Woman's Hour
Woman's Hour is a radio magazine programme broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in the United Kingdom.
History
Created by Norman Collins and originally presented by Alan Ivimey the programme was first broadcast on 7 October 1946 on the BBC's Light Programme (now called Radio 2).It was transferred to its current home in 1973. Over the years it has been presented by Joan Griffiths, Violet Carson, Olive Shapley, Jean Metcalfe (1947, 1958), Marjorie Anderson (until 1972), Judith Chalmers (1966–1970), Sue MacGregor (1972–1987), Jenni Murray (1987 – present), Martha Kearney (1998 – March 2007), and Jane Garvey (8 October 2007 - present). 'Fill in' presenters have included Sheila McClennon, Carolyn Quinn, Jane Little, Ritula Shah, Oona King and Amanda Platell.
On 1 January 2005, the show became Man's Hour for one day only, on which it was presented by Channel 4 News anchor Jon Snow. On 18 July 2010, after 64 years of Woman's Hour, the BBC began broadcasting a full series called Men's Hour on BBC Radio 5 presented by Tim Samuels.
Format
In its current format, the first 45 minutes of the programme consists of reports, interviews and debates on health, education, cultural and political topics aimed at women and mothers. The last 15 minutes are taken up with short-run drama serials (Woman's Hour Drama) which periodically change. One of the most popular of these are the recurring Ladies of Letters serials starring Prunella Scales and Patricia Routledge. (This section is also broadcast at 7.45pm) Before 1998 the last quarter of an hour was dedicated to readings. Research consistently shows that approximately one third of the programme's listeners are male.[1]
Schedule
Woman's Hour has been broadcast at 10am since James Boyle's revision of the Radio 4 schedules in April 1998. Between September 1991 and April 1998 it was broadcast at 10.30am, having previously gone out for many years in an early afternoon slot. The programme's move to a morning slot was unpopular among some listeners who, for family or other reasons, work only in the morning. Michael Green, the then controller of Radio 4, made his decision the previous year and considered the elimination of the programme title.[2] Weekend Woman's Hour is broadcast on Saturday afternoons at 4 pm, which features highlights of the previous week.
Music
In its earlier years, it used a variety of popular light classics as signature tunes, including such pieces as Anthony Collins' Vanity Fair and the lively Overture from Gabriel Fauré's Masques et Bergamasques. From the early 1970s, specially composed pieces were used, several of which were provided by the BBC Radiophonic Workshop.
References
- ↑ http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4158/is_19961006/ai_n14087970/pg_2
- ↑ David Hendy Life on Air: A History of Radio Four, 2007, OUP, p332.
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Woman's Hour. |
- Woman's Hour at BBC Programmes
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Woman's Hour RSS feed (bbc.co.uk)
