Fatherhood, Laura Mulvey, Women's football stadiums

Nov 12, 2025

Guest

Darren Harriott

Laura Mulvey, a pioneering feminist film theorist, reflects on her landmark concept of the 'male gaze' as she receives a BFI Fellowship. Natalie Queiroz shares her harrowing survival story after being attacked while pregnant and reacts to the distressing news of her attacker's prison transfer approval. Suzy Wrack discusses new guidelines for women's football stadiums, emphasizing fan and player needs. Comedian Darren Harriott explores the complexities of fatherhood absence, questioning what it means to be a good dad through humor and personal anecdotes.

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ANECDOTE

Surviving A Brutal Pregnancy Attack

Natalie Queiroz survived a 2016 attack where she was stabbed 24 times while eight months pregnant and was airlifted to a major trauma centre.
She and her unborn child both survived, but the physical rescue was described as medically inexplicable.

ADVICE

Inform Survivors About Prison Transfers

Refuge urges transparency and survivor communication about prisoner moves and parole-related decisions.
They recommend rigorous, specialist risk assessments that consider domestic abuse dynamics, not just in-prison behaviour.

ADVICE

Limit Open-Prison Transfers Nearer Parole

Natalie proposes limiting transfers of domestic abuse offenders to open prisons to within 12 months of parole eligibility.
She argues this balances rehabilitation needs with victims' safety and allows victim reports to inform decisions.

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As part of the Radio 4 Fatherhood season, Clare McDonnell and her guests discuss the role of fatherhood in men’s lives. Darren Harriott is a 37-year-old comedian and presenter of Father Figuring. Darren has now lived longer than his dad, who took his own life while in prison, and he is questioning would he be a good dad? What even makes a good dad? They are joined by Dr Robin Hadley who has written a book looking at why men, like himself, do not become fathers.

In 2016 Natalie Queiroz was stabbed 24 times by her partner while she was eight months pregnant. He is currently nine years into an 18 year sentence for attempted murder and attempted child destruction. Natalie and her unborn daughter nearly died. Earlier this year she learned that changes by the Ministry of Justice meant that her attacker could be transferred to an open prison many years earlier than she had expected. She's been campaigning against this but has recently learned his application for a transfer has been approved. Clare hears from Natalie and Ellie Butt from Refuge.

Laura Mulvey, filmmaker and pioneering feminist theorist, first coined the term ‘the male gaze’. The British Film Institute’s Fellowship is a pretty starry list – Bette Davis, Martin Scorsese, Judi Dench, Tilda Swinton, Christopher Nolan, Tom Cruise....to name a few and now Laura has been added to that prestigious list.

Tomorrow Women’s Super League Football will officially unveil Design Guidelines for the Delivery of Elite Women’s Stadiums in England – a world first framework supporting clubs, local authorities, and architects in building or upgrading venues specifically for their women’s teams. They say the rapid growth of the women’s game has demonstrated that football venues, historically built and designed for male players and fans, need to be better equipped to cater towards the specific needs of female athletes and supporters. Hannah Buckley, Head of Infrastructure, Safety and Sustainability for WSL football and Suzy Wrack, women’s football correspondent for the Guardian discuss.

Presenter: Clare McDonnell Producer: Kirsty Starkey