Though a work of gothic fiction, Maria’s fate was a sad reality for many women in Britain’s Georgian and Victorian eras.

Bloody Brilliant Women by Cathy Newman | Waterstones Bloody Brilliant Women by Cathy Newman | Waterstones

I don’t think I could have picked a more opportune moment to contemplate the battles women of the past fought—and the ones we’re still fighting now! So much loved by the public that when she attended a play, the audience would applaud as she took her seat,” notes Newman. Through her story we’ll explore the reinforcement of ‘women’s work’ as an established idea during the 1960s, and meet the women who were fighting back.

We can’t be in a situation where terms like ‘women’, ‘mother’, ‘girls’ are removed from our discourse,” Villiers added. Though the High Court refused to issue the habeas corpus, the Court of Appeals delivered a decision that was unprecedented for the time, rejecting the notion that a husband should have complete control over his wife. We’ll learn about her changing attitudes towards working women and the way in which all women in politics during her era were compared, favourably or unfavourably, to Thatcher herself. When performing swoops and dives, fuel was prevented from being injected into the engines of the British aircraft, causing the engines to sputter and cut off.

Author Cathy Newman on History’s Forgotten Heroines Author Cathy Newman on History’s Forgotten Heroines

Through the stories of their professional success we’ll learn about the creation and implementation of the Festival of Britain; the ways in which women had to push the boundaries to get ahead; and the ‘fabulous fees’ of flourishing women novelists.By 1920, contraception was readily available, and on March 18, 1921, Stopes opened a Mother’s Clinic in north London, offering family planning advice and cervical caps to all. And developmental biologist Anne McLaren, whose work in genetics paved the way for in vitro fertilisation? As health professionals with years of experience working in women's health across Wales, they’ve joinedBloody Brilliantto share their knowledge and help young people to be period proud! We are given an insight into the lives of women from Queen Victoria (who pointed out men taking credit for women’s achievements, but also vehemently opposed “the mad, wicked folly of women’s rights”) to the suffragists and suffragettes fighting for franchise (the Pankhursts do not come off particularly well), political pioneers and present daytoday’s female advocates of the arts.

Bloody Brilliant Women, with Cathy Newman on Apple Podcasts

Despite being a strong leader, Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher did nothing for the advancement of women. Following the release of the book, we caught up with Cathy to find out about some of her favorite “bloody brilliant women. Her book, Bloody Brilliant Women delves into the colorful histories of lesser-known—but no less outstanding—women who’ve left a lasting impact on the world.While front-line soldiers are credited with the allied victory in World War II, attention must also be given to the thousands of women who supported the war effort. A Welsh Government spokesperson said: “Our intention is always to use inclusive language and not exclude anyone from learning about and discussing these important topics. As the book is UK focused, its exploration of key British institutions is expansive: women were not granted full membership of the University of Cambridge until 1948 (despite Newnham being established in 1871); the first female MP was Sinn Féin’s Constance Markievicz (who, as is customary with Sinn Féin MPs, did not take her seat); Rachel Beer edited both the Observer and the Sunday Times in the late 19th century. Trans men and non binary people often have periods, so the use of gender neutral language makes sense. However, the narrative that women have achieved full equality and that our job is done is frankly ludicrous, so we’ll also explore the new mechanisms for silencing women that have evolved in the modern era.