About the Boys

Original version

BBC Radio 4 FM

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Boys

Factual: Life Stories

Exploring the challenges facing boys and young men in Britain today.

BBC Radio 4 LW

Boys: About the Boys: 1. Becoming a Man

Factual: Health & Wellbeing

Factual: Real Life Stories

1. Becoming a Man

BBC Radio 4 - Boys, About the Boys, 1. Becoming a Man

Teenage boys all over the UK talk to Catherine Carr about their ideas of masculinity.

Teenage boys from all over the UK talk to Catherine Carr about being boys, becoming men, their ideas of masculinity and role models.

In this episode, teenage boys all over the UK talk candidly to Catherine Carr about what it is like to be a boy in 2024. They reflect on where they get their ideas about masculinity from, and whether those might be different if they lived elsewhere in the country. They also discuss the importance of role models - if they have them. Catherine also hears from adults making a difference in boys’ lives and finds out how examples of masculinity online can put real pressure on boys thinking about what it means to be a ‘successful man’.

Thanks to 

South Dartmoor Community College 
Dr Martin Robb, Open University
DRMZ Carmarthen Youth Project 
Thomas Lynch from Dad's Rock
Elliott Rae Founder of MusicFootballFatherhood
Cambridge St Giles Cricket Club
Dance United Yorkshire
Movember
Rebecca Asher Author ‘Man Up How Do Boys Become Better Men?’

Producer: Catherine Carr 
Researcher: Jill Achineku
Executive Producer: Marie Helly 

A Whistledown production for BBC Radio 4

Boys: About the Boys

Intelligent speech, the most insightful journalism, the wittiest comedy, the most fascinating features and the most compelling drama and readings anywhere in UK radio.

From porn to friendship, boys from all over the UK talk frankly to Catherine Carr.

Boys from all over the UK talk frankly to Catherine Carr about sex, consent, life online, fun and friendship. They discuss porn, their struggles at school and becoming men.

Catherine Carr has been talking to teenage boys across the UK about their fears, worries and ambitions - a unique generation shaped by Covid lock-downs, #MeToo and a cost-of-living crisis.

They speak with striking candour about everything: their worries about the hierarchy in friendship groups; being tall, being rich, being poor, being accused of sexual assault. They're vulnerable about their feelings and what it means to hear 'all men must die' bandied around at school when you're just 12 years old.

They feel pressure from online influencers to be strong men, but they're also very aware of the complicated issues around sex and consent. They see girls doing better at school - and they are struggling to work out what their role in the adult world will be.

Throughout the series, you'll hear boys revealing some shocking experiences, like watching porn aged eight, or the attractions of joining a gang.

They also share their successes - older ones setting up businesses, while younger ones glory in being able to do 20 press-ups without stopping.

There are also nuggets of wisdom from the adults who spend their lives working with boys and fighting their corner. Teachers, coaches and youth workers talk about how they see boys navigating their way in the world, and experts provide insight and data from research done into boys' changing lives over the last 50 years.

But the mainstage in About the Boys is given to the boys themselves. This is a chance for them to explain what life in 2024 looks like for teens trying to find healthy and happy ways to grow into men.

A Whistledown production for BBC Radio 4

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1. Becoming a Man

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