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AI and child sexual abuse, Alex O’Brien, Molly Manning Walker Nov 01, 2023

Show notes

As the Artificial Intelligence Safety Summit starts at Bletchley Park today, we look at the growing issue of AI generated child sexual abuse imagery. Jessica Creighton speaks to Emma Hardy from the Internet Watch Foundation and to Professor Gina Neff, Executive Director of the Minderoo Centre for Technology and Democracy at Cambridge University.

Science writer and poker player Alex O’Brien explores how the game's rules and strategies could help us to navigate the world, in her new book The Truth Detective. She joins Jessica in the studio.

A recent report from the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health says that climate change is causing an existential threat to the health and wellbeing of all children. Their President Dr Camilla Kingdon tells Jessica why that is, and what can be done.

How do you navigate sex and consent as a teenager? How To Have Sex is the debut feature film of director Molly Manning Walker. It follows three best friends on a hedonistic post-GCSE trip to a party resort in Greece. As they fill their days sunning, clubbing and drinking, they also deal with troubling first sexual encounters and wrestle with issues of consent. Molly joins Jess to discuss the inspiration behind the film.

Presenter: Jessica Creighton Producer: Lottie Garton

Failures in maternity care, Spain's Princess Leonor turns 18, Women's Ballon d'Or Oct 31, 2023

Show notes

A group of families affected by failures in NHS maternity care are calling for a full statutory public inquiry into maternity safety in England. Emily Barley from the Maternity Safety Alliance group told Jessica Creighton why she thinks fundamental reform is needed. And presenter Krupa Padhy draws on her own personal story of baby loss in her BBC Radio 4 investigation, How safe is maternity care?

The Covid inquiry is already under way and has heard about an internal report into the culture at the top of Government in the early months of the pandemic. This found that female staff were talked over and ignored. So what is the impact on the workplace when women can't speak out? And how can women get their voices heard in the workplace? Barbara Nixon is a success and leadership coach and she joined Jessica to discuss.

There is a new superstar in women's football. Spain and Barcelona midfielder Aitana Bonmatí has won one of the sport's most presitgious awards... the Ballon d'Or. She is also one of five women nominated for the BBC Women’s Footballer of the Year award. Jo Currie, the BBC's Women's Football Correspondent, outlines the nominees.

Princess Leonor of Spain turns 18 today and has been swearing allegiance to the country. So who is the young princess, and what role might she play in Spanish public life? Rafa de Miguel is the UK and Ireland correspondent for the Spanish newspaper El Pais and he joined Jessica to discuss.

Producer: Hannah Sander Presenter: Jessica Creighton

Bianca Williams, Sandra Hüller, Living with your parents too long Oct 30, 2023

Show notes

Bianca Williams and her partner, fellow athlete Ricardo dos Santos, were stopped outside their home in London in July 2020. They had their three-month-old baby with them in their car. Both were handcuffed and searched on suspicion of having drugs and weapons. None were found and neither was arrested. A police Misconduct Hearing was held involving the five officers present. Last week that hearing found that two Met officers must be sacked as the stop and search was found to have amounted to gross misconduct - allegations against three other officers were not proven. The two officers have since been dismissed. Bianca joins Krupa Padhy to discuss how she's been affected by the experience.

Living at home too long - An Italian court has ruled that a 75-year-old Italian woman can evict her “big baby” sons in their 40s. So how long is too long to live at home? We talk to Journalist Adriana Urbano.

Actor Sandra Hüller on her two Oscar nominations for roles in Anatomy of the Fall – where she plays a wife suspected of murdering her husband - and The Zone of Interest where she plays Hedwig Höss, the wife of a Nazi commander.

Amina Noor from London was found guilty at the Old Bailey last week of taking a three-year-old British child to Kenya for female genital mutilation in 2006. We talk to Jaswant Narwal the Chief Crown Prosecutor for CPS London North on the wider implications of the case.

And Ellen Miller from Refuge, tells Krupa about her concerns for survivors of domestic abuse and stalking now that GP practices across England have been instructed to grant access to patients' medical records through the NHS app and other online portals.

Presenter: Krupa Padhy Producer: Lisa Jenkinson Studio Manager: Sue Maillot

Weekend Woman's Hour: Leigh-Anne Pinnock, Rescuing seal pups, Tell-all celebrity memoirs Oct 28, 2023

Show notes

Leigh-Anne Pinnock - a name you may know, as a member of one of the biggest girl bands in the world, Little Mix. This year - almost two years since the band announced a hiatus - Leigh-Anne has embarked on her own solo career. She tells Anita Rani about her new memoir Believe, all about her life growing up, what it was really like going through The X Factor and how she found her voice.

Ukraine claims it has identified 20,000 children who it alleges have been abducted by Russia since the start of the war. Arrest warrants have been issued to President Putin and his Commissioner for Children's Rights. It's the subject of the latest work from film-maker Shahida Tulaganova, who joins us to discuss her ITV documentary Ukraine's Stolen Children.

Lizzi Larbalestier has cared for 139 seals in her home in Cornwall. She also helped set up a new seal hospital with the British Divers Marine Life Rescue, and has just won an animal action award from the International Fund for Animal Welfare.

Ruth Birch and Julia Curry are a couple from South Wales. They met as young women in the British Army, but had to leave because of the pressure they were under to lie about their sexuality and conceal their relationship. The stress led to them breaking up, but 20 years later they reunited. They join us to share their story.

Britney Spears has been in the news again after spilling personal stories in a memoir. Are women being pressured to overshare in order to sell books? And are men also expected to publicise their personal lives? Nina Stibbe, whose newest memoir is Went to London, Took the Dog, and Caroline Sanderson, Associate Editor of The Bookseller, joins us to discuss.

Presenter: Anita Rani Producer: Lucy Wai

Leigh-Anne Pinnock, Black British Book Festival, Gesbeen Mohammad Oct 27, 2023

Show notes

Leigh-Anne Pinnock has embarked on her own solo career, almost two years after her band, Little Mix, called a hiatus - and has already released two songs. Now she's got a new book out, Believe, all about her life growing up, what it was really like going through the X Factor and how she found her voice. She joins Anita Rani to discuss it all.

The Black British Book Festival is now in its third year. It aims to celebrate new and emerging Black British authors across all genres of literature. To find out more, Anita speaks to author and events producer Selina Brown, who launched the festival, and Margaret Busby, Britain’s first black woman publisher, who is also currently President of English PEN, one of the world's oldest human rights organisations that campaigns for freedom of expression.

Gesbeen Mohammad is the producer and director of Inside Iran: The Fight For Freedom, a new documentary that has taken more than a year to make. It’s a story told through the eyes of ordinary Iranian women who took to the streets when Mahsa Amini died in September 2022. Gesbeen tells Anita about why these women chose to tell their stories, and what the current situation is in Iran.

Presenter: Anita Rani Producer: Lottie Garton

Tell-all celebrity memoirs, child poverty, and 'de-banking' Oct 26, 2023

Show notes

Mary Turner Thomson found writing a memoir cathartic after discovering that her husband, William Allen Jordan, was not a spy as she had been told. He was actually a bigamist and a conman. Her story is now a documentary series, The Other Mrs Jordan: Catching the Ultimate Conman, which is available on ITVX. She and her daughter Eilidh told Emma about the day they discovered William's real identity.

A report from the Joseph Rowntree Foundation and Heriot Watt university says the number of children in the UK living in destitution has nearly trebled since 2017. Why are families struggling, and what could be done to help? Abby Jitendra, Principal Policy Adviser at the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, and Sophia Worringer, Deputy Policy Director at the Centre for Social Justice, joined Emma. We also heard from Kimberley in Fife who contributed to the report.

Dame Alison Rose, the former chief executive of NatWest, has been found to have breached data protection laws after she publicly discussed the closure of Nigel Farage’s account with NatWest subsidiary bank Coutts. In the UK, banks closed more than 343,000 accounts in the last financial year. Gina Miller, the woman who spearheaded the anti-Brexit campaign before the 2016 referendum, was 'de-banked' and has called for an investigation into the practice.

Presenter: Emma Barnett Producer: Hannah Sander

Israel-Gaza war, Monica Dolan, Kathryn Mannix Oct 25, 2023

Show notes

As the Israel-Gaza war continues, aid groups are calling for a ceasefire in Gaza as power shortages threaten the lives of vulnerable patients, including women and children. UN agencies have estimated that one-third of hospitals in Gaza and nearly two-thirds of primary health care clinics have had to shut due to damage or a lack of fuel. The Israeli government says Hamas is stock-piling thousands of litres of fuel. The biggest aid provider in Gaza, the UN, says its fuel will run out tonight, unless it gets fresh supplies - hospitals in Gaza are already limiting services to critical cases only. Emma Barnett hears from Save the Children's Soraya Ali, as well as women's voices from Gaza and Israel.

Actor Monica Dolan joins Emma to talk about starring in a new film about the undiscovered artist Audrey Amiss. Amiss was tipped for artistic greatness, but ended up cycling between mental hospitals and menial jobs for decades, and was sadly never exhibited, or recognised in her lifetime. Typist Artist Pirate King comes out this Friday.

What normally happens as someone dies? These questions and others are answered in a new short animation ‘Dying for Beginners’. Kathryn Mannix is a retired palliative care doctor, who’s made it her mission to demystify what happens as we die. She’s worked with Theos Think Tank to produce the video, and will also be giving their annual public lecture on the public understanding of dying at the Royal Society for Medicine on 1st November. Kathryn joins Emma.

Ruth Birch and Julia Curry, Liza Mundy, Lyse Doucet and Tal Hochman, Cindy Thomas and Laura Barton Oct 24, 2023

Show notes

Liza Mundy is the bestselling author of Code Girls, a book about the American women who broke codes during the Second World War. Her new book details the lives of spies and intelligence agents behind some of the biggest operations in postwar history including locating Osama bin Laden, and rescuing the schoolgirls kidnapped by Boko Haram.

Around 80 Israeli rights groups have signed a letter calling on the organisation UN Women to condemn acts of violence against women by Hamas. The letter was addressing a statement issued by UN Women, a United Nations entity which aims to be a global champion of women and girls – which they said ‘ignored the atrocities that took place on Oct 7th’. Emma Barnett speaks to Tal Hochman from the Israeli Women’s Network who are one of the organisations involved and also by Lyse Doucet the BBC’s Chief International Correspondent.

According to a new trial published in the journal of Clinical Psychiatry involving 80 people from Massachusetts General Hospital - heated yoga sessions could lead to reduced depressive symptoms in adults with moderate-to-severe depression. The trial findings suggest that the combination of yoga and heat should be considered as a potential treatment for individuals experiencing depression. Hot yoga instructor Cindy Thomas and writer and broadcaster Laura Barton talk about the survey.

Ruth Birch and Julia Curry are a couple from South Wales. They met as young women in the British army, but had to leave because of the pressure they were under to lie about their sexuality and conceal their relationship. You were not allowed to be gay or lesbian in the UK military until the year 2000. The stress led to them breaking up, but twenty years later they reunited, and now campaign on behalf of fellow LGBT veterans. Ruth and Ju feature on You Had Me at Hello, a podcast where ordinary people tell their love stories.

Presenter: Emma Barnett Producer: Lisa Jenkinson Studio Manager: Giles Aspen

Ukrainian children in Russia, Fanny Mendelssohn, Men designing clothes for women Oct 23, 2023

Show notes

Ukraine claims it has identified 20,000 children who it alleges have been abducted by Russia since the start of the war. Arrest warrants have been issued to President Putin and his Commissioner for Children's Rights. It's the subject of the latest work from film maker Shahida Tulaganova, whose documentary Ukraine's Stolen Children airs on ITV tonight.

Now you may have heard of German composer Felix Mendelssohn but what about his sister, Fanny? A composer in her own right, Fanny was long ignored by the classical music world in favour of her brother. And despite being forbidden a musical career, Fanny persevered and composed 450 works. A new documentary, Fanny The Other Mendelssohn, explores her life and features never-before-heard or recorded pieces by her. Its director, BAFTA winner Sheila Hayman is also Fanny’s 3x great granddaughter and she joins Emma to discuss it.

An extra course of chemotherapy could cut the risk of death from cervical cancer by up to two fifths, according to a new study by scientists. The drugs used are already licensed for use in the UK so those involved say it should be straightforward to roll out because the treatment is 'cheap and accessible'. GP Dr Phillipa Kaye who is also an ambassador for Jo's Cervical Cancer Trust and Comedian, Ambassador for Eve Appeal and cervical cancer survivor Karen Hobbs both join Emma Barnett to discuss it.

Designer Sarah Burton has stepped down as Creative Director of the fashion brand Alexander McQueen, meaning that there are now only a tiny number of women designing clothes for the rest of us. So why are there so few female designers at the top fashion houses? And does it actually make a difference when the clothes women wear are designed by men?

Presenter: Emma Barnett Producer: Emma Pearce

Weekend Woman's Hour: Coleen Rooney, IVF add-ons, Online safety, Talking on the phone, Singer Mica Millar Oct 21, 2023

Show notes

The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) has launched a ratings system to let patients see which IVF add-ons are backed-up by evidence. Emma Barnett is joined by Professor Tim Child, chair of the HFEA's Scientific and Clinical Advances Advisory Committee, and Jessica Hepburn, who spent over £70,000 on unsuccessful fertility procedures.

In October 2019, Coleen Rooney was concerned by articles appearing in newspapers that could only have come from stories on her private Instagram account. She laid a trap for the account she suspected of the leak, and then told the world ‘It was…Rebekah Vardy’s account’. Rebekah Vardy, who continues to deny she was the source of those stories, sued Coleen for libel. In a radio exclusive, Coleen speaks to Emma about her side of the story, told in a new documentary: The Real Wagatha Story.

Jazz/soul singer Mica Millar is performing as part of the London Jazz Festival in November. She joins Anita Rani to talk about her new album, Heaven Knows, which she wrote while recovering from a spinal injury during lockdown.

Britain's long-awaited Online Safety Bill is days away from becoming law. Emma talks to legal expert Joshua Rozenburg about what will be in the act. She’s also joined by Baroness Kidron, who has been very involved in getting the act through the Houses of Parliament, and Rashik Parmar, CEO of BCS, the chartered institute of IT, about the future of online safety.

Are we becoming afraid of our phones? A recent survey suggest half of 12 to 26-year-olds don't answer the phone to their parents and a third of them feel awkward speaking on the phone generally. Emma speaks to Helen Thorn, a writer, podcaster and comedian and to 17-year-old Iona Cooke Mcintosh.

Presenter: Anita Rani Producer: Lottie Garton

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