Elaine Paige, Nova Reid on Jocelyn Barrow, Pauline Collins

Woman's Hour

BBC

Society & Culture, Health & Fitness, Personal Journals

4.2 • 2.9K Ratings

🗓️ 7 November 2025

⏱️ 58 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

NB: The music in this broadcast has been removed from this podcast for rights reasons.

A grande dame of musical theatre, Elaine Paige made her West End debut in the 1960s and shot to fame in 1978 playing Eva Perón in Evita, going on to star in Cats, Chess, Sunset Boulevard and many more. She talks to Anita Rani about becoming an actual Dame this week, and how she’s fostering the next generation of talent.

American author Gish Jen and her mother never got along. In her latest novel Bad Bad Girl, Gish tries to figure out why that was. Reconstructing, then fictionalising her mother’s life as she moves from a wealthy childhood in China to an up-and-down immigrant existence in the US. Gish joins Anita to talk about the real life events behind her book.

Restaurant chain McDonald's has announced it will bring in new sexual harassment training for managers. These are strengthened measures that were agreed with the Equality and Human Rights Commission to protect McDonald's staff from abuse. A BBC investigation that started two years ago found that workers as young as 17 were being groped and harassed. Anita gets an update from BBC reporter Noor Nanji.

Writer and producer Nova Reid joins Anita to talk about the late Dame Jocelyn Barrow, the race relations campaigner and the first black female governor of the BBC whose story Nova tells in her new podcast, Hidden Histories with Nova Reid. The interview includes a clip of Jocelyn from 2017 sharing her thoughts with The University of Law on what she considered to be the greatest improvements in diversity.

Pauline Collins, the star of the film Shirley Valentine, for which she was Oscar nominated in 1990, has died at the age of 85. Her career spanned stage and screen but she will be best remembered for her portrayal of disgruntled housewife Shirley, in the award-winning film, based on the stage play by Willy Russell. It won Pauline a Golden Globe and a BAFTA. We hear a clip of Pauline Collins playing Shirley in Lewis Gilbert's 1989 film, Shirley Valentine, distributed by Paramount Pictures, and also part of an interview Pauline recorded with Jane Garvey on Woman's Hour in 2017.

Presenter: Anita Rani Producer: Rebecca Myatt

Transcript

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0:00.0	BBC Sounds, Music, radio, podcasts.
0:07.3	Hello, I'm Kimberly Wilson. I'm a psychologist, and in my new podcast, Complex, I'll be your guide
0:14.4	through all the information and misinformation that's out there about mental health.
0:19.0	I'm joined by expert guests covering topics from people
0:22.5	pleasing to perfectionism, burnout to empathy, to find tangible advice so we can understand
0:28.4	ourselves a little better. Complex with me, Kimberly Wilson. Listen on BBC Sounds.
0:35.7	Hi, I'm Nula McGovern and you're listening to The Woman's Hour podcast.
0:40.4	While you're here, I wanted to let you know about the Woman's Hour Guide to Life,
0:44.8	your toolkit for the juggle, the struggle and everything in between.
0:49.4	Life is complicated and often incredibly busy.
0:52.7	So whether you're fixing a problem at one of life's
0:55.6	crossroads or just looking to shake things up a bit, this is the guide you'll need to help you
1:00.8	survive and even thrive. Each episode brings together world-class experts with women
1:06.9	sharing their honest, powerful stories, offering real insight, and also practical
1:12.1	tips that really work. From work and career to relationships and family issues, the focus is
1:18.2	on helping you grow, also adapt and overcome life's curve walls. It's your companion,
1:24.3	your life coach, it's your Woman's Hour Guide to Life.
1:28.6	Join us only on BBC Sounds, but now, back to today's Woman's Hour.
1:35.0	Thank you for now.
1:37.5	Good morning and welcome to the programme.
1:39.9	The red carpet has been rolled out.
1:42.0	We are welcoming theatre royalty into the studio.
	...

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