The number of midwives in England has increased by just 7% over the last year and some NHS Trusts in England have more than one in five midwifery jobs vacant, according to BBC research. The Royal College of Midwives says staffing gaps have to close. The BBC’s Health Correspondent Catherine Burns joins Clare McDonnell to talk about what her investigation into maternity units in England has discovered, and to share the story of Farzana, who had to give birth on her own after midwives said they were too busy to answer her calls.
Carole Stone must have one of the best address books ever. A former producer of BBC Radio 4’s Any Questions, for years Carole has run 'salons' and parties bringing together hundreds of interesting people - politicians, actors, journalists. Carole’s partner, the TV broadcaster Richard Lindley, died four years ago. Carole joins Clare to discuss how and why she is looking for another soulmate at the age of 81.
Could the next leader of North Korea be a woman? Clare gets the latest from lead correspondent at NK News, Jeongmin Kim, and hears more about what life is like for women on the ground with North Korea expert, Professor Hazel Smith.
As the number of pupils missing a significant amount of their education is about double the level it was before the pandemic, Clare is joined by Ellie Costello, the executive director of Square Peg, a not-for-profit which helps families that struggle with school attendance.
It’s 60 years this week since Jackie, the magazine for teenage girls, was first published. At its peak, it was selling more than a million copies a week. To celebrate the anniversary, Clare is joined by Nina Myskow, Jackie’s first female editor, and Wendy Rigg, a teenage fan who achieved her dream of working on Jackie.
Presenter: Clare McDonnell Producer: Lottie Garton
Tracey Crouch MP, Marina Litvinenko, Author Kiley Reid
Aisling Bea, Profile of Yulia Navalnaya, Carmen Smith, Wellness v stoicism
Lorraine Kelly, Paralympian Lauren Rowles, Chief Constable Sarah Crew
Lorraine Kelly, Actor and boxer Kali Reis, Presenter Gemma Cairney
Rain Newton-Smith, Paralympian Lauren Rowles, Homelessness
Surviving cancer five times, Government's independent rape advisor, Miners’ strike 40 years on, My Life with the Walter Boys
Joanne Froggatt and Dr Rachel Clarke, Minette Batters, NFU, Israel/Gaza war
Bryony Gordon, Israel-Gaza war, Chief Constable Sarah Crew
Weekend Woman’s Hour: Rhianon Bragg, Businesswoman and entrepreneur Emma Grede, Amelia Earhart’s legacy
TikTok sleuths, Widows, Politicising Taylor Swift, Surgery critics 'silenced'
Vapes, Phoebe Dynevor and Amelia Earhart's legacy
Businesswoman and entrepreneur Emma Grede, Crystal Hefner, Social media algorithms and misogyny
Rhianon Bragg, Women of Substance, ultramarathon runner Allie Bailey
Ambika Mod, Forgiveness, Grandparent classes, Grammys
Weekend Woman’s Hour: Candace Bushnell, Lisa St Aubin de Terán, Ideological Gender Gap
Candace Bushnell, No Queens in Europe, Early Years recruitment
Kaye Adams, Chemical attack, Gender gap, Saint Brigid
Arlene Foster, french women and high heels
Misogyny in the music industry, author Lisa St Aubin de Terán, cervical smears
Fasting and women, Conscription, Cuteness exhibition
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