Woman's Hour

TROOPERS is a new series of ours starting today. It's about the women in our communities who get things done, and many of them are volunteers. We begin with Margaret Johnson who works as a volunteer at Chester Storyhouse which is a cinema, theatre and library. She runs the Chatter and Natter group. We've got more on the Dominic Cummings situation and his trip to Durham. Katy Balls from the Spectat...

We hear from you about what it’s like to be pregnant, give birth and look after a new baby in the Covid-19 lockdown. Antenatal, labour and post-natal care has had to transform in the last two months, in order to combat the virus. Pregnant women are considered a vulnerable group to Covid and are recommended to self-isolate for their third trimester. Routine face-to-face appointments have been reduc...

The soprano Laura Wright tells us about her new single released with The Choir of Royal Holloway, University of London to mark Mental Health Awareness week. Baroness Doreen Lawrence discusses why the Labour Party are conducting its own enquiry into why people from black, Asian and minority ethnic communities are more than four times more likely to die as a result of Covid-19 than their white count...

The soprano Laura Wright first came to prominence when she won the BBC Radio 2 Young Chorister of the Year in 2005 aged just 15. A lover of sport, she’s well known for her performances at huge sporting events from the FA Cup Final, British Grand Prix, Invictus Games and being England Rugby team’s first ever official anthem singer. She tells Jenni how during lockdown she has been using her voice by...

Baroness Doreen Lawrence, Labour’s race relations adviser. What will be the long term impact of Covid-19 on women in the workforce? Plus as just over 400 prisoners and more than 500 prison staff in England and Wales have tested positive for the virus, how's the pandemic affected the way prison and probation officers carry out their work. We hear from Anita, who’s a prison officer at a male young o...

As part of Mental Health Awareness Week, we look at why it’s important to discuss mental health and trauma with young people. The Mental Health Foundation reports that 70% of children and young people who experience a mental health problem have not had appropriate interventions at a sufficiently early age. Why does this matter and what impact can it have on a child’s progression and adulthood? Ebi...

The parents of a six month old have set up a petition asking the government to extend maternity leave by an extra three months. They believe that the lockdown has meant parents have missed out on the usual things you’d do on maternity, putting them at a disadvantage. There’s already been a parliamentary Q&A about this, and the signatures are still coming in. It’s not know yet whether it’ll be...

What makes someone want to go to see the same show at the theatre time and time again? We talk to documentary maker Mark Dooley about his film, Repeat Attenders – which follows some of musical theatre’s super-fans – and to Gudrun Mangel who features in the film and has found the confidence to be herself as a huge fan of Starlight Express. Most young people are at low risk of catching or falling se...

How do you manage to create boundaries between work and home during lockdown? Dr Yasin Rofcanin, of the University of Bath’s School of Management discusses his new research exploring how COVID-19 is impacting our understanding of boundaries. We also hear from Chloë Davies, head of PR and Partnerships at myGwork, and Melanie Eusebe, management consultant and chair of the Black British Business Awar...

At the end of the week when government advice started to ease the lockdown we take stock and look at how relationships between the generations have been affected by social distancing measures and shielding. Woman’s Hour listeners tell us how the government advice for over-70s has affected them. We hear how families have responded and how adult children and parents are negotiating their changed rol...

Cycling is seeing a huge increase in popularity thanks to people avoiding public transport and wanting to get some exercise. In today’s Woman’s Hour Corona Diaries, Krysia Williams talks about the beauty of cycling in lockdown, and how the Bristol Bike Project – where she works – has been supporting key workers in moving around the city. Every year, 55,000 women are diagnosed with breast cancer -...

Ida B. Wells was an journalist and campaigner. She's just been honoured with a special Pulitzer Price for her courageous reporting of the violence inflicted on African Americans during the lynching era. Professor Paula J. Giddings, who's written a biography of her, tells us about Ida and all that she achieved. We're talking about dementia during lockdown and how challenging it can be for carers. R...

It’s been seven weeks since the UK went into lockdown, and for many women, the lines between work and home life have become blurred on a day-to-day basis. What’s the best way to create boundaries in order to protect your own mental well-being and a sense of routine? Dr Yasin Rofcanin, of the University of Bath’s School of Management, has worked on new research exploring how COVID-19 is impacting o...

Tomorrow marks the 200th anniversary of the birth of Florence Nightingale. The day's also become International Day of the Nurse. We speak to nurse and poet Molly Case and to Ruth May, Chief Nursing Officer in England. Childline has new figures about the number of under 11s wanting help because of the coronavirus lockdown. Jane talks to Laverne Antrobus a Child Psychologist at the Tavistock Clinic...

The conductor and organist Anna Lapwood tells us how she’s trying to get more girls to take up the organ. Have women leaders handled the global health crisis of Covid-19 better than the men? And, what might explain why? Rosie Campbell, Director of the Global Institute for Women’s Leadership and Professor of Politics at King’s College London, and Clare Wenham, Assistant Professor in Global Health P...

Today marks 75 years since VE day and we remember the end of war in Europe. We speak to Shirley Mann about how her mother’s own war experience inspired her to track down more women’s stories from this time. She shares the stories she discovered of the women who were pilots, wireless operators, and even “plotters” in the Battle of Britain bunker – and what they did next. Three women from the Armed...

The leaders of the USA, Brazil, Russia, Spain, Italy and the UK have come in for some criticism over their handling of the Coronavirus pandemic. They all have one thing in common, and it has been widely remarked on – they’re men. From Jacinda Ardern to Angela Merkel, women leaders across the world seem to be coping with Covid-19 better. But is it true? And, what might explain why? Jenni talks to R...

Anna Lapwood is one of the UK’s few female concert organists. She was the first woman to be awarded an Organ Scholarship at Magdalen College, Oxford, in its 560-year history. She was then appointed the youngest ever Director of Music at Pembroke College at Cambridge University aged just 21. She has used this position to spearhead a number of initiatives including a choir for 11-18 year old girls a...

Many parents have been longing for the the day the kids can go back to school following the lockdown. How are you feeling about sending your children back into the classroom? Over the last week, a number of old and offensive posts on Twitter have resurfaced. Many of them were written by influencers, artists and presenters. The majority of them contain abusive language towards dark skinned black wo...

The breakout of COVID-19 has put many aspects of life on hold – including the Big Day. Emily McMahon and her partner Jack Walsh tell us about their online wedding with friends and family over video call. The Expert Women Project has been recording and reporting the appearance of women authority figures appearing on news programmes for the last five years. Since this project began the number of wom...

Alison White's memoir Letter to Louis about raising a child with cerebral palsy and learning disabilities was the subject of the Woman's Hour drama. Jenni spoke to Alison and Louis. She also heard from Edel Harris, chief executive of Mencap about life during lockdown for adults with learning disabilities and their carers. Rachel Winterflood, a critical care nurse; “Mary” who works as a nurse in IC...

The number of people who have died with coronavirus in the UK has now passed 26,000, with some 15,000 in hospital. More than 100 NHS workers have died, a third of them nurses. What are the experiences and concerns of nurses working on the front line? Jane Garvey talks to Rachel Winterflood, a critical care nurse; “Mary” who works as a nurse in ICU and Jessica Sainsbury, a student nurse who has opt...

Caroline Nokes was elected chairman of the House of Commons Women and Equalities Select Committee earlier this year. However, her committee had met just once before the lockdown began. She has since launched an inquiry into the unequal impact of Covid 19. Last week, her committee of MPs sat for the first time online. Today is the deadline for anyone wishing to submit written evidence to that inqui...

All week our drama has been about a woman bringing up her son who has cerebral palsy and learning disabilities. Today we hear from the real people behind the story: Alison White and Louis, who's an adult now. And afterwards we hear from Mencap about life during lockdown for adults with learning disabilities and their carers. We continue our Corona Diaries. Today we have Kate Tudge who breeds pigs...

How are young carers coping in the lockdown? We hear from 17 year old James who looks after his mum and grandma. And Dr Kate Blake-Holmes joins us too. She's a social worker at the University of East Anglia and is carrying out research into this area. As we experience lockdown, how true is it that women comply with public health messages more obediently than men? Dr Michelle Harrison sets out the...