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The politics of the human body is at the centre of intense debate in the UK and beyond. Thanks to science, technology and a fast-moving political landscape, humans are increasingly able to intervene in the natural processes of life – how we are conceived, how we are born and how and when we die. But what are the limits to this intervention, how should we decide and who should decide?

Broadcaster and columnist Sonia Sodha gets behind divides and polarisation to discover nuance, complexity and compelling stories, often involving a fascinating clash of competing rights and interests.

The first episode focuses on surrogacy, where a woman gestates and gives birth to a baby for a couple or and individual. The UK surrogacy debate is at a crossroads - the practice is legal but limited, with reforms on the table to create new routes and attract more surrogates to come forward. Should they be implemented or should we follow countries like Italy, Spain and Germany and ban surrogacy entirely?

Sonia hears emotional testimony from those who have become new parents through surrogacy – a single man parenting a young daughter, a gay male couple who now run a leading surrogacy agency and an Irish senator whose experience of infertility led her to surrogacy in India and a campaign to reform the law in Ireland. Sonia hears too from a former surrogate who defends her right to use her body to help others become parents.

We also hear powerful stories from opponents, including a French woman born through surrogacy who is now estranged from her parents and claims long term psychological damage. And radical feminists explain why they see surrogacy as exploitative and misogynistic and why their campaign has brought strange new alliances across ideological divides.