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Lena Dunham

Lena Dunham, the writer, director and star of acclaimed television series Girls, talks to Jenni about her revolutionary attitude to female nudity and her revealing new memoir.

Lena Dunham, the writer, director and star of acclaimed television series Girls, joins Jenni to discuss her extraordinary career and her no-holds-barred new memoir Not That Kind of Girl: A Young Woman Tells You What She's Learned. Covering topics from sex to psychiatry, the book adopts the same unflinching approach to young womanhood depicted in Girls and Lena will talk to Jenni about her take on modern feminism. Lena stays with us to discuss the power of what we wear with blogger Susie Bubble; why the issue of consent is still so problematic on university campuses; and speaks to Ruby Tandoh about whether the internet is actually having a positive effect on body image for young women and girls.

Presenter: Jenni Murray
Producer: Laura Northedge.

Available now

58 minutes

Last on

Wed 29 Oct 2014 10:00

Chapters

  • Lena Dunham

    The writer, director and star of the critically acclaimed series Girls talks to Jenni.

    Duration: 11:09

  • Modern power dressing

    The Design Museum's Donna Loveday, blogger Susie Lau and Lena Dunham talk fashion.

    Duration: 10:03

  • Empowerment through the web

    Celebrity baker Ruby Tandoh and Lena Dunham on young women getting heard online.

    Duration: 07:33

  • Sexual consent

    Susuana Antubam, Joan Smith and Lena Dunham talk sex, university and consent.

    Duration: 09:39

Lena Dunham

Lena Dunham writes, directs and stars in critically acclaimed series Girls, which follows a group of 20-something friends through the often less-than-glamorous landscape of hipster New York.Β  Dealing with tough subjects like unemployment, abortion and substance abuse, last year the comedy won a Golden Globe for Lena, and she secured a multi-million dollar deal for her memoirs, Not That Kind of Girl: A Young Woman Tells You What She’s β€œLearned”.Β  The book is full of frank and sometimes painful descriptions of her childhood, teens and 20s, and 28-year-old Lena joins Jenni to discuss her extraordinary life.

Modern power dressing: how we use clothes to influence and convey status

Once associated with sharp suits and spike heels, with the myriad of choice we have today, power dressing has evolved.Β As the exhibition "" opens in London, we take a look at how we use clothes - what messages of status, confidence and control do we send out by what we choose to wear? Jenni is joined by the exhibition's co-curator Donna Loveday, Susie Lau of blog Stylebubble and Lena Dunham.

Empowerment through the Web

Empowerment through the Web

Last year’s Great British Bake Off finalist Ruby Tandoh was subjected to online trolling by people who accused her of being manipulative, flirting her way to the top and comments by other chefs who said she was suspiciously thin to be a real baker. But she retaliated and wrote about the Twitter abuse. In an upcoming Radio 4 documentary,Β Ruby argues that despite the darker side of the web, we are in fact witnessing a hugely exciting and revolutionary moment in which young women are clawing back control of their self image to an unprecedented degree and using the internet to make their voices heard. She joins Jenni to talk about the criticism she faced in the press and social media, young women’s empowerment and her take on body image in Lena Dunham’s β€˜Girls’.

Ruby’s documentary, "", will be broadcast on Radio 4 on 15 November 2014.

Sexual consent

In Lena Dunham’s memoir, she talks about a sexual experience at university and in hindsight questions whether it was consensual. Here in the UK, the National Union of Students is offering at universities across the country. But why are they necessary? How do they work? And how have attitudes changed over the decades? Jenni speaks to Lena, NUS women’s officer Susuana Antubam, and feminist writer .

Credits

Role Contributor
Presenter Jenni Murray
Interviewed Guest Lena Dunham
Interviewed Guest Susie Lau
Interviewed Guest Donna Loveday
Interviewed Guest Ruby Tandoh
Interviewed Guest Joan Smith
Interviewed Guest Susuana Antubam
Producer Laura Northedge

Broadcast

  • Wed 29 Oct 2014 10:00

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