Woman's Hour

As the new three tier Covid lock down system comes into force in England we talk to some of the businesses which’re now facing stricter restrictions. Hannah Butler who runs the Victoria Hotel in the centre of Nottingham – a city which is now in the high risk tier - and also to Tanya Harrison who runs a hair salon in Liverpool which is now in the highest risk tier. And as the Northern Ireland executive meets today to agree what new measures are needed to curb the steep rise in covid cases there, Tina McKenzie from the Federation of Small Businesses will assess the economic impact of any new restrictions.In her book Overdue: Birth, Burnout and a Blueprint for a Better NHS, Amity Reed describes what led her to becoming a midwife, in particular her desire to properly support and care for women throughout pregnancy, birth and postnatally. The reality of working in over-stretched and underfunded NHS maternity service soon shattered her illusions. The former midwife joins Jane to talk about her experiences as

The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists and Royal College of Midwives are urging all pregnant women to take up the offer of a free flu vaccination this winter to protect themselves and their baby from complications caused by the flu virus. Sangita Myska is joined by Dr Jo Mountfield, Consultant Obstetrician and Vice President of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, to discuss why this is so important. Three-quarters of women living with HIV in the UK are women of Black, Asian or minority ethnic background. Dr Rageshri Dhairyawan, a consultant in Sexual Health and HIV Medicine at Barts Health NHS Trust in London, wants to see a renewed focus on how to access those women, ensure that they have the healthcare they need to live long and healthy lives, and break down the stigma around HIV that is intense within some communities. She says South Asian women form a silent and often overlooked minority of women living with HIV, which is concerning as sexually transmitted infections ar

Around 300,000 women have epilepsy in the UK. Epilepsy Research UK say that hormones can affect epilepsy, and drugs used to control it need to be very carefully balanced with medication that women take. Dr Susan Duncan is a consultant neurologist. Torie, 30 and Ruth, 60 both have it.Three of our Power List judges Lucy Siegle, Flo Headlam and Prof Alice Larkin answer your questions on how to live a greener life. The opera singer Natalya Romaniw has just been named Young Artist of the Year at the Gramophone Classical Music Awards, she tells us about the challenges of performing live during the pandemic.Last week the first hydrogen train in the UK took its maiden journey. There’s still a lot to do like making room for the batteries underneath the train, and increasing the speed. Helen Simpson and Chandra Morbey are two women behind the project.javascript:void(0)Writer and journalist Yasmin Alibhai-Brown’s new book, Ladies who Punch, is about fifty daring courageous indomitable women. The women who inspire her a

Jane Garvey talks to a woman who survived being groomed by a gang in Rotherham, also to Yasmin Alibhai Brown and Ruby Hamad about identity politics and feminism and we hear from the older women who enjoy dating younger men. Producer: Lisa Jenkinson Studio Manager: Matilda Macari

Experts in epilepsy say women are disproportionately affected by the condition. Around 300,000 women have it in the UK. Epilepsy Research UK say that hormones can affect epilepsy, and drugs used to control it need to be very carefully balanced with medication that women take like The Pill or HRT. Women with epilepsy are also ten times more likely to die in pregnancy. Dr Susan Duncan is a consultant neurologist. Torie, 30 and Ruth, 60 both have it. Dating apps have changed how you can meet a potential partner and you can choose exactly what you like as all the information about sexuality, age, background and sexual preferences are laid out. Our reporter Henrietta Harrison, in her forties, recently joined a dating app and was inundated with messages from men in their twenties but felt uneasy about some of the approaches. It seems the ‘older woman with a younger man’ dynamic is growing in popularity on dating apps and it has long been popular in porn. She wanted to understand more about the attraction between

The opera singer Natalya Romaniw joins Jane to talk about the challenges performing live in the Covid-era and her latest role as Mimi in the ENO’s La Bohème at Alexandra Palace in London. As the political party conference season comes to a close Guardian columnist Gaby Hinsliff and Katy Balls from the Spectator consider what, if any, policies are on the table for women. Men are disproportionately affected by Covid 19 in health terms but it is women who seem to be bearing the brunt of the economic fallout of the pandemic as well as taking on a larger share of domestic work and childcare. Is the virus a step back for women’s rights? And what are the political parties planning to do about it? Apart from walking and cycling, the train is the greenest way of getting around. Trains, especially diesel ones, still emit carbon dioxide though. But, last week the first hydrogen train in the UK took its maiden journey. It’s 100% clean. There’s still a lot to do like making room for the batteries underneath the train

We've been overwhelmed by the phenomenal response we’ve had from listeners about this year's Woman's Hour Power List - so today we’re making it all about you! Do you have questions about living a greener life? Do you want to help the planet but aren’t sure how? Send us your eco-dilemmas, queries and questions and our Power List judges Lucy Siegle, Flo Headlam and Prof Alice Larkin will be on hand with top tips and advice.You can tweet us @BBCWomansHour or email your questions to womanshour.yourviews@bbc.co.uk

Agony Aunt and star of Googlebox Mary Killen joins Jane Garvey to urge us to channel her ultimate British Role model – The Queen . She argues we’d all be a bit happier, wiser and more adept if we adopted the underrated virtues of duty, kindness, discretion, restraint and fortitude as exemplified by Her Majesty. Could disabled people help to solve the crisis in fostering? Is gossip the glue or life, why do we do it, and who does it most? Plus the writer Lucy Kirkwood and actor Hayley Squires talk about their latest project, the drama "Adult Material" Presenter Jane Garvey Producer Beverley Purcell PHOTO CREDIT: Hugo BurnandGuest; Mary Killen Guest; Professor Robin Dunbar Guest; Lucy Kirkwood Guest; Hayley Squires Guest; Alison Bryne Guest; Peter Unwin

In her final Woman’s Hour after 33 years at the helm, Jenni discusses the work that still needs to be done when it comes to feminism and equality. She's joined by Helena Kennedy QC, Jude Kelly the founder and director of The WOW Foundation, "Mother of the House" Harriet Harman MP, and poet and novelist, Jackie Kay. We hear from Lee Lawrence, whose mother Cherry Groce was shot by police in a botched dawn raid. Lee describes his fight to get justice for his mother and his ongoing commitment to challenging racism within the police force.We hear from the film director Malou Reymann about her new film ‘A Perfectly Normal Family’. It centres around an eleven year old girl whose life is turned upside down when her father tells her he wants to become a woman. The fictional story is based on Malou's own experience. Live, learn and thrive: that’s what Andrea McLean wants us to do with the help of her new book “This Girl is on Fire”. The 2020 Woman’s Hour Power List is looking for women who are trying to improve the

We heard about women Democrats standing for Congress last week, and today we discuss Republican women. In 2018 their numbers in the House of Representatives dwindled to just 13, but now a record number are entering the November elections either as incumbents or challengers, so what made the difference and what are their chances of winning? Jane speaks to Olivia Perez-Cubas from Winning for Women, an organisation set up in 2017 to encourage more conservative female candidates, and Sarah Elliott, Chair of Republicans Overseas UK.Eleven-year-old Emma finds her life turned upside down when her father tells her he wants to become a woman. This is subject of a new Danish film ‘A Perfectly Normal Family’. The fictional story is based on the director Malou Reymann’s own experience. She joins Jane along with her father Helene.Award-winning video games writer Rhianna Pratchett speaks to Jane about her first book Crystal of Storms which aims to get young girls into the world of fantasy and gaming. Her book is part of Fi

As Jenni Murray says 'goodbye' to the programme she's presented for 33 years, she looks back at some of the battles we've won, lost and still have to fight in the company of Harriet Harman MP, Jude Kelly director and founder of the WOW Foundation, Helena Kennedy QC and the novelist and poet Jackie Kay. Plus she talks about some of her own favourite moments of the past 30 years. Presenter: Jenni Murray Producer: Beverley Purcell Edito:; Karen DalzielGuest: Harriet Harman Guest: Helena Kennedy Guest: Jude Kelly Guest: Jackie Kay

Flavour is the third instalment in Yotam Ottolenghi’s Plenty series which celebrates the infinite potential of vegetables. Along with co-author and recipe developer Ixta Belfrage they explore techniques and processes such as infusing and charring which brings out the full flavour of the vegetable. They join Jenni to talk about how to Cook the Perfect Spicy Mushroom Lasagne.We now know that tens of thousands of people in the UK are living with Long Covid – meaning that they have not yet recovered from the effects of the virus, even if their infection was relatively mild, and happened months ago. Symptoms vary but can include breathlessness and fatigue. You might have heard presenter Adam Rutherford yesterday on Radio 4 talking about his own experience of it, and looking at the growing body of science around the condition. A picture is also now emerging of how the condition is affecting women. The Long Covid Support group on Facebook has 23,000 members in the UK and 75% of them are women. Lesley Macniven

On 28 September 1985, Lee Lawrence’s mother Cherry Groce was wrongly shot by police during a raid on her Brixton home. The bullet shattered her spine and she never walked again. Soon after it was reported – wrongly - that Cherry Groce was dead, and two days of rioting took place in Brixton. All this was witnessed by 11-year-old Lee. He became his mother’s carer. After a doctor questioned the cause of his mother’s death in 2011 Lee campaigned fiercely for an inquest, a chance to find out what really happened the day his family’s life was turned upside down. Lee joins Jane tomorrow to talk about his mother, his life as a carer, his fight to get the police to recognise their wrongdoing and his ongoing commitment to challenge racism and fight for justice.The government has announced it will not go ahead with a change to the Gender Recognition Act which would have allowed trans men and women to self identify rather than go through a medical diagnosis to change their gender. The Equalities and Human Rights Com

The government is carrying out a review into how to improve health outcomes for babies and children from disadvantaged backgrounds. The Early Years development review will look at the critical first two and a half years of life which has a significant impact on the physical health, mental health and opportunity throughout life. We hear from the government's Early Years adviser Andrea Leadsom MP.In August we spoke to Alexandra Wilson about her book “In Black and White” - breaking down barriers of race and class to become a barrister. Last week she tweeted how she’d been mistaken for a defendant three times in one day in court. She joins Jane. Live, learn and thrive – that’ what Andrea McLean wants us to be able to achieve with the help of her new book “This Girl is on Fire”. In it she shares her own experiences of overcoming toxic relationships, a breakdown and burnout to help us see that we can change ourselves and change our life. There are many terms that are used to describe spending time alone, but m

The 2020 Woman’s Hour Power List is ‘Our Planet’ - the search is on for 30 women based in the UK who are making a significant positive contribution to the environment. Emma Howard Boyd, the chair of the Environment Agency, and Flo Headlam, a horticulturalist and garden designer are two of the judges. Mary McAleese was twice president of Ireland, studied canon law when her term ended and, to the surprise of many, as she has a deep personal faith, spoke out against misogyny in the global Catholic Church. Her autobiography is called ‘Here’s the Story : A Memoir.’There’s been a rise in websites and Facebook groups offering Known Donation, where a person seeking to conceive uses a sperm or egg donation from someone they know, or got to know before the treatment. We hear from Sarah Norcross, Director of the Progress Educational Trust; Erika Tranfield, the mother of a donor-conceived child from a known donor; and Natasha Fox, a donor-conceived adult who does not know the identity of her biological father.Emily Hunt

Windrush campaigner, Paulette Wilson’s brave decision to speak to Amelia Gentleman about the immigration issues she was facing with the Home Office was crucial in exposing the Windrush scandal. In her book, The Windrush Betrayal, Gentleman tells the full story of her investigation. Campaigner, Glenda Caesar was also caught up in the hostile environment – she came to Britain legally as a three-month-old child and had no reason to think she was not British until she was she was sacked from her job as an NHS administrator. She was one of the first recipients of the first Windrush compensation offers which she rejected as insulting. Lawyer, Jacqueline McKenzie explains why there is such a delay in victims receiving payments. Following her debut album ‘Rise’ which reached No.1 in the UK Classical Chart, award-winning saxophonist Jess Gilliam is back with a new album. She joins us to discuss diversity in classical music and advice for playing an instrument during lockdown. At the beginning of the month, you may

The award-winning actor Alison Steadman joins Jenni to discuss her latest projects. ’23 Walks’ is a film telling a love story in later life, and ‘Life’ is a new BBC1 drama set in Manchester, and follows the stories of the residents of a large house divided into four flats. It explores love, loss, birth, death, the ordinary, the extraordinary and everything in between.Mary McAleese was President of Ireland twice. When she finished her second term, she turned her sights on the global Catholic Church, and having the credibility of a doctorate in Canon Law behind her, she spoke out against what she saw as the misogyny within it. She did it despite having a deep personal faith that goes back to her childhood. Mary was born in Belfast in the 1950s; witnessed the Troubles as they started and how they went onto to wreak havoc and pain on both sides. She became a barrister even though it wasn’t expected of a woman: especially a woman from a working class background. She’s brought out her autobiography - Here’s The

Why are the world’s best female footballers signing for English clubs? In the past few weeks some of the world’s best female footballers have signed for clubs in the Women’s Super League, highlighting a power shift in women’s football globally and setting up an enticing season, which will be watched, at least remotely, by more fans than ever before. The new arrivals include five of the US World Cup-winning team, most notably Alex Morgan at Tottenham Hotspur, who scored one of the goals that knocked England out of the 2019 World Cup. To discuss the women’s game and the draw to English clubs, Jenni is joined by BBC Women’s Sport Reporter, Jo Currie, and Kristine Leine, Defender for Reading FC Women.New data from a parliamentary committee suggests the problem of poor body image has increased during lockdown. The social media survey by the Women and Equalities committee is being published today as they start hearing evidence from experts about body image on areas such as who’s at risk, the impact on mental hea

Today we launch the Woman’s Hour Power List 2020 - Our Planet. We will be looking for 30 women based in the UK who are making a significant positive contribution to the environment or the sustainability of our planet. It will showcase inspirational initiatives and stories that are bringing about real change at all levels of society – from influencing global policy and changing human behaviour, to inventing eco-friendly products, spearheading scientific research, volunteering in community gardens, and inspiring a deep love of the natural world. Jane is joined by two of the judges - Lucy Siegle and Zunaira Malik - to discuss who we’re looking for and how listeners can tell us who they think should be in the running. In 2016 Ilhan Omar became the United States’ first Somali-American lawmaker, joining the Minnesota House of Representatives as a Democrat. Two years later she In became one of the first two Muslim women elected to US Congress. She’s 37 and has described herself as ‘America’s hope and the President

When actor Shobna Gulati’s mum was diagnosed with dementia in 2017, she was already spending the majority of her time caring for her. Their sometimes difficult relationship was tested to the limit, but ultimately she gained a lot from those years spent in her mum’s front room. When she passed away last year she decided to write a book about her family and her mum’s illness called Remember Me? Discovering my mother as she lost her memory.At the weekend Jade Edwards will become the first woman in 13 years to race in the British Touring Car Championship at Silverstone. So why's it taken so long to see another woman on the course? Jade joins us, along with Fiona Leggate, the last female driver who competed back in 2007. Have you been given the silent treatment by another parent at school, or felt excluded from a group of mums? Now the new school year is well underway, playground politics can sometimes extend to the other side of the school gate. Jane discusses coping strategies with counselling psychologist