The complex needs of adopted children are leaving parents at breaking point as they say they are being denied support then blamed by authorities when they can no longer cope, a BBC investigation has found. A BBC Freedom of Information request revealed the scale of the crisis, and the number of families that are returning their children to the care system. Anita Rani is joined by BBC special correspondent Judith Moritz and Fiona Wells who runs PATCH, Passionate Adopters Targeting Change with Hope, a support group for adoptive parents.
For the last two years, the mystery of exactly what happened at Erin Patterson's dining table had gripped the world. And then in September this year, after a nine-week trial, Erin Patterson was jailed for life - with no chance of release for at least 33 years. Her crime: murdering three relatives by intentionally poisoning them with wild mushrooms and trying to kill another. Dubbed the ‘Mushroom Murders’, Anita speaks to Sarah Krasnostein, who wrote a book about Erin’s trial, and Dr Stephanie Brown, a historical criminologist, to understand the public view of women who poison.
Camille O’Sullivan has toured with the Pogues and was chosen by Yoko Ono to perform at Meltdown festival in the Royal Festival Hall. Now the Irish-French singer is bringing her hit show to the Soho Theatre in London. LoveLetter is a personal response to the loss of the artists who inspired her, particularly her late friends Shane McGowan and Sinéad O’Connor.
The second part of the hugely popular film Wicked - called Wicked: For good, starring Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande, continues to take the UK and the world by storm. It's already taken over $226m at the global box office. Telling an alternative version of the Wizard of Oz, it explores how our perception of good and evil can be distorted. It's also the story of the unlikely friendship between Elphaba and Glinda and the tensions that can be put on that friendship. Anita is joined by the Independent's chief album critic Helen Brown and film critic Leila Latif to discuss why Wicked has been so successful and what it tell us about female friendships today.
Presenter: Anita Rani
Producer: Corinna Jones
