From Bette Davis to Meryl Streep, Nancy Astorto Margaret Thatcher, Enid Blyton to Doris Lessing, Woman’s Hour has interviewed many of the biggest female names from entertainment, politics, the arts and beyond.
To coincide with the release of the The Woman’s Hour Collection we bring you a selection of the unexpected and delightful moments that have been newly restored to the Woman's Hour archive.
Some of these recordings are very much of their time. It’s interesting to hear how things have changed; the language used and the tone of voice can feel quite different to the sound of Woman's Hour today. Yet, it’s also striking how often the topics being discussed still resonate.
1. A stirring account from 1957 of the death of Emily Davison at Epsom, delivered by the famed suffragette Mary Richardson, who was present when Davison threw herself under the King’s horse. Richardson also describes her own contribution to the struggle – a daring act of defiance in which she slashed the Rokeby Venus in the National Gallery in London.Mary Richardson explains how she slashed the Rokeby Venus as an act of defiance.
2. Judi Dench’s 1967 revelation that acting was not her first career choice, and a description of how audiences in West Africa found her performance as Lady Macbeth very funny.
Critically acclaimed actor Judi Dench on her career and taking Shakespeare to Africa.
3. An interview with fashion icon Mary Quant in 1971, in which she discusses the craze for hot pants, the lack of fashion rules, and Coco Chanel as a role model.
Innovative Fashion designer Mary Quant on what inspired her to create her iconic styles.
4. Sue MacGregor’s 1986 interview with Winnie Mandela in her Soweto home to the accompaniment of police dogs barking outside, in which she tells of the devastating effect of introducing her daughters to their father for the first time once they turned 16.
Winnie Mandela on her political life in South Africa and her marriage to Nelson.
5. The story of how French and Saunders became a double act and survived being “gonged off” at the Comedy Store, as told to Sue MacGregor in 1986.
Comedy duo Dawn French and Jennifer Saunders (in 1986) on their success and sketches.
6. Jenni Murray’s 1993 interview with Lady Margaret Thatcher, in which the former prime minister argues why women’s issues should not be given special treatment, and reflects on feeling 'sick at heart' after being deserted by her cabinet.
Margaret Thatcher reflects on the betrayal she felt when her leadership was challenged.
7. Martha Kearney, who presented Woman's Hour from 1998 to 2007, “I will always remember a programme of mine in which Julie Burchill let fly at Germaine Greer and we threw away the rest of the running order to let them fight it out.”
Germaine Greer and Julie Burchill go head to head over the politics of the female body.
8. Nigella Lawson and John Diamond appeared on the programme together to talk about John’s illness and how it affects their marriage.
John Diamond and his wife Nigella Lawson talk about how they are coping with his cancer.
Jenni Murray, who has presented Woman’s Hour since 1987, added “Going back through the Woman’s Hour archive, I am reminded of some very special moments I hadn’t thought about in years. I can confess it now that she’s gone, but no-one terrified me more than Margaret Thatcher, and it all came flooding back when I listened to my interview with her from 1993, of which one reviewer said it was the only time his radio had frozen over!”
Alice Feinstein, Editor of Woman’s Hour, adds: “This is our first dip into a huge archive. It has been hard to choose with such a wealth of amazing material, we hope this collection shows the range, the journalism, the personal testimonies, the humour and the glamour that are the hallmarks of Woman’s Hour. We’ll be adding to The Woman's Hour Collection with more interviews and features from the archive soon.”
- In a special programme on Boxing Day Jenni Murray is joined by former Woman's Hour presenter Sue MacGregor, looking through the Woman's Hour Collection and discussing their memories of the programme.
- Each week during 2014, a specially selected interview from the Woman’s Hour vault will be broadcast on the programme. The interviews will also be available permanently in a collection on the Radio 4 website and will be offered as a free download as part of the Woman’s Hour podcast.
- For more archive from Woman’s Hour including the Power List and Cook the Perfect recipes visit the Womans’ Hour site. Every edition of Woman’s Hour since March 2010 is available to listen to on the Woman’s Hour website and each item is available as an individual chapter.
