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Last broadcast on Tue, 17 May 2011, 10:00 on BBC Radio 4.
Synopsis
Presented by Jane Garvey.
On today's Woman's Hour we ask whether talking to the Taliban is a betrayal of Afghanistan's women? Jane's guests are Orzala Ashraf, who organised secret literacy and health programmes for Afghan women and girls whilst the Taliban were in power, and Meena Baktash.
Jane discusses the future of work with Lynda Gratton and asks what will a job involve in 2025?
Jane Harris, author of the acclaimed The Observations, which was short-listed for the Orange Prize in 2007, talks about her second novel: Gillespie and I. It is largely set in the late 19th century, and involves anonymous letters, sleazy journalism and a notorious court case. We ask Jane Harris why she returned to the setting of late 19th Century Glasgow - and to writing about madness.
Anne Wareham claims she hates gardening. She says it's "repetitive and mind-blowingly boring, just like housework". She doesn't dig, turn her compost heap, remove leaves or anything else from her borders - she lets it rot where it grew. But garden she does and on a scale few of us could contemplate - "four acres of garden . practically single handed". And she gardens, she claims, entirely for the end result - "the point is the product" - the garden itself. She has just published a book, The Bad Tempered Gardener, and she and fellow gardener and writer, Lia Leendertz join Jane Garvey in the studio to discuss the challenges, the joys, and most importantly, the point of gardens and gardening today.
Producer: Vibeke Venema.
Talking to the Taliban
This summer, US forces begin to withdraw from Afghanistan but how safe will the country be by the time they have all gone in 2014? In an attempt to bring peace to Afghanistan, President Karzai has been trying to engage the Taliban in talks but will this be a betrayal of Afghanistan’s women? Orzala Ashraf organised secret literacy and health programmes for Afghan women and girls whilst the Taliban were in power and she witnessed first hand the cruelty that women suffered at their hands. She believes that the Taliban should not be part of peace negotiations. She’s joined on the
programme by World Service journalist Meena Baktash - who was born and brought up in Afghanistan. They discuss whether Afghan women are being sidelined in an effort to bring peace to their troubled country.
The Rollercoaster of Life in Kabul [documentary by Meena Baktash]
The Future of Work
Lynda Gratton, one of the UK’s top business thinkers the author of The Shift - the future of work is already here. Lynda joins Jane, and Mandy Bromley of Unilever, to discuss the pressures that will change the way we work. What will a job involve in 2025? How will we have to adapt to “future proof” our skills?
Jane Harris
Jane Harris, author of the acclaimed The Observations, which was short-listed for the Orange Prize in 2007, talks about her second novel: Gillespie and I. It is a chilling tale, largely set in the late 19th century, and involving anonymous letters, sleazy journalism and a notorious court case.
Gillespie and I by Jane Harris, published by Faber & Faber ISBN 978-0-571-27516-8.
The Tyranny of Gardening
Anne Wareham claims she hates gardening. She says it’s “repetitive and mind-blowingly boring, just like housework”. She doesn’t dig, turn her compost heap, remove leaves or anything else from the borders – she lets it rot where it grew. But garden she does and on a scale few of us could contemplate – “four acres of garden … practically single handed”. And she gardens, she claims, entirely for the end result –“the point is the product” - the garden itself. She has just published a book, The Bad Tempered Gardener. Anne and fellow gardener and writer, Lia Leendertz, join Jane to discuss the challenges, the joys, and most importantly, the point of gardens and gardening today.
The Bad Tempered Gardener by Anne Wareham, published by Frances Lincoln. ISBN:978-0-7112-3150-4
Chapters
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Chapter 1
Orzala Ashraf & Meena Baktash discuss whether Afghan women are being sidelined in an effort to bring peace to their troubled country.
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Chapter 2
Lynda Gratton, author of The Shift - the future of work, and Mandy Bromley of Unilever, discuss the future of the work in 2025 and how we’ll have to adapt to “future proof” our skills.
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Chapter 3
Jane Harris, author of The Observations, which was short-listed for the Orange Prize in 2007, talks about her second novel: Gillespie and I – a chilling tale, largely set in the late 19th century.
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Chapter 4
Anne Wareham, author of the Bad Tempered Gardener, claims she hates gardening. With gardener & writer, Lia Leendertz, she discusses the challenges, the joys & the point of gardens.
Broadcast
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Tue 17 May 201110:00
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