Woman's Hour

The TV presenter and autism advocacy campaigner, Christine McGuinness, is mother of three autistic children, and she received an autism diagnosis herself as an adult. She is highlighting new research from Barrett Redrow which found that half of parents of children with disabilities surveyed said their child is excluded from play due to playgrounds being inaccessible to them. Christine joins Krupa...

In the 1970s and 80s, Caroline Eshghi was a young girl living in Bristol, Somerset, and Wiltshire. From the moment she was born until she ran away at the age of 15, Caroline was beaten, burned and starved by her mother. In May this year, Melanie Burmingham was jailed for 20 months for abusing her daughter more than 50 years ago. Caroline tells Krupa Padhy why she is now petitioning for a change to...

It’s been 20 years since the 7/7 attacks in London, which claimed the lives of 52 civilians and injured almost 800. Krupa Padhy talks to Gill Hicks, who was on the Piccadilly line Tube that morning and lost her legs in the blast, and nurse Kate Price, who was working in intensive care at St Thomas’ Hospital. They discuss their memories of that day and the aftermath, as well as the lasting bond the...

Award-winning actor Fiona Shaw is best known for her roles in Killing Eve, Bad Sisters, Fleabag, True Detective: Night Country and even as Aunt Petunia in Harry Potter, among many other things. She’s now starring in a new film adaptation of Deborah Levy’s novel, Hot Milk, playing Rose, who goes to Almería in Spain with her daughter, Sofia, played by Emma Mackey, to try to find a cure for Rose’s my...

Laura McAllister is the Vice-President of UEFA. During her own football career Laura was the captain of Wales' women's team, gaining 24 caps for her country. Wales have qualified for this year's Euros for the first time and will play their debut match tomorrow, as will England who are defending their title after winning at Wembley in 2022. Laura joins Datshiane Navanayagam ahead of those first gam...

The image of the Chancellor, Rachel Reeves, crying in Parliament yesterday was picked up by various media. After PMQs, Ms Reeves' spokesperson said she had been dealing with a "personal matter" and Sir Keir insisted her tears had had "nothing to do with politics". Kylie Pentelow is joined by Times columnist Katy Balls and Kitty Donaldson, chief political commentator for the i Paper to discuss why...

Lots of boys have grown up wanting to be Superman but perhaps you grew up wanting to be award-winning journalist Lois Lane? Actor Rachel Brosnahan is known for her Emmy-winning portrayal of Midge Maisel in the TV series, The Marvellous Mrs. Maisel, her Emmy-nominated performance in House of Cards and her work on Broadway. Now she’s playing Clark Kent's love interest, Lois Lane in the upcoming DC U...

Award-winning actor Fiona Shaw has starred in Killing Eve, Bad Sisters, Fleabag, True Detective: Night Country, Echo Valley and even as Aunt Petunia in Harry Potter, among many other things. She’s won and been nominated for several Laurence Olivier awards for her work on stage and she’s even directed opera. Now starring in a new film adaptation of Deborah Levy’s novel, Hot Milk, Fiona plays Rose,...

Introduced in 2003, statutory paternity leave, allows most new fathers and second parents in the UK to take up to two weeks off work. As a result, according to a new report from the Institute for Policy Research at the University of Bath, women continue to shoulder most of the care burden after childbirth. The report calls on the UK government to introduce six weeks of well-paid paternity leave, a...

The Department for Education has just released the latest figures that show another rise in the number of Education, Health and Care Plans, or EHCPs, in England. These are the legal documents that outline what support a child or young person with special educational needs and disabilities is entitled to. The BBC’s education reporter Kate McGough, Jane Harris, vice chair of the Disabled Children's...

Woman's Hour is live from Worthy Farm. Anita is joined by BBC 6 Music's Jamz Supernova, who talks through the women she's most excited to see perform this year and discuss the meteroic rise of Doechii. The musician, songwriter and actress, Rebecca Lucy Taylor launched her solo career as Self Esteem in 2017, won the 2021 BBC Music Introducing Artist of the Year Award and received a nomination for t...

The Department for Education has just released the latest figures that show another rise in the number of Education, Health and Care Plans, or EHCPs, in England. These are the legal documents that outline what support a child or young person with special educational needs and disabilities is entitled to. The BBC’s education reporter Kate McGough, Jane Harris, vice chair of the Disabled Children's...

Christiane Amanpour has been at the forefront of international news for more than 40 years, reporting from all over the world as a journalist and war reporter as well as being CNN’s Chief International Anchor, steering the helm of several programmes including CNN International's nightly interview programme Amanpour. She’s now launched a podcast, Christiane Amanpour Presents: The Ex-Files with Jami...

One in three adult pornography users are exposed to violent or abusive content online, with the majority backing new legislation to prevent publication of harmful content. That's according to a survey out today from the British Board of Film Classification. It's also the first meeting today of the Independent Pornography Review Taskforce led by the Conservative peer Baroness Gabby Bertin. Four mon...

Following the publication of Baroness Louise Casey’s highly critical report into grooming gangs involved in the sexual exploitation of children, we look at one of her 12 recommendations in detail. The Home Secretary, Yvette Cooper, has committed to reviewing the criminal convictions of victims of child sexual exploitation, quashing the criminal records of victims who were “criminalised instead of...

Natalie Fleet is the Labour MP for Bolsover whose path into politics has been far from typical. From a very young age, teachers told her she was destined for university – something almost unheard of in her Nottingham mining town. But her future took a different turn, when at fifteen, she became pregnant by an older man. At the time she had thought they were in a relationship - but as she grew olde...

Natalie Fleet is the Labour MP for Bolsover whose path into politics has been far from typical. From a very young age, teachers told her she was destined for university – something almost unheard of in her Nottingham mining town. But her future took a different turn, when at fifteen, she became pregnant by an older man. At the time she had thought they were in a relationship - but as she grew olde...

Trisha Goddard rose to fame as a TV journalist. She was the first black TV presenter in Australia and is best known in the UK for her eponymous TV show which aired on ITV and Channel 5 in the late 90s and 2000s, earning her a reputation as the British Oprah. She joins Anita to talk about her career, appearing on Celebrity Big Brother and why she chose recently to go public with her diagnosis for s...

In the biggest shake-up to reproductive rights in almost 60 years, MPs have voted to decriminalise abortion for women in England and Wales. This would mean a woman could not be prosecuted for ending her pregnancy after the 24 week limit, but medical professionals and others could still be held criminally liable if they assist. Nuala McGovern speaks to the BBC's political correspondent Alex Forsyth...

We discuss the key recommendations of Baroness Louise Casey's report into child sexual exploitation and abuse, and ask what might change as a result? Nuala McGovern is joined by guests including BBC social affairs editor Alison Holt, social worker-turned-whistleblower Jayne Senior and documentary director Anna Hall, who has spent the past two decades covering the subject of grooming gangs. Comedia...

The Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has announced a full national statutory inquiry into child sexual abuse perpetrated by gangs after previously dismissing calls for a public inquiry. This comes after he said he has read every single word of an independent report into child exploitation by Baroness Louise Casey and would accept her recommendation for a full investigation. Nuala McGovern discusses...

Julianne Moore has won countless awards and nominations for films like Boogie Nights, The End of the Affair, The Hours, as well as winning an Oscar for her performance in the film Still Alice. Her latest role sees her play Kate in the upcoming film Echo Valley alongside Sydney Sweeney, who plays her daughter Claire. Julianne tells Nuala McGovern about her character who's coming to terms with a per...

Last night the winners of this year’s Women’s Prize were announced. The winner for fiction is Yael van der Wouden for her novel The Safekeep and the non-fiction prize by Rachel Clarke for her book The Story of a Heart, which tracks the lifesaving gift of a transplant. Anita Rani discusses the winning books with the Chair of Judges for the Fiction Prize, author Kit de Waal, and Chair of Judges for...

Next week not one but two amendments are being brought before MPs, both of which could mean, if passed, that women will no longer be prosecuted for terminating a pregnancy in England and Wales. It comes amid concern more women are being investigated by police on suspicion of illegally ending a pregnancy. Anita Rani is joined by the BBC's Health Correspondent Nick Triggle and Labour MP Tonia Antoni...

Canadian born human rights lawyer, Stephanie Case, went viral online when she finished first place in the women’s section of the Snowdonia ultra-trail 100km race despite giving birth six months ago and breastfeeding her daughter at aid stations. Stephanie tells Nuala McGovern about her first race as a mother and first competition in three years and why she chose to continue to do the things she lo...