<description>&lt;p&gt;Have you ever wondered if there were a scandal buried in your family history? Datshiane Navanayagam meets two female genealogists from the US and Ireland to discuss the desire many of us have to dig into our heritage.
Michele Soulli is an American genealogist who made headlines around the world when she tracked down the real "Brenda" from rap superstar Tupac's hit song Brenda's Got A Baby, and reunited her with the child she had put up for adoption.
Hilary McDonagh helps clients who want to trace their family histories or find missing heirs. In Ireland, where famine prompted girls to migrate overseas by themselves, Hilary has unearthed some incredible stories.
Producer: Hannah Sander&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;(Image credit: Hilary McDonagh (L), Michele Soulli (R))&lt;/p&gt;</description>

Two genealogists who help people find long-lost relatives

Have you ever wondered if there were a scandal buried in your family history? Datshiane Navanayagam meets two female genealogists from the US and Ireland to discuss the desire many of us have to dig into our heritage.
Michele Soulli is an American genealogist who made headlines around the world when she tracked down the real "Brenda" from rap superstar Tupac's hit song Brenda's Got A Baby, and reunited her with the child she had put up for adoption.
Hilary McDonagh helps clients who want to trace their family histories or find missing heirs. In Ireland, where famine prompted girls to migrate overseas by themselves, Hilary has unearthed some incredible stories.
Producer: Hannah Sander(Image credit: Hilary McDonagh (L), Michele Soulli (R))

Researching the lives of women in the past

<description>&lt;p&gt;Datshiane Navanayagam brings together two women from the US and Australia to discuss the art of writing a political biography and whether women in politics are placed under more scrutiny than men.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Helene Cooper is a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and New York Times correspondent who fled Liberia with her family following the military coup of 1980. Her biography Madame President documents the life and political career of Ellen Johnson Sirleaf – the first democratically elected female head of state in Africa who served as president of Liberia from 2006 to 2018.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Dr Lekkie Hopkins is a feminist academic who lead the women’s studies programme at Edith Cowan University in Perth for 25 years. Utilising her skills as an archivist and oral historian, she pieced together the story of May Holman - a pioneering Australian politician who became the first female Labour politician to be elected to the Western Australian Parliament in 1925. &lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Produced by Hannah Dean&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;(Image: (L) Lekkie Hopkins, credit Robert van Koesveld. (R) Helene Cooper credit William B. Plowman/NBC via Getty Images.)&lt;/p&gt;</description>

Women who’ve written about two female politicians living continents and decades a part

Datshiane Navanayagam brings together two women from the US and Australia to discuss the art of writing a political biography and whether women in politics are placed under more scrutiny than men.Helene Cooper is a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and New York Times correspondent who fled Liberia with her family following the military coup of 1980. Her biography Madame President documents the life and political career of Ellen Johnson Sirleaf – the first democratically elected female head of state in Africa who served as president of Liberia from 2006 to 2018.Dr Lekkie Hopkins is a feminist academic who lead the women’s studies programme at Edith Cowan University in Perth for 25 years. Utilising her skills as an archivist and oral historian, she pieced together the story of May Holman - a pioneering Australian politician who became the first female Labour politician to be elected to the Western Australian Parliament in 1925. Produced by Hannah Dean(Image: (L) Lekkie Hopkins, credit Robert van Koesveld. (R) Helene Cooper credit William B. Plowman/NBC via Getty Images.)

Telling the story of pioneering women in politics

<description>&lt;p&gt;Datshiane Navanayagam talks to two women who changed paths to design and manufacture their own shoes in their own countries. A former environmental engineer in India and former interior designer from Egypt explain how they found their passion.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Anita Soundar was a chemical engineer before deciding to follow her need for self-expression and footwear design. While working at her father’s small factory in Chenai she studied footwear design from Italy to the Netherlands to China, learning about design to pattern making, hand crafting to mass production. In 2023 she won a global footwear award for natural material vegan footwear and an International Design Award in 2025. Her quirky designs for her company The Disobedience are made from natural materials like cotton, tomato and banana skins, have featured in high-fashion magazines like Elle India.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Reem Hamed is Egyptian. She trained as an architect and set up an interior design company before turning to shoe design and manufacture. Her shoes are handcrafted and embroidered by artisanal Egyptian women. She says “comfort is not just about the way they make your feet feel… Comfort is a state of mind.” She’s wants to ensure the craftswomen that make shoes for her company, Ramla, are valued, working in good conditions and passionate about what they do.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Produced by Jane Thurlow&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;(Image: (L) Reem Hamed, credit Malak Hammouda. (R) Anita Soundar credit Team Disobedience.)&lt;/p&gt;</description>

Women making footwear that platforms the skills and culture of Egypt and India

Datshiane Navanayagam talks to two women who changed paths to design and manufacture their own shoes in their own countries. A former environmental engineer in India and former interior designer from Egypt explain how they found their passion.Anita Soundar was a chemical engineer before deciding to follow her need for self-expression and footwear design. While working at her father’s small factory in Chenai she studied footwear design from Italy to the Netherlands to China, learning about design to pattern making, hand crafting to mass production. In 2023 she won a global footwear award for natural material vegan footwear and an International Design Award in 2025. Her quirky designs for her company The Disobedience are made from natural materials like cotton, tomato and banana skins, have featured in high-fashion magazines like Elle India.Reem Hamed is Egyptian. She trained as an architect and set up an interior design company before turning to shoe design and manufacture. Her shoes are handcrafted and embroidered by artisanal Egyptian women. She says “comfort is not just about the way they make your feet feel… Comfort is a state of mind.” She’s wants to ensure the craftswomen that make shoes for her company, Ramla, are valued, working in good conditions and passionate about what they do.Produced by Jane Thurlow(Image: (L) Reem Hamed, credit Malak Hammouda. (R) Anita Soundar credit Team Disobedience.)

Taking a fresh look at women’s designer shoes

<description>&lt;p&gt;How do video and board games get from idea to reality? Ella Al-Shamahi talks to two women who invent, tweak and perfect the games that so many of us love to play.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Sigurlína Ingvarsdóttir from Iceland has produced some of the world’s biggest video game titles, including FIFA and Star Wars: Battlefront. She now invests in start-up gaming companies as a venture capitalist.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Natalie Podd invented the board game Confident while canoeing up the Amazon, and quit her corporate job in the UK as an actuary in order to work on it and other ideas. She and her husband sell their board games around the world.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Produced by Hannah Sander&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;(Image: (L) Natalie Podd. (R) Sigurlína Ingvarsdóttir.)&lt;/p&gt;</description>

How do video and board games get from idea to reality?

How do video and board games get from idea to reality? Ella Al-Shamahi talks to two women who invent, tweak and perfect the games that so many of us love to play.Sigurlína Ingvarsdóttir from Iceland has produced some of the world’s biggest video game titles, including FIFA and Star Wars: Battlefront. She now invests in start-up gaming companies as a venture capitalist.Natalie Podd invented the board game Confident while canoeing up the Amazon, and quit her corporate job in the UK as an actuary in order to work on it and other ideas. She and her husband sell their board games around the world.Produced by Hannah Sander(Image: (L) Natalie Podd. (R) Sigurlína Ingvarsdóttir.)

The female game-makers

<description>&lt;p&gt;Two women with art galleries in Switzerland, London, Nigeria and the US talk about discovering and promoting new artists, building relationships with art collectors and the importance of supporting women in the art world.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Maria Varnava is Greek Cypriot and grew up in Lagos. She founded Tiwani Contemporary which has galleries in Lagos and London. It champions artists from Africa and its diaspora to raise their profile to collectors and institutions based both in and beyond the continent. Maria’s friend and mentor, the Nigerian curator Bisi Silva, proposed the name Tiwani, which loosely translates as ‘ours’ or ‘it belongs to us’ from the Yoruba language. The name was chosen to show the gallery’s intentions to strive for inclusivity.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Kendra Jayne Patrick, from the US founded her gallery of the same name in Bern, Switzerland in 2022 and works in New York too. She likes to show things that are strange or new and that excite her both visually and intellectually. It’s focused on the 21st century avant-garde, specialising in sculpture, painting, digital, and photography.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Produced by Jane Thurlow&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;(Image: (L) Maria Varnava, credit Pantelis Hadjiminas (P Studio). (R) Kendra Jayne Patrick, credit Ernst Fischer.)&lt;/p&gt;</description>

Two art dealers with galleries in Nigeria and Switzerland on representing women artists

Two women with art galleries in Switzerland, London, Nigeria and the US talk about discovering and promoting new artists, building relationships with art collectors and the importance of supporting women in the art world.Maria Varnava is Greek Cypriot and grew up in Lagos. She founded Tiwani Contemporary which has galleries in Lagos and London. It champions artists from Africa and its diaspora to raise their profile to collectors and institutions based both in and beyond the continent. Maria’s friend and mentor, the Nigerian curator Bisi Silva, proposed the name Tiwani, which loosely translates as ‘ours’ or ‘it belongs to us’ from the Yoruba language. The name was chosen to show the gallery’s intentions to strive for inclusivity.Kendra Jayne Patrick, from the US founded her gallery of the same name in Bern, Switzerland in 2022 and works in New York too. She likes to show things that are strange or new and that excite her both visually and intellectually. It’s focused on the 21st century avant-garde, specialising in sculpture, painting, digital, and photography.Produced by Jane Thurlow(Image: (L) Maria Varnava, credit Pantelis Hadjiminas (P Studio). (R) Kendra Jayne Patrick, credit Ernst Fischer.)

Women changing the art space

Two women from different parts of the world, united by a common passion, experience or expertise, share the stories of their lives.

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