Wes Streeting MP, Novelist Elizabeth Arnott, Comedian Susie McCabe
Woman's Hour
BBC
4.1 • 3K Ratings
🗓️ 15 April 2026
⏱️ 58 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
A renewed Women’s Health Strategy for England has been published today. The first Women’s Health Strategy came out in July 2022 under the Conservative government, with this ‘refresh’ being put forward as a ‘chance to travel further and faster’. However with over half a million women still waiting for gynaecological care in England and many women saying they don't feel listened to, why has there been so little progress? Nuala McGovern discusses the renewed strategy with the Health Secretary Wes Streeting.
Author Elizabeth Arnott talks to Nuala about her novel, The Secret Lives of Murderers' Wives, which investigates the impact of violent crime, not only on its victims, but also on the people closest to the criminals. The story follows Beverley, Elsie and Margot, who all discovered they were married to serial killers too late to save the women they murdered. Set in 1960s California, in an era where the understanding of the “serial killer” phenomenon was in its infancy, these women find themselves in a unique position to dig into the psychology of their husbands and band together, using their knowledge of dangerous men, to track down other violent predators.
Scottish comedian Susie McCabe is a stalwart of the BBC comedy scene - from The News Quiz and Breaking the News, to Just a Minute and Have I Got News For You. It was in 2024, while touring, that she had a heart-attack – she was only in her mid-forties at the time. It made her not only take a long hard look at her life, but it also inspired her latest show, Best Behaviour. Susie joins Nuala to discuss making comedy gold out of life's trials and tribulations.
Presenter: Nuala McGovern Producer: Andrea Kidd
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | BBC Sounds, Music, radio, podcasts. |
| 0:07.4 | I'm Dilley Carter and I love organising. |
| 0:11.6 | In my brand new podcast, sort your life out, unpacked, celebrity guests join me to unbox three revealing items from their home. |
| 0:18.7 | Oh, wow. I wasn't expecting this. Along the way, |
| 0:22.5 | I'll be giving you practical hacks to help you declutter your life as well. This is the tough |
| 0:26.8 | love I need. Don't hold back. I'm definitely tucking you with me back to my house. Sort your life out, |
| 0:32.6 | unpacked. Watch on eye player. Listen on BBC Sounds. Hello, this is Newell McGovern, and you're listening to The Woman's Hour podcast. |
| 0:40.7 | Hello and welcome to the programme. |
| 0:42.6 | I'm taking your questions this morning for the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, Wes Streeting, |
| 0:47.4 | as he announces a renewed women's health strategy for England. |
| 0:51.4 | We want to hear about the government's plan to change a culture of medical misogyny. |
| 0:55.8 | Also, how they'll cut diagnosis times |
| 0:58.0 | and bring down waiting lists for women to get in touch. |
| 1:01.5 | You can text the program. |
| 1:02.4 | The number is 84844 on social media. |
| 1:05.0 | We're at BBC Woman's Hour. |
| 1:06.3 | Or you can email us through our website |
| 1:08.3 | for a WhatsApp message or a voice note. |
| 1:10.2 | The number is 0-3-700-100-4-444. |
| 1:14.8 | Also today, the Scottish comedian, Susie McCabe, who makes comedy gold out of life's trials and tribulations. |
| 1:20.7 | And we have the author, Elizabeth Arnott, on her new novel, The Secret Lives of Murderer's Wives, |
| 1:26.7 | where she explores how the wives of serial killers are often scrutinised, |
... |
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