctic Survey have an all-female team wintering on Bird Island in the sub-Antarctic. Midwinter is a moment of celebration for the teams on sites. The Bird Island Research Station Leader, Imogen Lloyd, joins Emma to tell her about the work they're doing. Olivia Harrison has penned a book of poetry called "Came the Lightening" to celebrate her husband, George Ha...
Jun 21, 2022•58 min
The comedians Katherine Ryan and Sara Pascoe have been making headlines in recent weeks following comments they made on Katherine’s new TV show. Both revealed instances when they’ve worked with men they believe to be predatory and despite complaining these men have not been reprimanded. Emma is joined by Kathryn Roberts who quit comedy because of her experiences and also by Chloe Petts who will be performing her show Transience at the Edinburgh Fringe this summer. School proms return this year, ...
Jun 20, 2022•58 min
Following a two-year investigation into bullying, abuse and discrimination the Whyte Review into British Gymnastics is finally published. We hear from ex-gymnast Claire Heafford, co-founder and campaign director of Gymnasts 4 Change, and Sarah Moore, lawyer and partner at Hausfeld who are acting on behalf of 38 former elite gymnasts against British Gymnastics in relation to allegations of abuse. In her prize-winning memoir, Free: Coming of Age at the End of History, Lea Ypi describes what it was...
Jun 18, 2022•57 min
Following a two year investigation into bullying, abuse and discrimination the Whyte Review into British Gymnastics is finally published. We hear from ex-gymnast Claire Heafford, co-founder and campaign director of Gymnasts 4 Change, and Sarah Moore, lawyer and partner at Hausfeld who are acting on behalf of 38 former elite gymnasts against British Gymnastics in relation to allegations of abuse. It’s has just been announced that Professor Dame Lesley Regan has been appointed as the first ever Wo...
Jun 17, 2022•58 min
Her newspaper only launched 14 weeks before the outbreak of war in Ukraine, but the Kyiv Independent now has over two million followers on Twitter, and has been described by Time Magazine as: "The world's primary source for reliable English-language journalism on the war." Emma speaks to the Editor of the newspaper, Olga Rudenko about the challenges female journalists are facing in Ukraine. She also discusses how her and her team, which are mostly women, launched their newspaper just weeks after...
Jun 16, 2022•58 min
Last week, Prime Minister Boris Johnson unveiled his "benefits to bricks" plan to tackle the UK housing crisis - the chronic shortage of homes to rent and buy and climbing property prices. According to the charity Shelter at present across the UK there are currently 17.5 million adults without safe, secure or stable homes. If you include children in this number – it is 1 in 3. A new book Tenants is about people on the frontline of Britain's housing emergency – and describes particularly how a sh...
Jun 15, 2022•58 min
The House of Commons is going to become a 'menopause-friendly' employer. Speaker of the Commons, Sir Lindsay Hoyle said after he signed a Menopause Workplace Pledge yesterday, that he hopes to "break the taboo" around the menopause. Practical adjustments could be included in Westminster, such as well-ventilated rooms and fans, flexible working and breathable uniforms. But will a pledge in Parliament have any impact of the lives of women across the UK? Journalist and author of Cracking The Menopa...
Jun 14, 2022•58 min
New research from the Young Women’s Trust paints a bleak picture for many young women as they come out of the pandemic and into the cost of living crisis, with young mums experiencing particular disadvantages. We hear from young mums Charlotte and Jyndi, and speak to Claire Reindorp CEO of the Young Woman’s Trust. Rosie Kinchen found herself deeply depressed after the birth of her second child. After rescuing an ailing houseplant she started dragging herself out of the house to look at plants in...
Jun 13, 2022•58 min
Oscar-winner Dame Emma Thompson on women's pleasure and full frontal nudity in her latest acting role in Good Luck To You, Leo Grande. Are you a 'flusher' or a ‘binner’? New research says 2.4 million tampons are flushed down UK toilets every day leading to sewer blockages and pollution. We talk to Martha Silcott who's developed a simple product to encourage you to bin and Daisy Buchanan who says more needs to be done to make a product which flushes without causing environmental harm. In 2017 sur...
Jun 11, 2022•57 min
Are you a 'flusher' or a ‘binner’? We’re talking about getting rid of tampons and towels. What makes you decide whether to flip that bin lid, or just drop and flush? New research is out which says 2.4 million tampons are flushed down UK toilets every day leading to sewer blockages and pollution. We talk to Martha Silcott who's developed a simple product to encourage you to bin and Daisy Buchanan who says more needs to be done to make a product which flushes without causing environmental harm. Sh...
Jun 10, 2022•58 min
Oscar-winner Dame Emma Thompson has graced our screens for four decades. As an actor, she's played all kinds of women, from her role as Elinor Dashwood in Sense and Sensibility to her heart-breaking Karen in Christmas favourite, Love Actually. But now she's taking on a different kind of acting role. Good Luck To You, Leo Grande tells the story of Nancy Stokes, a 55-year-old widow (played by Thompson) who decides to hire a significantly younger male sex worker, played by the Irish actor, Daryl Mc...
Jun 09, 2022•57 min
This year marks 20 years since Sarah and Gordon Brown lost their daughter Jennifer, who died ten days after being born seven weeks prematurely. In a search for answers, they founded the Jennifer Brown Research Laboratory in 2004, which looks into the causes and consequences of premature birth. Around 1 in 13 babies in the UK are born prematurely –before 37 weeks. Sarah is Chair of the charity Theirworld and tells Emma about the latest research. It's been over a year since Sarah Everard was adbuc...
Jun 08, 2022•58 min
The singer songwriter Joan Armatrading received an Ivor Novello Award for Outstanding Contemporary Song Collection in 1996. Best known for hits such as Love And Affection, Me Myself I and Drop The Pilot, she has released more than 20 studio albums. Later this week Joan will receive The Music Producers Guild Outstanding Contribution Award. She joins Emma to discuss her music and this latest achievement. 50 years ago this month the first edition of the iconic feminist magazine Spare Rib was publis...
Jun 07, 2022•57 min
Can platonic love survive romantic love as we grow up? Emma Barnett talks to to the writer Dolly Alderton about her new BBC TV series, an adaptation of her 2018 memoir ‘Everything I Know About Love’, A round-up of the weekends events for the Queen's platinum jubilee from Roya Nikkah - royal editor of The Sunday Times and Dame Prue Leith on being part of the final part of the final pageant on the Mall. The Royal Horticultural Society is the UK’s largest gardening charity For the last 12 years Sue...
Jun 06, 2022•57 min
As the nation celebrates the Queen’s 70 year reign this jubilee weekend we ask what impact will the changes to primogeniture mean for future British monarchs? We hear from five historians, Alison Weir, Lady Antonia Fraser, Jung Chang, Tracey Borman and Kate Williams. Author Julie Myerson’s new book is Nonfiction, a novel about a couple struggling with a daughter who is addicted to heroin. It's partly inspired by the experience of her own son's drug addiction. Julie joins Andrea Catherwood to tal...
Jun 04, 2022•55 min
As the nation celebrates the Queen’s 70 year reign this jubilee weekend we have our own tribute to Her Majesty with a special programme to champion some of the other great Queens in history. Anita Rani brings five eminent historians together to champion their candidate including Lady Antonia Fraser on Marie Antoinette, Kate Williams on Liliʻuokalani the last Queen of Hawaii, Tracy Borman on Elizabeth I, Jung Chang on Empress Dowager Cixi from China and Alison Weir on Eleanor of Acquitaine. They ...
Jun 03, 2022•56 min
The songwriter and pianist Kate Garner is the daughter of Chas Hodges of Chas and Dave fame. Chas’s mother, Daisy, recorded a special tribute to the Queen for the silver jubilee back in 1977. But to celebrate the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee, Kate has decided to continue the family tradition and has penned her own song called Platinum Queen. She performs live and tells Nuala McGovern how her song prompted a response from the Queen herself. For the first time this year the Women’s FA Cup Final was pl...
Jun 02, 2022•54 min
Tahmima Anam is an anthropologist and a novelist. She's a big fan of silence and believes it can been harnessed to challenge sexism and expose bad behaviour. We talk about the pros, cons and ethics of genome sequencing for new-borns. A new pilot will be running shortly, so we speak to Vivienne Parry, Head of Engagement at Genomics England and Rebecca Middleton, who has an inherited brain aneurysm disorder and is a member of the panel representing parents and health care professionals. Do you kno...
Jun 01, 2022•56 min
Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe talks for the first time to Emma Barnett for this special Woman’s Hour programme. In this exclusive interview she reveals the full story of her imprisonment in Iran. Nazanin explains how she survived solitary confinement, how the love of her daughter kept her alive and what Prime Minster Boris Johnson told her about the real reason for her imprisonment. Nazanin was arrested in April 2016 after visiting her parents in Iran with her 21 month-old daughter Gabriella, on her...
Jun 01, 2022•54 min
