Woman's Hour

We talk to an Afghan family housed in one of the many hotels which have become home for thousands of others like them. Many families and children often struggle to exercise which has an impact on their physical and mental health. BBC producer Sue Mitchell a keen swimmer is working with them to enable them to be able to make use of hotel and local authority swimming pools to to help them while they wait for news about permanent accommodation, benefits and education.With COP26 being held in Glasgow next week we talk to investment director, Maike Currie to talk about why sustainable investing matters more to women than men, and how you can invest to save the planet - and make it a better place.In the second of our series, our reporter Milly Chowles looks at toxic relationships and talks to Jo who felt compelled to always seek out ups and downs and drama. And we talk about late life libido with Scottish storyteller, Marie Louise Cochrane and sex expert Tracey Cox.Presenter: Chloe Tilley Producer: Lisa Jenkinson Studio Manager: Duncan Hannant.

Budget 2021: What do you want to change? We hear from Mary-Ann Stephenson, Director of the Women’s Budget group, an independent not-for-profit organisation that monitors the impact of government policies on men and women When you look back over your past relationships do you see patterns? Whether it’s being drawn to bad boys, ending up with narcissists or falling for someone who needs looking after, it’s not unusual for us to end up in the same kind of toxic relationships again and again. So how do you break the pattern? Four women shared their very personal experiences with Woman’s Hour reporter Milly Chowles - today Nina's story., Angela Cobbin, wig designer and MBE has written a memoir. My Name Is Not Wigs takes readers through her beginnings as a hairdressing student in the early 60s to becoming a theatrical wig designer for countless plays, musicals, TV shows and films over five decades. She joins Chloe live in the studio - with a wig in hand - to talk all about it.Plus as Princess Mako a member of the Japanese royal family marries her college sweetheart Kei Komuro we talk to Hanako Montgomer a Japan reporter for Vice News about why she'll be forced to forfeit her royal status. A Japanese law which doesn't apply to men. Presenter Chloe Tilley Producer Beverley Purcell

Last week, a whole new set of climate-related phrases entered the Oxford English Dictionary including global heating, eco-anxiety and net zero. But despite being increasingly used in conversation, do people really know what terms like 'net zero' mean - and what is the general public willing to do to get us there? Prof Becky Willis from Lancaster University set up a research project called the Net Zero Diaries to try and find out. She talks about the latest results along with Pearl, who took part in the study. Chloe Tilley is also joined by Aneaka Kellay from the People Powered Retrofit project, to discuss what people on all sorts of budgets can do to reduce the carbon emissions from their homes.Staffing shortages have long been a problem for the UK's maternity services. There aren't enough midwives joining the profession and too many are deciding to leave. A survey by the Royal College of Midwives earlier this month found that over half were considering quitting thanks to burnout and concerns about safety and quality of care. Now the President of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, Dr Edward Morris, has told the Guardian newspaper about his 'increasing concerns' about the 'immense pressures' facing maternity staff as we enter another winter with rising Covid cases. So is there a crisis in labour wards? We hear from a London-based midwife and Dr Jo Mountfield, Consultant Obstetrician at University Hospital SouthamptonOver a century ago suffragettes planted an arboretum of 47 trees in Batheaston, each representing an activist. Today only one tree survives – a black pine planted by suffragette Rose Lamartine Yates in 1909. We discuss the history of the “suffragette wood” and plans to propagate the seeds of the last surviving tree with Dr Cynthia Hammond and artist Lucy Neal. We speak to BBC Specialist Disinformation Reporter Marianna Spring who is appearing in front of the Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Select Committee this week to present the findings from her BBC Panorama investigation into the rising online abuse against women, and how social media algorithms are promoting hate. Presenter: Chloe Tilley Producer: Kirsty StarkeyInterviewed Guest: Aneaka Kellay Interviewed Guest: Professor Becky Willis Interviewed Guest: Pearl Hassan Interviewed Guest: Dr Jo Mountfield Interviewed Guest: Dr Cynthia Hammond Interviewed Guest: Lucy Neal Interviewed Guest: Marianna Spring

The former presidential candidate Hillary Rodham Clinton has a new book out, “State of Terror”, a political thriller written with the award winning author Louise Penny. The two women were already friends before deciding to pen the novel which features a President who “smells of meat” and appears to resemble Donald Trump and a British Prime Minister who’s “a twit” and seems to have a more than a passing resemblance to Boris Johnson. According to a new survey on mental wellbeing in agriculture, 58% of women in farming experience anxiety compared to 44% of men. What's the reason behind it? How much impact has Brexit and the pandemic had on the problem? We discuss with Alicia Chivers, Chief Executive of the Royal Agricultural Benevolent Institution, and East Yorkshire pig farmer Kate Moore.Campaigner Rosamund Adoo-Kissi-Debrah is raising awareness of asthma and the health problems that can be caused by air pollution. Last year her daughter, Ella, became the first person in Britain to have air pollution listed as the cause of death after an inquest. She died in 2013 aged nine. Now Rosamund is calling on Boris Johnson to “set an example for the whole world” with ambitious clear air goals. Are you a keen knitter? Have you ever considered that patterns for knitting your jumpers, hats or gloves could be seen as having parallels to computer coding? Do we undervalue the scientific aspects of some female-dominated skills? Emma speaks to Shetland knitter and pattern writer Hazel Tindall - aka World's Fastest Knitter - and to Sue Montgomery, who went viral in 2019 for knitting data into a shawl.After undergoing vocal cord surgery, MOBO and Brit award-winning singer songwriter Ella Eyre is back on her first headline tour in six years. She reveals how she's had to learn how to sing again - and how the experience has inspired a new musical direction.Presenter: Anita Rani Producer: Rabeka Nurmahomed

The former presidential candidate Hillary Rodham Clinton has a new book out, “State of Terror”, a political thriller written with the award winning author Louise Penny. The two women were already friends before deciding to pen the novel which features a President who “smells of meat” and appears to resemble Donald Trump and a British Prime Minister who’s “a twit” and seems to have a more than a passing resemblance to Boris Johnson. Anita Rani talks to the duo about their collaboration and some of the uncanny parallels between “State of Terror” and global politics today. Human papillomavirus (HPV) is a very common virus – Cancer Research UK estimates around 8 out of 10 people will be infected at some point in their lives. HPV spreads through sexual activity. In most people, it doesn’t cause any problems and goes away on its own, but HPV can increase a woman’s chance of developing cervical cancer. Gynaecological charity The Eve Appeal have found a ‘worrying’ trend in HPV kits being sold online by private companies, advertised alongside misleading information. Tracie Miles is a gynaecologist cancer specialist nurse at The Eve Appeal. Mercedes Gleeson is someone who has been open about her own experience with HPV.Anita is joined by two guests who are trying to encourage women to get outside and go on adventures. Army Officer Preet Chandi is preparing for a solo, unsupported trek across Antarctica to the South Pole in November. She will be the first Asian woman to do this. Dr Geeta Ludhra set up a walking group in the Chilterns to encourage women from diverse backgrounds to get out on smaller scale adventures in the UK to connect with nature and feel the health benefits.Presenter: Anita Rani Producer: Lucinda Montefiore

Over the summer it's been tempting to think that the pandemic is almost over. But last night, Health Secretary Savid Javid insisted that "life is not back to normal". 49,000 people tested positive for Covid-19 yesterday - levels we haven't seen since the end of last year - and he warned that they could hit 100,000 a day over winter. But despite all this, the government has decided not to implement its so-called Plan B - which would include mandatory mask wearing, working from home and vaccine passports. Instead its encouraging people to get their booster jabs, and advising people to make their own decisions on mask wearing and socialising more outside. But will the public, who've already seen one Christmas fall into oblivion, be willing to change their behaviour for a second winter?Campaigner Rosamund Adoo-Kissi-Debrah is raising awareness of asthma and the health problems that can be caused by air pollution. Last year her daughter, Ella, became the first person in Britain to have air pollution listed as the cause of death after an inquest. She died in 2013 aged nine. Now Rosamund is calling on Boris Johnson to “set an example for the whole world” with ambitious clear air goals. The Environment Bill was debated in the House of Commons yesterday (Wednesday). Rosamund discusses her work and the changes she wants to see.Lockdowns and working from home have changed how we dress but 'fat people don't have the luxury of wearing the dressed down look'. That's according to the activist and stand-up comedian Sofie Hagen who says that society dictates that people who are over-weight have to look like they are trying. She and Emma discuss the pressures she believes exist.Mortality rates remain exceptionally high for babies from ethnically diverse backgrounds despite overall rates of stillbirth and neonatal death rates having fallen. Neonatal death rates are 73% higher than those living in the least deprived areas. With Asian babies 60% higher than white babies, and 43% greater for babies of Black ethnicity. Emma is joined by Clea Harmer, Chief Executive of SANDS, and Professor of Perinatal & Paediatric Epidemiology, Elizabeth Draper part of the MBRRACE team who collect and analyse the numbers and rates of baby deaths in the UK.After undergoing vocal chord surgery, MOBO and Brit award-winning singer songwriter Ella Eyre is back on her first headline tour in six years. She reveals how she's had to learn how to sing again - and how the experience has inspired a new musical direction.Presenter: Emma Barnett Producer: Kirsty StarkeyInterviewed Guest: Harriet Baldwin Interviewed Guest: Professor Stephen Reicher Interviewed Guest: Rosamund Adoo-Kissi-Debrah Interviewed Guest: Sofie Hagen Interviewed Guest: Clea Harmer Interviewed Guest: Professor Elizabeth Draper Interviewed Guest: Ella Eyre

Former Scottish Conservative leader – the recently ennobled Baroness Davidson of Lundin Links - will be giving her maiden speech in the House of Lords on Friday as part of a debate on assisted dying. She used to be against amending the law on assisted dying but had a change of heart last year. She explains why to Emma.The Home Secretary Priti Patel has requested an urgent update from the police following a spate of recent cases where women's drinks have been spiked. With multiple reports also emerging of women being spiked by injection in clubs in Glasgow and Nottingham, journalist and author Lucy Ward last night shared texts from her student daughter on Twitter- Lucy speaks to Emma.Are you a keen knitter? Have you ever considered that patterns for knitting your jumpers, hats or gloves could be seen as having parallels to computer coding? Do we undervalue the scientific aspects of some female-dominated skills? Emma speaks to Shetland knitter and pattern writer Hazel Tindall - aka World's Fastest Knitter - and to Sue Montgomery, who went viral in 2019 for knitting data into a shawl.Women Talk Back, a feminist society at Bristol University is filing a legal case today against Bristol Students' Union, after they say they were sanctioned by the union for running women-only meetings. This issue came to a head last March when they refused admission at one of their events to a trans woman. Raquel Rosario Sanchez is the President of the group and joins Emma.A company that speed-grows coral in the Bahamas is among the winners of the inaugural Earthshot Prize – the new annual awards created by the Duke of Cambridge to reward people trying to save the planet. There were five winners announced at the star-studded ceremony in London on Sunday, each receiving £1m. Alannah Vellacott is Coral Vita's Coral Restoration Specialist and takes Emma through the process and why it's so important.

In our final discussion to mark our 75th anniversary we look at the issue of equal pay. This was identified as the area women most want to see change in their daily lives and 70% of those asked said they had experienced inequality in this area. Emma Barnett talks to Baroness Kishwer Falkner who’s head of the Equality and Human Rights Commission which regulates the Equality Act and also to Emma Satyamurti a lawyer leading a group action for equal pay by female staff working in Morrisons. Dame Eileen Atkins joins Emma to talk about the journey from being Tottenham's answer to Shirley Temple to hugely respected actor for stage, screen and TV. Her memoir is called 'Will She Do?'Today MPs are going to debate new government plans that would mean members who are suspended for sexual harassment or bullying could face a by-election. Labour want the measure to apply retrospectively - so that it would include the Conservative MP Rob Roberts who was suspended from Parliament for six weeks in May after an independent panel found he had sexually harassed a former employee. He did not face a petition to trigger a by-election due to a loophole in parliamentary procedure - because the panel that handed down his suspension doesn't have those powers. BBC political correspondent, Chris Mason, explains.Composer Charlotte Bray has composed new song cycle called Crossing Faultlines. Believed to be the first of its kind to address the topic of women in the workplace, the song cycle explores themes of mentorship, discrimination and ambition. The piece was commissioned as part of a new recital programme dream.risk.sing: elevating women’s voices, an initiative conceived to express women’s stories through song. Emma is joined by Charlotte Bray, Samantha Crawford and Lana Bode.Presenter: Emma Barnett Producer: Anna LaceyInterviewed Guest: Baroness Kishwer Falkner Interviewed Guest: Emma Satyamurti Interviewed Guest: Eileen Atkins Interviewed Guest: Charlotte Bray Interviewed Guest: Samantha Crawford Interviewed Guest: Lana Bode

According to a new survey on mental wellbeing in agriculture, 58% of women in farming experience anxiety compared to 44% of men. What's the reason behind it? How much impact has Brexit and the pandemic had on the problem? We discuss with Alicia Chivers, Chief Executive of the Royal Agricultural Benevolent Institution, and East Yorkshire pig farmer Kate Moore.Conservative MP Sir David Ames, who was killed on Friday had been in Parliament since 1983 . Issues raised by the people he represented were top of his agenda. When a woman called Carla came and told him about how her life was blighted by endometriosis, he took up the cause. We hear from the former Labour MP for Dewsbury, who he worked with on this issue while she was in the House, despite them being politically poles apart. We've been following the work of the Salvation Army who have the Home Office contract to support all victims of modern slavery in England and Wales and have been given exclusive access to their annual report which shows that demand for their services is soaring. Young Albanian women make up the largest group of survivors who escape from their traffickers after being sexually exploited. Many of these women are waiting to hear if the Home Secretary will appeal against what's described as a landmark High Court ruling last week. It was brought by a Vietnamese woman who was trafficked to the UK and if upheld will affect hundreds of others like her. We hear from Ahmed Aydeed from law firm Duncan Lewis the woman's solicitor. Plus reporter Carolyn Atkinson talks to a survivor and to Kathy Betteridge, Major Director of Anti Trafficking and Modern Slavery at the Salvation Army.Plus Emma the Yorkshire woman who spent over a hundred hours in a cave. Lisa Bowerman owns Stump Cross Caverns, She runs the caves as a family business and they'll usually a big attraction for tourists. She explains why she hopes the stunt will give the business a lift post-covid.. Presenter Emma Barnett Producer Beverley Purcell

Cush Jumbo, star of The Good Wife and The Good Fight on her latest role playing Hamlet. Predatory marriage involves a vulnerable adult being led into a marriage, which financially benefits their new spouse. We hear from Daphne Franks, who believes that her mother was a victim of a predatory marriage.Your responses to our poll on equality in 2021.What's it like for tall women when it comes to dating? Comedian Andrea Hubert, and Sarah Ivens, author of Get Real discuss. In her new book Rough, Rachel Thompson looks at how violence has found its way into the bedroom. A study released this summer set out to gauge the extent of violence against women. One shocking finding revealed that half of respondents had "woken up to their male partner having sex with them or performing sex acts on them whilst they are asleep." Rachel Thompson and Dr Jessica Taylor, co author: Understanding the Scale of Violence Committed Against Women in the UK Since Birth.Presenter: Jessica Creighton Producer: Dianne McGregor