Jo Cox 10 years on, Actor Geraldine James, Swinging investigation
Woman's Hour
BBC
4.1 • 3K Ratings
🗓️ 16 June 2026
⏱️ 58 minutes
🔗️ Recording | Apple Podcasts | RSS
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Summary
It’s been 10 years since Jo Cox, the Labour MP for Batley and Spen, was murdered in broad daylight by a man who lived in her constituency, motivated by far-right extremism. That truly shocking event sparked a national conversation about the safety of our elected representatives, and the civility of our public discourse. During her lifetime, Jo’s philosophy was that “we are far more united and have far more in common than that which divides us” – a philosophy which led to the establishment of the Jo Cox Foundation after her death. Their CEO Olivia Field joins presenter Nuala McGovern, along with Alice Lilly, senior researcher at the Institute for Government, to discuss the impact of Jo’s death and the safety of female politicians now.
Actor Geraldine James is renowned for a host of roles in theatre and on screen, from her TV debut in The Sweeney five decades ago to Jewel in the Crown, Band of Gold, This Town, The Cage and comedy sketch show Little Britain to name a few. Now she's making her Chichester theatre debut in the stage premiere of the 2015 film 45 years, alongside Gabriel Byrne. The couple are about to celebrate 45 years of marriage, when news arrives in a letter from Switzerland about a woman's body that's been discovered in a melting glacier, sending shockwaves through their marriage.
A new BBC podcast asks whether women are always safe on swinging websites. Swingers, an investigation from journalist Catrin Nye, explores serious concerns within the swinging community and asks if abuse can exist behind the language of sexual freedom. Nuala speaks to Catrin Nye and Rachel Horman Brown KC, a lawyer whose practice focuses on domestic abuse.
The number of bookshops on our high streets has now grown to the highest number since 2012, with some of the rise being attributed to specialist genre shops fuelled by the surge in popularity for fantasy - and 'romantasy' - fiction. We hear from Amanda Logan who opened Ritual Reads in the town of Whitchurch, Shropshire, last November and says about 75% of her customers are women.
Presented by: Nuala McGovern Produced by: Sarah Jane Griffiths
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | BBC Sounds, Music, radio, podcasts. |
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| 0:36.0 | Hello, this is Newell O'MGarverin and you're listening to The Woman's Hour podcast. |
| 0:40.6 | Hello and welcome to the program. |
| 0:43.1 | You may have heard news this morning about a campaign of Russian arson attacks that targeted the Prime Minister. |
| 0:49.2 | But, as we know, violence against politicians is nothing new. |
| 0:53.8 | Ten years ago today, the MP Joe Cox was murdered outside her constituency surgery. |
| 0:59.0 | We're going to discuss what it's like for female politicians today. |
| 1:03.2 | Also, we will speak to the actor Geraldine James. |
| 1:06.3 | We know we're in so many roles from the cage, Julianel in the Crown, Anne with an E, |
| 1:12.2 | but that is just a tiny snapshot |
| 1:14.2 | of her extensive career |
| 1:16.8 | across TV, film and also the stage. |
| 1:20.0 | She's currently in the play 45 years |
| 1:22.5 | and that explores how ghosts from our past |
| 1:25.6 | can resurface and disrupt our present. We'll talk to her this |
| 1:30.3 | hour too. So also, as you may know, it's more than 24 hours since the Prime Minister announced |
| 1:38.1 | a social media ban for under 16s. What has the reaction been in your house? I want to bring you a little of what one teenager |
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