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Woman's Hour: Actor Bukky Bakray, Iranian schoolgirls and poisoning, Singer Karen Carpenter reframed, TikTok school protests

Actor Bukky Bakray, Iranian schoolgirls and poisoning, Singer Karen Carpenter reframed, TikTok school protests

BBC Radio 4 - Woman's Hour, Actor Bukky Bakray, Iranian schoolgirls and poisoning, Singer Karen Carpenter reframed, TikTok school protests

Discovered by a film director at school when she was only 15 - actor Bukky Bakray.

Actor Bukky Bakray, who at 19 became the youngest Bafta Rising Star Award recipient makes her stage debut in London.

Actor, Bukky Bakray, who at 19, became the youngest BAFTA Rising Star Award recipient as well as one of the youngest 'Best Actress in a Leading Role' nominees for her critically acclaimed performance in the film Rocks.  Bukky makes her stage debut in the coming of age play Sleepova in which four Black teenage friends explore sexuality, identity, relationships and family as they head towards adulthood while struggling to maintain their friendships. Bukky joins Anita in the studio to talk about her career and the power of female friendship.

Dozens of schoolgirls in Iran have been admitted to hospital this week after reportedly being poisoned by gas whilst at school. Over 1,000 girls have been affected by this since November and many Iranians suspect the poisonings are a deliberate attempt to force girls’ schools to close. The government hasn’t said whether it believes they are premeditated. We hear from Faranak Amidi, BBC Near East Women's Affairs correspondent and Azadeh Pourzand, Human Rights Researcher at SOAS. 

So-called 'TikTok protests' have continued to take place in Britain's schools as hundreds of pupils rebelled against teachers over new rules with some clips attracting millions of views.   Although the specific grievances vary from school-to-school, the social media trend appears to be spreading, with children in Southampton, Blackpool and Essex staging demonstrations in the last few days that were posted on the platform.  Protests over a ban on school skirts at an Oxfordshire school led to police being called and the school being forced to temporarily close. That school has now U-turned on its uniform policy. So where is the balance between standing up for your rights and breaking school rules? Can the two ever be compatible or always at odds.  And how can girls and young women in particular learn to find their voice and be listened to? Technology and innovation journalist and author, Becca Caddy, Sangeeta Pillai- the founder of Soul Soutras, and activist, and founder of Love Your Period, Molly Fenton discuss.

It has been 40 years since Karen Carpenter died. The singer and drummer was one half of soft-rock group The Carpenters, whose hit songs became the backdrop to the 1970s. Her death at 32 years of age from anorexia nervosa shocked the world. But did her early death overshadow her musical legacy? Lucy O’Brien has looked back over Karen’s life to write a biography, Lead Sister: The Story of Karen Carpenter.



Presenter: Anita Rani
Producer: Kirsty Starkey

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Actor Bukky Bakray, Iranian schoolgirls and poisoning, Singer Karen Carpenter reframed, TikTok school protests

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