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Margaret Hodge; Dame Margaret Drabble; Casting the larger actress; Peace activist Isabella Ford

Margaret Hodge MP on being chair of the Public Accounts Committee; Dame Margaret Drabble and Black Country women; Casting the larger actress; Peace activist Isabella Ford.

Margaret Hodge MP discusses being Chair of the Public Accounts Committee, and the responsibility she holds in calling companies to account. Dame Margaret Drabble talks about writing stories for 'Black Country Women' - a women's magazine with, for and about Black Country Women. Casting the Larger Actress - why aren't bigger actresses considered more for lead roles? And to mark International Peace Day on Saturday 21st September, Professor June Hamman joins Jenni to talk about Isabella Ford, WW1 Peace Activist and Suffragist.

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45 minutes

Chapters

  • Margaret Hodge MP

    Chair of the Public Accounts Cmtte. on her power to hold the govt. and others to account.

    Duration: 12:35

  • ISABELLA FORD

    Historian June Hannam, on the life and work of peace activist & suffragist, Isabella Ford.

    Duration: 07:34

  • DAME MARGARET DRABBLE

    Dame Margaret Drabble on her project writing about the lives of women in the Black Country

    Duration: 12:13

  • CASTING THE LARGER WOMAN

    Trials & tribulations of larger actresses with Sue McCormick & Paul Newberry.

    Duration: 08:53

Margaret Hodge MP

Margaret Hodge MP has been enjoying a meteoric rise in popularity since her election as first female Chair of the Public Accounts Committee, in 2010.Ìý Taking the position of spokeswoman for the people, she has challenged Google, Starbucks and Amazon on their attitudes to tax; driven a tunnel through HS2 excuses; and most recently directed her glare at the ´óÏó´«Ã½ on their executive payouts.Ìý Her style is assertive, challenging and sometimes downright schoolmarmy. But she has also been accused of being tougher on women than on men.Ìý And after an uncomfortable afternoon spent in the spotlights, when the heat has died down, what actual change will happen? And what can the Public Accounts Committee actually enforce?Ìý Margaret Hodge, PowerLister, joins Jenni to discuss her responsibility as people’s champion.

Ìý

Dame Margaret Drabble

Dame Margaret Drabble

A chance remark from Dame Margaret Drabble at a literary event led to a project travelling around the Black Country to find out – and write about – the lives of women living and working there.Ìý From Susan’s Hairdressers on the High Street in West Bromwich to Teddy Gray’s sweet factory in Dudley, to Pat Gorman’s pork pie factory – Dame Margaret was introduced by performance poet Emma Purshouse to local women to learn about their lives.Ìý The end product is ‘Black Country Women’ – a women’s magazine commissioned and produced by Multistory with, for and about Black Country women, with stories by Margaret Drabble and photographs by Martin Parr.Ìý Dame Margaret Drabble joins Jenni to discuss why this was one of the most enjoyable experiences of her writing life.

Ìý

Isabella Ford - Peace Activist

To mark ÌýInternational Peace Day this Saturday 21st September,Ìýa peace history conference is being held at the Quaker meeting house Ìýin Manchester. The title of the event is . ÌýJenni talks to key speaker, June Hannam, Emeritus Professor of Modern History at the University of the West of England, about why she choseÌý to discuss the life and work of one particular woman, the peace activist and suffragist, Isabella Ford.

Ìý

Casting the Larger Woman

How many plus-sized actresses can you name in lead roles on television, in films or theatre?Ìý The trials and tribulations of trying to land decent roles when you’re not a size zero will be portrayed in a new play written by and starring Sue McCormick, a plus-sized actress herself.Ìý So why aren’t larger actresses considered for the famous principal roles like Kate in Taming of the Shrew?Ìý What stops us from imagining these characters as anything other than thin?Ìý Casting agent Paul Newberry and Sue McCormick will join Jenni to talk about issues of size – is it really a case that the bigger the role, the smaller the actress?

Ìý

Credits

Role Contributor
Presenter Jenni Murray
Producer Susannah Tresilian
Interviewed Guest Margaret Hodge
Interviewed Guest Margaret Drabble
Interviewed Guest June Hamman
Interviewed Guest Sue McCormick
Interviewed Guest Paul Newberry

Broadcast

  • Fri 20 Sep 2013 10:00

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