Activist, broadcaster, author and founder of Mother Pukka, Anna Whitehouse delves into the underbelly of the internet and the fight for flexible working. Anna’s campaign, Flex Appeal has been quoted in parliament, featured on national TV and seen her lead lycra-clad flash mobs around UK town centres. Anna is also a columnist for Grazia, is co-presenter of the Dirty Mother Pukka Podcast, hosts her own Sunday night radio show on Heart FM and - with her husband - has co-authored two Sunday times bestselling books: Parenting the Shit Out of Life and Where's My Happy Ending? Anna’s debut novel, Underbelly, is out now. Anna’s book choices are:  ** The Adventurous Four: Shipwrecked by Enid Blyton ** Sorrow and Bliss by Meg Mason ** My Thoughts Exactly by Lily Allen ** Three Women by Lisa Taddeo ** My Sister the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite Vick Hope, multi-award winning TV and BBC Radio 1 presenter, author and journalist, is the host of season five of the Women’s Prize for Fiction Podcast. Every week, Vick will be joined by another inspirational woman to discuss the work of incredible female authors. The Women’s Prize is one of the most prestigious literary awards in the world, and they continue to champion the very best books written by women. Don’t want to miss the rest of Season Five? Listen and subscribe now! This podcast is sponsored by Baileys and produced by Bird Lime Media.

For another very special bookshelfie episode, Noor Murad chats to Vick live from Wilderness Festival. The unbelievably talented Bahraini-British chef discusses the contradictions between private and public life in a Muslim country. After gaining work experience in Germany and New York, plus studying at the Culinary Institute of America for three years, Noor Murad eventually met Israeli chef Yottam Ottolenghi while working at the Spitalfields deli. She’s now the Head of the Ottolenghi Test Kitchen, and has co-written two books with Yottam and the Test Kitchen team – Shelf Love and the upcoming Extra Good Things. Noors book choices are:  ** Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi ** Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood ** The Outsiders by S E Hinton ** The Island of Missing Trees by Elif Shafak ** Three Women by Lisa Taddeo Vick Hope, multi-award winning TV and BBC Radio 1 presenter, author and journalist, is the host of season five of the Women’s Prize for Fiction Podcast. Every week, Vick will be joined by another inspirational woman to discuss the work of incredible female authors. The Women’s Prize is one of the most prestigious literary awards in the world, and they continue to champion the very best books written by women. Don’t want to miss the rest of Season Five? Listen and subscribe now! This podcast is sponsored by Baileys and produced by Bird Lime Media.

2020 Women’s Prize winner Maggie O’Farrell joins Vick Hope and reveals what it was like to win the prize over a zoom call and what level of research is really required to write a masterpiece like Hamnet. Maggie O’Farrell won the Women’s Prize for Fiction for her novel Hamnet - a moving exploration of death and grief in Elizabethan England told through the story of William Shakespeare’s real life son Hamnet. Maggie is the author of nine novels, the memoir I Am I Am I Am, and two children’s books, including The Boy Who Lost His Spark, out this October. Her latest novel The Marriage Portrait, set in Renaissance Italy is out now. Maggie’s book choices are:  ** Where the God of Love Hangs Out by Amy Bloom ** Flesh and Blood by Michele Roberts ** The Green Road by Anne Enright ** The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman ** Gawain and the Green Knight by Anonymous Vick Hope, multi-award winning TV and BBC Radio 1 presenter, author and journalist, is the host of season five of the Women’s Prize for Fiction Podcast. Every week, Vick will be joined by another inspirational woman to discuss the work of incredible female authors. The Women’s Prize is one of the most prestigious literary awards in the world, and they continue to champion the very best books written by women. Don’t want to miss the rest of Season Five? Listen and subscribe now! This podcast is sponsored by Baileys and produced by Bird Lime Media.

In a special episode in front of a live audience at Latitude Festival, Vick Hope talks to the hilarious, multi-award winning comedian, writer and actor Aisling Bea about her early career, writing and starring in her much loved Channel 4 show This Way Up, and becoming the face of loneliness. Armed with the stage name ‘Bea’, a tribute to her late father, Aisling broke away from the family tradition of working with horses to pursue a career in performing. After winning awards at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in 2012 and the Edinburgh Comedy Awards in 2013, she gained exposure as a comedian and began making regular appearances on panel shows  such as QI and 8 Out of 10 Cats. She has since gained international acclaim as the creator and star of hit comedy-drama This Way Up. Aisling’s book choices are:  ** Animal by Sara Pascoe ** Why I’m No Longer Talking To White People About Race by Reni Eddo-Lodge  ** The Green Road by Anne Enright ** The Audacity by Katharine Ryan ** Sorrow and Bliss by Meg Mason Vick Hope, multi-award winning TV and BBC Radio 1 presenter, author and journalist, is the host of season five of the Women’s Prize for Fiction Podcast. Every week, Vick will be joined by an inspirational woman to discuss the work of incredible female authors. The Women’s Prize is one of the most prestigious literary awards in the world, and they continue to champion the very best books written by women. Don’t want to miss the rest of Season Five? Listen and subscribe now! This podcast is sponsored by Baileys and produced by Bird Lime Media.

For this very special episode, Minnie Driver talks to Vick in front of a live audience in Bedford Square Gardens, London. The actor, author and singer opens up about her yearning for freedom and the pieces of herself that were sacrificed for fame. Minnie became known for her lead roles in Good Will Hunting and Circle of Friends. She broke into Hollywood where she performed in some incredible films, like The Governess and Hard Rain, alongside some equally incredible actors. She now has three studio albums, hosts her own podcast (Minnie Questions with Minnie Driver) and has her own production company. You may have also seen her star in Amazon’s adaptation of Cinderella and seen her new and evocative memoir, Managing Expectations, in shops which she has recently published.  Minnie’s book choices are:  ** The House Of The Spirits by Isabel Allende ** Wise Children by Angela Carter  ** The Cost Of Living by Deborah Levy ** Pride And Prejudice by Jane Austen ** The Wallcreeper by Nell Zink Vick Hope, multi-award winning TV and BBC Radio 1 presenter, author and journalist, is the host of season five of the Women’s Prize for Fiction Podcast. Every week, Vick will be joined by another inspirational woman to discuss the work of incredible female authors. The Women’s Prize is one of the most prestigious literary awards in the world, and they continue to champion the very best books written by women.   Don’t want to miss the rest of Season Five? Listen and subscribe now!   This podcast is sponsored by Baileys and produced by Bird Lime Media. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Writer, academic and broadcaster Emma Dabiri talks about identity, ghost stories and why she could make a whole podcast about Toni Morrison's books.  Emma’s first book, an essay collection called Don’t Touch My Hair, explores the way that colonisation, oppression and, ultimately, liberation are all expressed in Black women’s hair – and it gained critical acclaim from just about everyone. Emma’s second book - a Sunday Times bestseller - What White People Can Do Next: From Allyship to Coalition, is a longform essay looking at how support for anti-racism can be translated into meaningful, structural action. Emma’s book choices are:  ** Woman on the edge of time by Marge Piercy ** Quicksand by Nella Larsen  ** Paradise by Toni Morrison ** The Birds & Other Short Stories by Daphne du Maurier ** Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston Vick Hope, multi-award winning TV and BBC Radio 1 presenter, author and journalist, is the host of season five of the Women’s Prize for Fiction Podcast. Every week, Vick will be joined by another inspirational woman to discuss the work of incredible female authors. The Women’s Prize is one of the most prestigious literary awards in the world, and they continue to champion the very best books written by women.   Don’t want to miss the rest of Season Five? Listen and subscribe now!   This podcast is sponsored by Baileys and produced by Bird Lime Media. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Vick Hope speaks to the six brilliant authors who have been shortlisted for the 2022 Prize - Elif Shafak, Lisa Allen-Agostini, Louise Erdrich, Maggie Shipstead, Meg Mason and Ruth Ozeki. The winner of this year’s prize will be announced on June 15th.    The 2022 shortlist:  The Island of Missing Trees by Elif Shafak The Bread the Devil Knead by Lisa Allen-Agostini The Sentence by Louise Erdrich Great Circle by Maggie Shipstead Sorrow and Bliss by Meg Mason The Book of Form and Emptiness by Ruth Ozeki   Vick Hope, multi-award winning TV and BBC Radio 1 presenter, author and journalist, is the host of season five of the Women’s Prize for Fiction Podcast. Every week, Vick will be joined by another inspirational woman to discuss the work of incredible female authors, kicking off with guest Gabby Logan. The Women’s Prize is one of the most prestigious literary awards in the world, and they continue to champion the very best books written by women.   Don’t want to miss the rest of Season Five? Listen and subscribe now!   This podcast is sponsored by Baileys and produced by Bird Lime Media. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Presenter, broadcaster and author Laura Whitmore chats with Vick about their early MTV days, Love Island and why women should take up more space in a room. Best known for presenting shows like I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here! NOW!, Survival of the Fittest and of course, Love Island, she has become a familiar face on our screens. But she’s also a regular voice on her own BBC Radio 5 Live series, The Laura Whitmore Show. She’s an actress, and she’s competed on Strictly and the Great Celebrity Bake-Off! Her self-help book, No One Can Change Your Life Except For You was an instant Sunday Times bestseller, and the paperback is coming out in July. Laura’s book choices are:  ** Animal by Sara Pascoe ** Against Love Poetry by Eavan Boland ** Love Warrior by Glennon Doyle ** Butterfly by Yusra Mardini ** The Girl with the Louding Voice by Abi Daré Vick Hope, multi-award winning TV and BBC Radio 1 presenter, author and journalist, is the host of season five of the Women’s Prize for Fiction Podcast. Every week, Vick will be joined by another inspirational woman to discuss the work of incredible female authors. The Women’s Prize is one of the most prestigious literary awards in the world, and they continue to champion the very best books written by women.   Don’t want to miss the rest of Season Five? Listen and subscribe now!   This podcast is sponsored by Baileys and produced by Bird Lime Media. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Actor, producer and director Adjoa Andoh covers everything from Bridgerton to reincarnation and tells us why she doesn’t care about fame.  Coined ‘the undisputed queen of audio and radio drama’ by Penguin Random House, Adjoa is now better known for her leading role as Lady Danbury in Bridgerton. For 30 years she was a BBC Radio actor, and was a welcome addition to popular TV shows like Doctor Who, Eastenders and Casualty. Her theatre credits are extensive, including Great Expectations and A Streetcar Named Desire, and her film credits include her role as Mandela’s secretary in Invictus. She’s recorded over 150 audiobooks, she is an Associate Artist at the Royal Shakespeare Company, Senior Associate Artist at The Bush Theatre, a Fairtrade Ambassador and runs her own  production company, Swinging the Lens. Adjoa’s book choices are:  ** Just William by Richmal Crompton  ** Green Darkness by Anya Seton ** A Question of Power by Bessie Head ** After Leaving Mr Mackenzie by Jean Rhys ** Beloved by Toni Morrison  Vick Hope, multi-award winning TV and BBC Radio 1 presenter, author and journalist, is the host of season five of the Women’s Prize for Fiction Podcast. Every week, Vick will be joined by another inspirational woman to discuss the work of incredible female authors. The Women’s Prize is one of the most prestigious literary awards in the world, and they continue to champion the very best books written by women.   Don’t want to miss the rest of Season Five? Listen and subscribe now!   This podcast is sponsored by Baileys and produced by Bird Lime Media. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Singer and songwriter Joy Crookes talks about rude awakenings and the feeling of being ‘slapped in the face’ by books. Joy was initially recognised in 2013 for her cover of Hit the Road Jack which she posted on YouTube, gaining over 600,000 views (one of whom was to be her manager). Three years later, she released her debut single, New Manhattan, at just age 17. She went on to release her debut EP, Influence, with Speakerbox and Insanity Records, performing one of the songs on global music platform COLORS. Since then, she’s won two UK Music Video Awards, a Remarkable Women Award and performed at Glastonbury Festival. Her music focuses on themes of mental health, relationships and culture. Joy’s book choices are:  ** All About Love by Bell Hooks ** Salt by Nayyirah Waheed ** Girl Woman Other by Bernardine Evaristo ** To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee ** I Am Malala by Malala Yousafzai Vick Hope, multi-award winning TV and BBC Radio 1 presenter, author and journalist, is the host of season five of the Women’s Prize for Fiction Podcast. Every week, Vick will be joined by another inspirational woman to discuss the work of incredible female authors. The Women’s Prize is one of the most prestigious literary awards in the world, and they continue to champion the very best books written by women.   Don’t want to miss the rest of Season Five? Listen and subscribe now!   This podcast is sponsored by Baileys and produced by Bird Lime Media. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.