Woman's Hour

Replacing traditional male only or female only toilets with gender neutral facilities has increased in recent years. Theatres were some of the first venues to hit the headlines. Many businesses and companies followed suit, partly as a way of making toilets easier to use for people identifying a gender different to the one assigned at birth, but also in an attempt to reduce the long queues outside women’s loos. But now Communities Secretary, Robert Jenrick is to rewrite planning regulations forcing public buildings to have separate male and female toilets. Is this change a step forward or back? Emma discusses the issues with Sarah Ditum, critic and columnist and the author Caroline Criado Perez.Described as “A fierce and distinctive talent” 20 year old Griff was recently announced as the recipient of the prestigious BRITs Rising Star Award, following past winners such as Celeste, Sam Smith and Adele. Griff has also been nominated for an Ivor Novello award and ended 2020 by singing the sound-track for Disney's Christmas advert. She performs a special version of her song Black Hole for Woman’s Hour. She tells Emma about her 'bedroom pop', new mixtape One Foot in Front of the Other, and how she literally learned to walk a tight rope.The Windrush scandal first came to light in April 2018. Despite living and working in the UK for decades, many were told they were there illegally because of a lack of official paperwork. A year later the Windrush Compensation Scheme was launched. Last week it announced that it has now paid out more than £14 million in compensation and has offered a further £12 million. Jacqueline McKenzie is a lawyer representing 200 victims. She says the big scandal is that so few people who are eligible for compensation are actually coming forward.Ece Temelkuran is an award-winning Turkish novelist and political commentator. Her last book, How to Lose a Country: the 7 steps from Democracy to Dictatorship, describes the rise of populism and authoritarianism in Turkey and other countries with a refrain to western countries not to be complacent about their own democracies. Now she has a new book out, Together: 10 Choices for a Better Now. Ece joins Emma to talk about why she thinks our current systems are in crisis but why she still has faith that humans are capable of reinventing themselves & the world around them.“Typo-squatting” is when a website address is deliberately misspelled, in order to mimic another URL. It’s often used in cyber-fraud and for counterfeit goods. Kim McCabe, who runs a not for profit website offering safety advice to young girls, got in touch. She’s found multiple websites with almost identical domain names to hers, all containing pornography. The government’s upcoming Online Safety Bill is set to introduce new legislation to tackle harmful content online, but there is currently nothing to stop harmful typo-squatting. Why is it easier to stop a website selling fake designer bags, than deliberately leading children to pornographic material? Emma talks to Kim and hears more on the issues from Dr Victoria Baines, a cybercrime and online safety researcher.Presented by Emma Barnett Producer: Louise Corley

Egyptian-American writer and activist Mona Eltahawy believes women should start actively defying and disrupting the patriarchy now - with force if necessary. Mona explains why she wrote her new book ‘The Seven Necessary Sins for Women and Girls’ with enough 'rage to fuel a rocket.'Tech entrepreneur, Tabitha Goldstaub who chairs the UK's AI Council and Carly Kind, director of the Ada Lovelace Institute, discuss concerns that because Artificial Intelligence algorithms are created from the data we give it, biases in society will be replicated and even amplified by it in the future. TV presenter Jan Leeming and dating expert Charly Lester share tips and advice on how to go about dating in your late 60’s. Scarlett Moffatt, famous for Gogglebox and winning I'm A Celebrity, has just become an ambassador for the Samaritans. She talks about how reality television has affected her mental health, and exchanges experiences with Montana Brown who appeared on Love Island. The last time the European Space Agency recruited for their Class of 2009, only 16% of applications came from women. One of the women chosen, Samantha Cristoforetti, talks about the ESA's latest recruitment drive and what skills are needed to make it in space.Iranian artist Mentrix talks about her new single and video '99 Names of God', a well-known Muslim chant, traditionally sung by men during Ramadan. Mentrix explains the ideas behind the accompanying video which has generated a lot of criticism, with some people describing it as offensive, disrespectful and sinful.Presenter: Anita Rani Producer: Paula McFarlane Editor: Kirsty Starkey

Last year the avant-garde Iranian artist Mentrix released the critically acclaimed album My Enemy, My Love. The tracks Walk and Nature had accompanying cinematic videos, that explored themes of womanhood, solidarity and spirituality, against the backdrop of the horizons of the Iranian desert. Mentrix has now released the single and video 99 Names of God - a well-known Muslim chant, traditionally sung by men during Ramadan, giving it a poetic and feminine context and challenging traditions that forbid women to unveil, dance and sing. The accompanying video is visually striking, but has generated a lot of criticism, with some people describing it as offensive, disrespectful and sinful. Mentrix joins Anita to explain the ideas behind it.This week the domestic abuse charity, Refuge launched a Tech Safety site to help women recognise signs of tech abuse. They say smartphones, tablets, laptops and other electronic devices provide abusers with a means to monitor, contact and stalk vulnerable women and girls, meaning even innocuous devices including games consoles and children’s connected toys can be control and isolate victims. Ruth Davison, CEO of Refuge explains how. Aisha Gill, Professor of Criminology at Roehampton University, expert on violence against women & children in Black and minoritised communities joins her.A listener emailed us, wanting to know how she should go about dating in her late 60’s. So we discuss advice and tips for entering the dating world in older age, and post-lockdown, with dating expert Charly Lester and TV presenter Jan Leeming. Sam Roddick’s mother Anita founded the Body Shop chain in the 1970's, and her father Gordon joined what soon became a multi-million pound business. But the Roddicks famously gave away most of the money they made to causes they believed in, and they raised awareness too - in particular in the 1990’s highlighting the indigenous peoples of Brazil, whose land and way of life was under threat and who were fighting back. Anita Roddick died in 2007, and three years ago, having had her own successful career in business, Sam decided to take on her parents' legacy. She is now reviving their work with indigenous peoples, and in a new project called Choose Earth is focusing funds on female community leaders in the Amazon and elsewhere in Brazil.

There's to be an inquiry into the Covid pandemic. It will start in Spring next year. We speak to one of the women who's been pushing for it, but still thinking it's starting too late. Her name is Jean Adamson from the Covid-19 Bereaved families For Justice. Scarlett Moffatt, famous for Gogglebox and winning I'm A Celebrity ... has just become an ambassador for The Samaritans. She talks to Woman's Hour about how reality television has affected her mental health, and exchanges experiences with Montana Brown who appeared on Love Island. One of the things they talk about is whether reality TV does enough to support young women who choose to go on these shows.Patricia Devlin is a crime journalist in Northern Ireland. She specialises in investigating paramilitary criminal activity. Because of her work, Patricia has suffered continuous threats to her life but now her baby son has been targeted for the second time. She tells us how she's coping and how she wants the PSNI to take these threats more seriously. Artificial intelligence is everywhere. AI is playing a part in how we all work, live and play. But there are worries that because AI algorithms are created from the data we give it, biases in society will be replicated and even amplified by it in the future. Both the The European Union and the UK government are working on strategies to address this. Emma talks to the tech entrepreneur Tabitha Goldstaub who Chairs the UK's AI Council and to Carly Kind the Director of the Ada Lovelace Institute.

A total of 65 women have been into space - compared with 501 men. The last time the European Space Agency recruited for their Class of 2009, only 16% of applications came from women. That process led to Just one - Samantha Cristoforetti of Italy - being chosen. In a break from training for a 2022 mission to the International Space Station, Samantha joins Emma to discuss why so few women apply to be astronauts, the skills needed to make it in space, and how women can put themselves forward for ESA's latest recruitment drive.Jackie Weaver of local council zoom meeting fame talks about her night at the BRITS.Our series Second Chances continues. This time we hear how a mother's addiction and domestic violence are often factors in a child's removal. The reporter and DJ Milly Chowles became a mum last year, she’s in long term recovery from addiction and had lots of chances to change. Having a baby after getting into recovery made her realise that other mothers aren't getting the help they need or that they just aren't able to take it when it's offered. And after Taylor Swift talked about the challenges of being a woman in the public eye at the BRITS last night, we ask if women really can be anything they want? Can they change their image and wear and do what they want? We talk to Emily Clarkson and Dr. Jacki Willson.Presenter: Emma Barnett Producer: Lisa Jenkinson Studio Engineers: Nigel Dix & Donald MacDonald.

'We need to dismantle the patriarchy' is a familiar feminist rallying cry. But Egyptian-American writer and activist Mona Eltahawy believes we should stop just saying it, and start actively defying and disrupting the patriarchy now - with force if necessary. Mona's latest book is The Seven Necessary Sins for Women and Girls. She joins Emma to explain why she wrote it with enough 'rage to fuel a rocket.'In a recent article, writer and travel editor at the Independent, Cathy Adams said she wished the phrase 'I sometimes resent my baby' went down better at the pub. She describes imagining an alternate life without her son at the centre, and how thirteen months after her son's birth she's still struggling to articulate her feelings because of the lack of language surrounding maternal ambivalence. Cathy joins Emma - along with Amy Brown, a Professor of Child Public Health - to discuss these conflicting emotions and why we find it so hard to openly talk about the challenges of being a parent.In Thursday’s Elections in Wales Natasha Asghar made history by becoming the first woman from a Black or Asian Minority Ethnic (BAME) background to be elected to the Welsh Senedd. She’ll represent South Wales East for the Tories – a seat held by her dad until his death last year. However the overall number of women elected was down on the last Election. Emma talks to Natasha about what the victory means to her and how she feels about following in her father’s footsteps. Plus Jess Blair from the Electoral Reform Society Wales tells us why more needs to be done to make sure that we see more women coming through.

How domestic workers in the Middle East are using the video sharing app TikTok to raise awareness of abuse. Louise Donovan from the Fuller Project tells us how she found these women and why they are turning to TikTok.Dodie has just released her debut album Build A Problem. At just 26 she has already made a name for herself as a singer and a writer amassing millions of fans through her Youtube Channel with her intimate singing style and honest unflinching videos. She joins Emma to play a song from her new album. Yolk & Aliens is a film project created and developed by four women including actor, Jane Horrocks and her daughter, musician, Molly Vivian. Set within what they call a 'personal memory shop' in central Brighton’s Dukes Lane, as part of this year’s Brighton Festival, it is a highly personal insight into families, love and memories. Several years in the making, the films explore multi-generational relationships between mother and daughter, Jane and Molly and between Jane and her mother, Barbara.

Tracey Emin was one of the leading figures of the Young British Artists movement of the 1990s. She has recently undergone radical surgery to treat bladder cancer. For her latest exhibition - The Loneliness of the Soul – she has selected masterpieces by Edvard Munch to show alongside her most recent paintings. Mental health blogger and author of ‘F**K I Think I'm Dying: How I learned to live with panic’, Claire Eastham explains how she manages her panic attacks. She is joined by psychotherapist Dawn Estefan to discuss why we have panic attacks, how they feel and how best to cope with them.Whether you’re an experienced cyclist or if you're completely new to cycling, there's no doubt it's intimidating on the roads. Cycling expert, Aneela McKenna shares tips for how women can feel more confident while riding their bikes on the road.Rosie Ayliffe’s daughter, Mia Ayliffe Chung was killed in 2016 at a remote farmworkers’ hostel while backpacking in Australia. Since Mia's death Rosie has been campaigning to improve conditions for young casual workers, helping to change the law in three of the six states of Australia. What's behind the decline in male fertility? The global population currently stands at 7.9 billion, and is projected to peak at 9.7 billion in just over 40 years' time. Those huge numbers are often blamed on women having too many children. In reality, fertility has been in long-term decline for decades. Dr Shanna Swan, Professor of Environmental Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York thinks we should be paying much more attention to the chemicals in our environment that come from everyday products as her research is showing consistent effects on sperm counts, sperm quality and overall male fertility.Susan Rogers talks about what it was like working with Prince as his sound engineer on albums including ‘Purple Rain, ‘Around the World in a Day and ‘Sign o’ the Times’. After two decades in the music industry she left and went on to earn a doctorate in psychology. She’s now a professor of music at Berkeley College in Boston, and is being awarded the Music Producers Guild’s ‘Outstanding Contribution to Music’– the first woman to ever win the award.Whether you’re an experienced cyclist or if you're completely new to cycling, there's no doubt it's intimidating on the roads. Cycling expert Aneela McKenna shares tips for how women can feel more confident when riding their bikes.Presenter: Anita Rani Producer: Paula McFarlane Editor: Sarah Crawley

India remains in the grip of a Covid crisis with record numbers of cases being reported every day. Oxygen and vaccines are running out and hospitals are overwhelmed. Save The Children has warned it could be facing thousands of additional deaths among children under five and an increase in maternal deaths, as hospitals and clinics are directing most of its staff and medicines to coping with Covid-19 patients. We hear from Dr Rajesh Khanna about the work he is doing to help women and children access vital healthcare. And here in the UK thousands of people continue to worry about the safety and well-being of their loved ones in India. Surya Elango a community reporter at BBC Radio Sheffield joins Anita to share those broader concerns and also the story of her own mother who has been in India since December looking after her elderly parent.Susan Rogers tells us what it was like working with the 80s pop artist Prince as his sound engineer on albums including ‘Purple Rain, ‘Around the World in a Day and ‘Sign o’ the Times’. After two decades in the music industry Susan Rogers left and went on to earn a doctorate in psychology. She’s now a professor of music at Berklee College in Boston, and is being awarded the Music Producers Guild’s ‘Outstanding Contribution to Music’– the first woman to ever win the award.‘Careless’ is the debut novel by Kirsty Capes and tells the story of Bess a girl in foster care and looks at the treatment of girls in the care system. Kirsty Capes was herself a care leaver and tells us about her PHD which examines the representation of care experienced children in contemporary fiction. She explains why she would like to see better portrayal in the media of people growing up in care and what it was like working under the supervision of Booker prize winning author Bernadine Evaristo. And the mental health blogger and author of ‘We're All Mad Here’, Claire Eastham has now written a new book, ‘F**K I Think I'm Dying: How I learned to live with panic’. She explains how she manages her own panic attacks which she’s had for nearly a decade. She joins Anita with psychotherapist Dawn Estefan to discuss panic attacks, why we have them, how they feel and how best to cope with them.Presenter: Anita Rani Producer: Rabeka Nurmahomed

In 2016 Mia Ayliffe Chung was killed at a remote farmworkers’ hostel while backpacking in Australia. What she didn’t realise at the time and what her mum Rosie Ayliffe later discovered was backpackers like Mia were exposed to widespread exploitation including sexual harassment, inadequate health and safety and substandard living conditions. Since Mia's death Rosie has been campaigning to improve conditions for young casual workers, helping to change the law in three of the six states of Australia. She has written a book about Mia called Far From Home. Anya Hindmarch is an entrepreneur, a global business woman, mother of five and a stepmother. Now she's turned 50 she's turned her hand to writing - putting together A Manual for Life with the very tongue in cheek title "If In Doubt Wash Your Hair".In the UK now more than a third (34.3%) of FTSE 350 board positions are now held by women. But what do boards do? And how can you get on one? To discuss these questions Emma is joined by Dambisa Moyo, renowned economist, named as one of Time Magazine's Top 100 Most Influential People in the World and author of a new book How Boards Work; and Fiona Hathorn, CEO of Women on Boards UK.As of Tuesday this week residents leaving their care home to go for a walk or to visit a loved one’s garden no longer have to isolate for two weeks on their return. But actor Ruthie Henshall is concerned about the potential ‘grey area’ around this relaxation of the rules which could continue to limit some families’ access. Ruthie, along with the group Rights for Residents, has delivered a petition with 300,000 signatures to the House of Commons. She explains her concerns and what she would like the government to do.Presented by Emma Barnett Producer: Louise Corley