Unfinished Business artwork

Unfinished Business

37 episodes - English - Latest episode: over 2 years ago - ★★★★★ - 18 ratings

The fight for women’s rights is unfinished business. But where do we begin? Join incredible women, including actor and activist Jameela Jamil, Sex Education writer Laurie Nunn, Nubian Skin founder Ade Hassan, Olympic gold medal winner Victoria Pendleton and feminist icon Susie Orbach, as they talk to British Library curator Polly Russell about all things sexual liberation, intersectionality, mental health and more. Find out about the long history of women fighting for justice, discover remarkable characters from the past and hear from women today who are challenging and changing the world for the better.

Creating a space for in-depth conversations on issues that matter across the world, this brand new podcast accompanies the British Library’s major new exhibition Unfinished Business: The Fight for Women’s Rights, open in London until 21 February 2021.

Unfinished Business podcast series is generously supported by Joanna and Graham Barker and The Eccles Centre for American Studies. A Pixiu production.

bl.uk/unfinished-business

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Episodes

The Anatomy of Activism

July 21, 2021 05:00 - 32 minutes - 38.3 MB

In the continuing fight for women’s rights, who is responsible for change, and who should stand up and make a difference today? Amika George is the Founder of #FreePeriods, a global campaign to end period poverty, which she started at the age of 17. Her campaign successfully persuaded the UK government to pledge funds to provide free menstrual products in all English schools and colleges in 2017. More recently she wrote her first book, Make it Happen: How to Be an Activist. In the final e...

The Accidental Technologists

May 18, 2021 06:05 - 48 minutes - 57.3 MB

Too often, men design the technology that shapes our world but in this episode we’re getting excited about the feminist possibilities of tech. British Library Curator Polly Russell is joined by Alice Wroe, an Augmented and Virtual Realities Lead at the Atlantic Institute. Together, they’re exploring the diversity issues in the industry and hearing from women who’re working to disrupt the scene. Judy Wajcman, a Fellow at The Alan Turing Institute, looks backwards to explain why from the 8...

“We need space to party!”

February 12, 2021 06:00 - 50 minutes - 59.4 MB

Having fun is a serious business. In this episode British Library curator Polly Russell joins forces with illustrator and club-night founder Flo Perry to explore how lesbians and queer women have partied, socialised and come together since the 70s. Because it’s in these moments and places that communities thrive and identities are confirmed. And these spaces are under threat. Polly and Flo are heading back to the 80s to get a sense of lesbian nightlife then, with club promoter Yvonne Taylor...

Trans Through Time

January 29, 2021 06:00 - 47 minutes - 54.2 MB

“It just felt completely natural to me that as long as there were gender roles there would be people who transcended them.” Juliet Jacques. In today’s episode British Library curator Polly Russell is joined by writer and filmmaker Juliet to explore how transgender lives have been represented in the press, in law and in culture throughout the ages. Because for transgender women in the UK and around the world, there is no finished business. Whether it’s access to healthcare, high suicide rat...

Intersectionality: a beginning not an end

January 14, 2021 06:00 - 44 minutes - 50.9 MB

Do you call yourself a feminist? For some, the is a straightforward ‘yes’ for others, it’s complicated. In this episode focusing on intersectionality we explore why. The term intersectionality was first used by lawyer Kimberly Crenshaw in the late 1980s to highlight that social justice problems, such as racism and sexism, are often inextricably linked. In this episode curator Polly Russell is joined by poet, activist and educator Suhaiymah Manzoor-Khan as they explore intersectionality...

Serious Laughs

December 18, 2020 06:00 - 44 minutes - 51.6 MB

Throughout history attempts have been made to silence and ignore women. They’ve had to fight for a place in politics, had to use male pseudonyms to get published and often find themselves subjected to trolling and abuse when they speak out. So in this episode, curator Polly Russell and co-host comedian and writer Sara Pascoe are hearing from some women who stand on stage and command attention. They’re having a laugh with broadcaster and writer Sandi Toksvig and stand-up comedian Shazia Mi...

"A Scar In Our Society"

December 11, 2020 06:00 - 43 minutes - 51.1 MB

We’re living in what some have called an epidemic of domestic abuse in the UK. It’s sadly a large part of the ongoing struggle for women’s rights, justice and the ability to live a life free of the threat of violence. In this episode, British Library curator Polly Russell is joined by bestselling author and Women’s Aid Ambassador Holly Bourne to explore why it happens, how it can affect anyone, what is being done to improve the situation, and what still needs to change. They’re hearing from s...

Freewheeling Women

November 20, 2020 06:00 - 52 minutes - 61.9 MB

Today, we’re going cycling! When you see a bicycle 'revolutionary' and 'radical' probably aren't the first thoughts which spring to mind but for women in the late 19th century hopping on a bike was transformative. They could travel where they wanted and when they wanted at speed. In this episode, curator Polly Russell is joined by cyclist, writer and blogger Jools Walker (AKA ‘Lady Velo’) as they pedal through the epic history of women on bike and explore the politics of cycling today and ...

"Excuse me I haven't finished”: Feminist Fightback

November 06, 2020 06:00 - 36 minutes - 42.3 MB

Actor and activist Jameela Jamil has unfinished business. She joins British Library curator Polly Russell to explore the intersecting realms of mental health and body image. Polly introduces Jameela to Susie Orbach who created the very first Women’s Therapy Centre in the UK. What follows is a fascinating conversation between a frontline feminist waging war against the patriarchy since the 1970s and a woman working against body shaming, oppression and injustice today. How have things changed? ...

The Politics of Pleasure

October 23, 2020 05:00 - 45 minutes - 52.1 MB

Does pleasure exist outside of politics? Can we have feminist sex? And how has the online realm affected young people’s views on the subject? Professor Amia Srinivasan, a philosopher at The University of Oxford, is delving into these thorny questions with British Library curator Polly Russell. They’re laying things bare with Laurie Nunn, the creator of TV drama Sex Education, examining some unusual objects from the past with historian Zoe Strimpel and heading to a school to hear from a gro...

Pants, Pageants and Protest

October 16, 2020 05:00 - 40 minutes - 46.4 MB

For generations women of colour were unable to buy nude lingerie to suit their skin tone. In 2014 entrepreneur Ade Hassan decided to fix this by setting up Nubian Skin, an underwear company catering to people of colour. Three years on Nubian Skin is going strong but Ade still has unfinished business. In this episode she’s joining British Library curator Polly Russell to explore the relationship between race, beauty and feminism with Jennifer Hosten, the first black winner of Miss World and ac...

Introducing Unfinished Business

October 13, 2020 17:00 - 2 minutes - 3.15 MB

Curator Polly Russell introduces Unfinished Business, a series exploring the fight for women’s rights, from the British Library.

Libraries under lockdown

May 28, 2020 05:00 - 28 minutes - 33.2 MB

Amid the pandemic, we hear from the British Library team ensuring crucial documents are delivered to public health services, a library that has exchanged books for food parcels, and a bridal studio, supported by our Business and IP Centre, who pivoted to ‘something new’ when the crisis hit.

Joining the library: Steve Berry

March 26, 2020 10:01 - 7 minutes - 9.13 MB

New York Times best selling Author Steve Berry joins us to talk about one of his favourite books, The Twisted Claw #18 in The Hardy Boys series by Franklin W. Dixon. This episode was recorded before the current global outbreak - we hope you are all staying safe.

Uncovering mysteries and secrets

March 17, 2020 13:08 - 37 minutes - 43 MB

Hear how a Librarian solved a 33 year cold case, why the British Library is currently researching some mysterious toilet paper and how a library in Manchester is helping it's patrons uncover the secrets of their own past.

Joining the library: Anne Fine

February 27, 2020 14:56 - 11 minutes - 13.5 MB

Award winning writer of Madame Doubtfire and Goggle-Eyes, Anne Fine OBE joins us today to discuss ‘The Man Who Loved Children’ by Christina Stead (1940).

Choose your own adventure

February 13, 2020 12:55 - 32 minutes - 37.8 MB

Hear how Minecraft is opening up literary worlds, meet the young writers powering up their imaginations at Plymouth’s Plymstock library, and settle down for a read with the library that comes to you.

Joining the library: Anab Jain

January 30, 2020 06:00 - 10 minutes - 12.7 MB

The designer, futurist, filmmaker and educator tells us about one of her favourite books: The Dispossessed by Ursula Le Guin (1974).

Do librarians dream of electric cranes?

January 16, 2020 06:00 - 30 minutes - 34.9 MB

To start the new year, we take a look into the future. Meet the British Library’s robot assistants, get coding at Oxfordshire County Library and take the long view with Norway’s Future Library. Plus we visit our Flashback Project in Boston Spa, which ensures digital content is preserved and accessible even after the original technology has become obsolete.

Joining the library: Blindboy

December 19, 2019 05:00 - 8 minutes - 9.82 MB

‘He was writing in the way that I speak. He was talking about country roads that I know….it was me.’ Author and podcaster Blindboy tells us about the writing that made him: The Third Policeman (written in 1939 and published in 1967) by Brian O'Nolan, writing under the pseudonym Flann O'Brien. Contains plot spoilers and some profanity.

Libraries of the unexpected

December 05, 2019 13:48 - 36 minutes - 42.8 MB

Encounter Willard Library’s Lady in Grey, be spellbound by the British Library’s collection and meet a druid from a library in the heart of spiritual south-west England. Who you gonna call? A librarian, obviously.

Joining the library: Damian Le Bas

November 21, 2019 13:37 - 13 minutes - 16.1 MB

‘It’s interesting when something which isn’t of your realm of experience causes you to look at your own domain differently.’ Writer Damian Le Bas tells us about The Son by Philipp Meyer (2013).

‘An embassy for humanity’

November 07, 2019 13:50 - 34 minutes - 40 MB

Libraries are good company. This month we borrow some people from the Human Library, join the Little Free Library book-sharing movement and visit a sports academy working with young people which received support from our Business & IP Centre.

Joining the library: Billy Childish

October 24, 2019 05:00 - 9 minutes - 11.9 MB

Punk painter and writer Billy Childish discusses the writing that made him: Lust for Life by Irving Stone (1934).

Rebel rebel

October 10, 2019 12:52 - 44 minutes - 51.9 MB

Playwright Joe Orton’s ‘malicious damage’, salvaged cardboard and roller derby. This month we hear stories of libraries as sites of creative rebellion. Contains some explicit language and imagery.

Joining the library: Simon Doonan

September 26, 2019 05:00 - 8 minutes - 10.8 MB

‘I defy you not to get lost in it.’ Writer, Creative Ambassador and editor, Simon Doonan, tells us about his love of The Flight from the Enchanter by Iris Murdoch (1956).

‘The soul needs books’

September 12, 2019 04:30 - 35 minutes - 40.6 MB

Libraries can be places of creative and intellectual sanctuary, refuge, hope and companionship. We step into the British Library’s Reading Rooms, visit a hidden library in Syria and meet people in Swansea forming connections through reading.

Joining the library: Megan Hine

August 29, 2019 05:00 - 10 minutes - 12.6 MB

‘It just opened up this whole new world to me.’ Adventurer and survival expert Megan Hine tells us about a book that influenced her, Land of the Long White Cloud: Maori Myths, Tales and Legends by Kiri Te Kanawa (1989).

Have library, will travel

August 15, 2019 05:00 - 32 minutes - 37.6 MB

Don’t be a numpty: have a skeg at our latest episode and get your lugholes around some UK accents and dialects, join bookmobile Booky McBookface on the Scottish islands of Orkney, and discover the library boldly going where no library has gone before.

Joining the library: Joe Dunthorne

August 01, 2019 05:00 - 10 minutes - 12.9 MB

‘The first time you see something you’ve experienced captured in a way that feels accurate, it’s really memorable and changing.’ The novelist and poet Joe Dunthorne discusses Politics by Adam Thirlwell (2003) and writing about sex. Contains some profanity and sexual content.

[Redacted]

July 18, 2019 10:18 - 35 minutes - 41.4 MB

We open up ‘the world’s best collection of forbidden books’ and consider current restrictions on free expression, plus two librarians talk weeding and Awful Library Books.

Joining the library: Samra Habib

July 04, 2019 13:33 - 10 minutes - 12.6 MB

Writer and photographer Samra Habib discusses the writing that made her: James Baldwin’s 1956 novel Giovanni's Room. Contains plot spoilers.

Love is love

June 20, 2019 13:12 - 30 minutes - 36 MB

Journey to New York for a milestone 50th anniversary, hear stories of love and identity in wartime Britain, and meet the drag queens and kings making library story hours fabulous.

Joining the library: Laurie Penny

June 06, 2019 09:07 - 10 minutes - 13 MB

The sentence that set you on a new path. The library book you struggled to take back. The writing that made you. Author, journalist and screenwriter Laurie Penny join us to discuss what Charlotte Brontë’s novel Jane Eyre means to her. Contains spoilers…

The library is open

May 23, 2019 10:00 - 31 minutes - 36.3 MB

‘The freedom to dream. That’s the most beautiful thing about a library. No matter who you are, there’s a book for you.’ We take a look at a world-famous document that’s a powerful symbol of liberty, hear how the prison library at HMP Nottingham is working with those who’ve lost their freedom, and travel to Nepal where a library in a remote village is helping women vulnerable to human trafficking.

Trailer

May 21, 2019 14:36 - 1 minute - 2.53 MB

Anything But Silent, the new podcast from the British Library launches soon - subscribe now.

Introducing Anything But Silent

May 21, 2019 14:36 - 1 minute - 2.53 MB

Cleo Laskarin introduces Anything But Silent from the British Library.