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Woman's Hour

Women leaders and Covid-19, Lionel Shriver, Florence Nightingale’s bicentenary

Woman's Hour

BBC

Society & Culture

4.13K Ratings

🗓️ 7 May 2020

⏱️ 48 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

The leaders of the USA, Brazil, Russia, Spain, Italy and the UK have come in for some criticism over their handling of the Coronavirus pandemic. They all have one thing in common, and it has been widely remarked on – they’re men. From Jacinda Ardern to Angela Merkel, women leaders across the world seem to be coping with Covid-19 better. But is it true? And, what might explain why? Jenni talks to Rosie Campbell, Director of the Global Institute for Women’s Leadership and Professor of Politics at King’s College London and Clare Wenham, Assistant Professor in Global Health Policy at the London School of Economics and Political Science.

Could your relationship survive one partner’s endurance sport obsession? In her new novel The Motion of the Body Through Space, Lionel Shriver explores the impact of extreme exercise on the ageing body and on one marriage in particular. Since taking aim at the whole concept of cultural appropriation in a speech at the Melbourne Writers’ Festival in 2016, Shriver has become well known for her criticism of identity politics. How does that manifest in the book? She joins Jenni to discuss.

Over the last couple of weeks we’ve been hearing from women around the world who are making face masks at home for family, health-workers and in this case child refugees in camps in Greece. Rabha Nasr who lives in Greece now spoke to Maria Margaronis, who asked her to choose some music she listens to when she sews.

Next week marks 200 years since the birth of Florence Nightingale, the founder of modern nursing. We discuss her life, and legacy and impact on nursing in 2020. Anne-Marie Rafferty, Professor of Nursing Policy, Florence Nightingale Faculty of Nursery, Midwifery and Palliative Care at King’s College, London joins Jenni along with Greta Westwood, CEO of the Florence Nightingale Foundation.

Presented by Jenni Murray Produced by Sarah Crawley Interviewed guest: Rosie Campbell Interviewed guest: Clare Wenham Interviewed guest: Lionel Shriver Interviewed guest: Rabha Nasr Interviewed guest: Anne-Marie Rafferty Interviewed guest: Greta Westwood Reporter: Maria Margaronis

Transcript

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0:00.0

Choosing what to watch night after night the flicking through the endless

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searching is a nightmare we want to help you on our brand new podcast off the

0:11.8

telly we share what we've been watching

0:14.0

Fladiated.

0:16.0

Load to games, loads of fun, loads of screaming.

0:19.0

Lovely. Off the telly with me Joanna Paige.

0:21.0

And me, Natalie Cassidy, so your evenings can be a little less

0:25.0

searching and a lot more auction listen on BBC Sounds.

0:29.0

BBC Sounds music Music Radio Podcasts.

0:35.0

Hello Jenny Murray welcoming you to The Woman's Our Podcast for Thursday, the 7th of May 2020.

0:43.4

In today's programme, Lionel Shriver and her new novel The Motion of the Body through Space.

0:49.3

What happens when a man in his 60s becomes obsessed with endurance sport and his wife, who's always been a keen

0:56.4

runner, finds her knees are letting her down.

1:00.7

It's 200 years since Florence Nightingale was born.

1:03.7

What's the contribution to modern nursing practice of the Lady with the Lamp?

1:09.2

And today's maskmaker helping family, friends and refugees with protective face coverings is Rabha Nasser who lives in Greece.

1:20.3

Some three months since the COVID-19 pandemic began to sweep across the world, the criticisms of the

1:26.1

weight's been handled are beginning to surface. The leaders of the USA, Brazil, Russia,

1:31.5

Spain, Italy and the UK have all come in for censure.

1:36.7

They have one thing in common and it's been remarked upon widely.

1:40.6

They're all men. Meanwhile Forbes magazine named some of the world's most effective

1:46.5

leaders during the crisis. Jocinda Arderne, Angela Merkel, Tsai Inguen and no fewer than four Scandinavians,

...

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