File on 4 Investigates

Latest Episodes:

Thin on Information? Hair loss drug Finasteride Jan 20, 2026

Show notes

File on 4 Investigates whether the risks associated with the popular hair loss drug Finasteride are understood, after a 2024 review by UK drug safety regulator the MHRA prompted by a lack of awareness of the drug’s side-effects. Finasteride’s most common side effects are reduced libido and erectile dysfunction, affecting more than one in a hundred patients. Some people also report low mood and suicidal thoughts.

As Johnny I'Anson discovers some hair loss clinics are failing to adequately warn customers at the consultation stage of the sexual side effects assocated with Finasteride.

The drug, which is highly effective at halting hair loss, is only available by private prescription for hair loss purposes.

But File on 4 Investigates discovers influencer accounts on the social media site TikTok promoting finasteride, also offering discounts for Finasteride with Manual, a popular UK men's health company. A lawyer expert told us that the videos we found constituted advertising.

As a prescription-only medicine, it’s illegal to advertise finasteride to the public like this. This programme flagged the videos to TikTok, and they have since been removed. The company has also banned three of the accounts promoting the drug, saying they breached its rules. Manual said it was not involved in the making of the influencers’ videos.

Presenter: Johnny I'Anson Producer: Rob Byrne Technical Producer: Richard Hannaford Production Co-ordinator: Tim Fernley Editor: Tara McDermott

Details of organisations offering help and support with mental health are available at bbc.co.uk/actionline

No Win No Fee... No thanks? Jan 13, 2026

Show notes

File on 4 Investigates reveals new data showing a significant rise in housing disrepair claims, now a growing market for unscrupulous No Win No Fee lawyers. Adrian Goldberg asks, has the Solicitors Regulation Authority learned its lessons from the collapse of the law firm SSB which left hundreds of householders with huge legal bills, and are they able to protect vulnerable social housing tenants from potentially risky NWNF claims?

File on 4 Investigates have been told by 5 major housing providers across England and Wales that housing disrepair claims have been growing significantly.

One social housing provider in the South of England with an estate of 85,000 homes has told us its seen a 375% rise in the number of legal claims launched by tenants in the last 5 years. We speak to John Golding, a 74 year old pensioner living in a housing association flat in Staffordshire about how a canvasser knocking on his door tried to pressurise him into pursuing a housing disrepair claim with a Manchester based No Win No Fee solicitors' firm.

Reporter: Adrian Goldberg Producer: Jim Booth Additional research: Laura Longworth Technical Producers: Richard Hannaford & Cameron Ward Production Coordinator: Tim Fernley Editor: Tara McDermott

Can cash grants help end homelessness? Dec 30, 2025

Show notes

Do you give homeless people cash? Many people fear any donation will be misspent but a ground-breaking study in the UK is currently recruiting 125 homeless people to receive a large one-off cash payment, paid directly to them. There's no restrictions on what they can buy with the money. It can be used for anything, it’s entirely up to the individual how they choose to spend it. The aim of the project is to see if it will help people move on from homelessness for good. With exclusive access to the ongoing study, Michael Buchanan follows some of those who’ve been given the cash to see how the money is being spent and what impact it‘s having on their lives.

Reporter: Michael Buchanan Producers: Emma Forde and Rob Byrne Editor: Tara McDermott Production Coordinator: Tim Fernley

Firefighting's forever chemical legacy Dec 16, 2025

Show notes

Industrial firefighting foams are an essential part of on-site safety in UK factories. But for decades some of these familiar canisters contained potentially dangerous, toxic chemicals.

File on 4 Investigates discovers that 3M the multi-billion dollar chemical company responsible for producing the chemicals knew about the risks as early as the 1960s because their own internal studies on animals and tests on workers indicated a possible increase in rates of cancer. Despite this, the company failed to warn its workers of the dangers associated with using the foams for decades and was involved in an environmental accident at one of its sites that led to the chemicals being released into a Welsh river.

The programme obtained never seen before documents showing the regulator warning the company it thought it had committed an offence but choosing not to prosecute it.

In 2004, with evidence of the risks to the environment of the two specific forever chemicals PFOS and PFOA, a report commissioned by the government recommended any remaining firefighting foams containing the chemicals be incinerated. But we discover in the years after that companies struggled to dispose of legacy stock of foams, and, appearing unaware of the unofficial advice, discharged them straight into the sewer with no treatment, in one case with permission from the water company.

3M said that the health and safety of its workers and their families were “critical priorities" for the company.

Reporter: Esme Stallard Producer: Anna Meisel Technical Producer: Richard Hannaford Production Coordinator: Tim Fernley Editor: Tara McDermott

An unholy row over bishop accused of bullying. Dec 09, 2025

Show notes

Anne Dyer is a trailblazer - becoming the first female Bishop in the Scottish Episcopal Church when she was appointed more than seven years ago. But since then, accusations of bullying and misconduct have dominated her period in charge - even for a time leading to her suspension and calls for her resignation.

Bishop Dyer denies any wrongdoing, while the church itself acknowledges there are deep wounds within the diocese of Aberdeen and Orkney.

Now File on 4 Investigates has discovered new complaints against the bishop, which she says are "totally without merit".

Reporter: Steve Swann Producer: Fergus Hewison Editor: Tara McDermott Production Coordinator: Tim Fernley Technical Producer: Richard Hannaford

Adoption: The Blame Game Nov 28, 2025

Show notes

File on 4 Investigates discovers a world of lies and blame within adoption in the UK. The BBC has conducted the most extensive Freedom of Information request ever into adoptions that have broken down, finding that more than 1,000 adopted children in the UK have returned to care in the past five years. That is much higher than the figure in a recent government report - but the true number is likely to be even larger, as only a third of authorities said they collected this data as standard practice. Some adoptive parents say they’ve been given so little support that they’ve been forced to return their children to the care system.

This programme explores the scale of the crisis as we hear from parents pushed to the limit, a teenager returned to care and a social worker giving a rare view of the system from the inside.

Producer: Ashley Kennedy & Claire Kendall Reporter: Judith Moritz Sound designer: Richard Hannaford Production coordinator: Hattie Valentine Editor: Tara McDermott

(Photo: Close-up portrait of couple Verity & Ian standing outdoors. Credit: Brij Patel)

Details of advice and support with adoption are available at www.bbc.co.uk/actionline

Multi-Cancer Testing - Hype or Hope? Nov 25, 2025

Show notes

Multi cancer detection tests or MCDs can detect many cancers through a simple blood test. Many detect fragments of cancerous DNA that have broken off a tumour and are circulating in the blood. They can often then identify where the cancer may be. The NHS is currently involved in the words largest trial of one such test. The Galleri test is made by US firm Grail and the company says its mission is to detect cancer early when it can be cured. Heavyweight investors include Jeff Bezos and Bill Gates.

More than 140,000 volunteers took part in the trial and the results will be known next year. If successful, the test may be rolled out further.

File on 4 Investigates looks at how effective such tests are and whether the trial will show it can save lives.

Medical journalist Deb Cohen speaks to one woman whose cancer was found by the test and successfully treated. But she also hears from firefighters in America - where it's available to the public - who say it missed some cancers and some people who got a positive result were found not to have the disease after undergoing diagnostic procedures - a so called false positive.

With many hospitals trusts missing cancer treatment targets, what is the best way forward for the NHS to improve outcomes.

Reporter: Deb Cohen Producer: Paul Grant Technical producer: Craig Boardman Production co-ordinator: Tim Fernley Editor: Tara McDermott

The IT bug that's caused chaos in the courts Nov 11, 2025

Show notes

An ambitious plan to digitalize the courts was meant to remove the need for hundreds of thousands of paper documents. But File on 4 Investigates has discovered an IT system, introduced as part of a £1bn project, has been plagued with technical faults - causing crucial information to go missing, be overwritten, or appear lost.

The government body that runs the courts in England and Wales has now checked hundreds of thousands of benefit and child support appeals to identify if any were affected by missing evidence. But sources say the IT bug was known about for years before action was taken.

Original journalism by Alys Harte. Reporter: Datshiane Navanayagam. Producers: Lorna Acquah, Fergus Hewison. Editor: Tara McDermott. Technical Producer: Nicky Edwards. Production Co-ordinator: Tim Fernley.

Chemsex: Hidden Pleasures, Hidden Harms Nov 04, 2025

Show notes

File on Four explores the risks some gay men are taking by habitually mixing their sex lives with drug use. The practice, known as Chemsex has been on the gay scene for more than a decade. It involves taking illegal and addictive substances like Crystal Meth and GHB. While the programme hears from some who say they can manage their use and it heightens their sexual pleasure, others are falling into destructive patterns of addiction, decline and even death. Reporter Mobeen Azhar tries to assess the scale of the problem and hears from medical professionals who fear it could be a crisis that’s going under the radar.

Presenter: Mobeen Azhar Producer: Alex Collins Sound: Nicky Edwards Production Coordinator: Tim Fernley Editor: Nick Holland

High Stakes: Gambling in the armed forces Oct 28, 2025

Show notes

File on 4 Investigates examines the scale of problem gambling in the armed forces and the devastating impact on those serving, veterans and their families.

A new study seen exclusively by the team reveals nearly half of naval trainees who gambled were at risk of harm. This latest research builds on a growing body of evidence that points to a hidden problem across the forces that’s on the rise.

We ask if the MOD is aware of the challenge and if it’s doing enough to help those in need.

Reporter: Alastair Fee Producers: Jim Booth Technical Producer: Craig Boardman Production Coordinator: Tim Fernley Editor: Tara McDermott

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