Woman's Hour Folgen

The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists and Royal College of Midwives are urging all pregnant women to take up the offer of a free flu vaccination this winter to protect themselves and their baby from complications caused by the flu virus. Sangita Myska is joined by Dr Jo Mountfield, Consultant Obstetrician and Vice President of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, to discuss why this is so important. Three-quarters of women living with HIV in the UK are women of Black, Asian or minority ethnic background. Dr Rageshri Dhairyawan, a consultant in Sexual Health and HIV Medicine at Barts Health NHS Trust in London, wants to see a renewed focus on how to access those women, ensure that they have the healthcare they need to live long and healthy lives, and break down the stigma around HIV that is intense within some communities. She says South Asian women form a silent and often overlooked minority of women living with HIV, which is concerning as sexually transmitted infections are rising fastest in Asians compared to other ethnicities. Sangita Myska talks to Rageshri and two women living with HIV; Mina Kakaiya who is a mental health and mindfulness trainer of South Asian heritage, and Bakita Kasadha who is a British-Ugandan poet, activist and researcher.What are the new trends for fashion and make up this autumn, and has your approach to beauty changed with the pandemic? Sangita is joined by Edwina Ings-Chambers, beauty director at YOU magazine, Kaushal, a beauty and lifestyle content creator who has 2 million subscribers on YouTube and also to the Telegraph’s Shopping Editor Krissy Turner.Debra Whittingham spent over 31 years in the Royal Navy before taking over a role that is steeped in history. She became the first female Deputy Governor of the Tower of London in 2017. Debra is one of the stars in a new series of The Tower of London documentary to be shown on Channel 5 this Wednesday, and joins Sangita.

Around 300,000 women have epilepsy in the UK. Epilepsy Research UK say that hormones can affect epilepsy, and drugs used to control it need to be very carefully balanced with medication that women take. Dr Susan Duncan is a consultant neurologist. Torie, 30 and Ruth, 60 both have it.Three of our Power List judges Lucy Siegle, Flo Headlam and Prof Alice Larkin answer your questions on how to live a greener life. The opera singer Natalya Romaniw has just been named Young Artist of the Year at the Gramophone Classical Music Awards, she tells us about the challenges of performing live during the pandemic.Last week the first hydrogen train in the UK took its maiden journey. There’s still a lot to do like making room for the batteries underneath the train, and increasing the speed. Helen Simpson and Chandra Morbey are two women behind the project.javascript:void(0)Writer and journalist Yasmin Alibhai-Brown’s new book, Ladies who Punch, is about fifty daring courageous indomitable women. The women who inspire her are black, white and brown.” Women,” she says, “have issues in common, regardless of race. Differences matter but commonalities matter more and we seem to have lost sight of that.” Joining her to discuss these issues is academic and writer, Ruby Hamad, author of forthcoming book, White Tears, Brown Scars: How White Feminism betrays women of colour. Essex Girls are the butt of countless jokes and preconceptions. Jane hears from the author Sarah Perry who has written in praise of the Essex Girl aimed at “profane and opinionated women everywhere”, and the food writer and political campaigner Jack Monroe who is a proud Essex Girl.Presenter: Jane Garvey Producer: Dianne McGregor

Jane Garvey talks to a woman who survived being groomed by a gang in Rotherham, also to Yasmin Alibhai Brown and Ruby Hamad about identity politics and feminism and we hear from the older women who enjoy dating younger men. Producer: Lisa Jenkinson Studio Manager: Matilda Macari