Bookshelfie: Women’s Prize Podcast Women’s Prize Podcast/ Bird Lime Media

Former swimmer and entrepreneur Rebecca Achieng Ajulu-Bushell discusses her career, details her love of the water, and lays bare the pressures within her former swimming world.

Rebecca Achieng Ajulu-Bushell is a former elite athlete with a career spanning over 10 years, swimming for both Great Britain and Kenya. She is a former world number one and British champion, winning the 50m and 100m breaststroke in 2010.  She was the first Black woman to swim for the Great Britain team. 

In 2023, she was honoured in Forbes 30 Under 30 for her work in Social Impact. Rebecca is also the CEO of the 10,000 Interns Foundation, a non-profit that champions underrepresented talent by creating paid internship opportunities. Prior to this, she founded and ran NKG, a creative strategy and media agency focused on social change projects. 

Her first book These Heavy Black Bones is out in June.

Rebecca’s book choices are:
** Tar Baby by Toni Morrison
** Half of a Yellow Sun by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
** Educated by Tara Westover
** In The Wake by Christina Sharpe
** Animal by Lisa Taddeo

Vick Hope, multi-award winning TV and BBC Radio 1 presenter, author and journalist, is the host of season seven of the Women’s Prize for Fiction Podcast. Every week, Vick will be joined by another inspirational woman to discuss the work of incredible female authors. The Women’s Prize is one of the most prestigious literary awards in the world, and they continue to champion the very best books written by women.


Don’t want to miss the rest of season seven? Listen and subscribe now!


This podcast is sponsored by Baileys and produced by Bird Lime Media.

Victoria Prew is an entrepreneur and CEO of fashion rental company HURR, in this episode she explains how she saw a gap in the market for rented luxury fashion and leaned in.

Victoria Prew is the CEO and co-founder of HURR Collective, the global home for circular fashion, a community of first-movers, committed to environmental responsibility, setting the tone for the next generation to follow.

From idea-in-head to multi-million pound fashion rental business, Victoria has trailblazed the way for young female entrepreneurs to build their businesses. Her accolades for entrepreneurship include Forbes 30 Under 30, and HURR ranks as one of the world’s 50 Top Startups, she’s also been featured in press around the world for her innovative business. Victoria is on a mission to remedy the bad habits of the fashion industry for a greener future without sacrificing quality and style. 

Victoria’s book choices are:
** The Tale of Jemima Puddle-Duck by Beatrix Potter
** Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus
** Rodham by Curtis Sittenfeld
** The Long Game by Dorie Clark
** Lean In by Sheryl Sandberg

Vick Hope, multi-award winning TV and BBC Radio 1 presenter, author and journalist, is the host of season seven of the Women’s Prize for Fiction Podcast. Every week, Vick will be joined by another inspirational woman to discuss the work of incredible female authors. The Women’s Prize is one of the most prestigious literary awards in the world, and they continue to champion the very best books written by women.


Don’t want to miss the rest of season seven? Listen and subscribe now!


This podcast is sponsored by Baileys and produced by Bird Lime Media.

Entrepreneur and pioneering businesswoman Edwina Dunn OBE discusses the need for role models, the perils of seeking perfection and the importance of female spending.

Edwina leads The Female Lead, which is an active community of 8 million women, underpinned by an educational foundation, and focused on celebrating the achievements and diversity of women who shape our world. Using data to understand the challenges women face, Edwina works with businesses and the government to create new, mutually beneficial models and policies for the workplace. She has most recently presented  her manifesto in When She’s In the Room: How Empowering Women Empowers the World, a data-based guide that presents a road map for us all to the world we want to see and one that will make the world work better for women and men.

Edwina’s book choices are:
** The Magic Faraway Tree by Enid Blyton
** The Most Fun We Ever Had by Claire Lombardo
** Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout
** The Marriage Portrait by Maggie O’Farrell
** Burntcoat by Sarah Hall

Vick Hope, multi-award winning TV and BBC Radio 1 presenter, author and journalist, is the host of season seven of the Women’s Prize for Fiction Podcast. Every week, Vick will be joined by another inspirational woman to discuss the work of incredible female authors. The Women’s Prize is one of the most prestigious literary awards in the world, and they continue to champion the very best books written by women.


Don’t want to miss the rest of season seven? Listen and subscribe now!


This podcast is sponsored by Baileys and produced by Bird Lime Media.

Ann Akinjirin is an actress, writer, director and producer working across screen and stage and is currently starring in the BBC’s new adaptation of Enid Blyton’s The Famous Five. 

Ann is best known for her recurring roles in BBC 1 /HBO’s The Strike Series playing ‘DS Vanessa Ekwensi’ and ‘Dee’ in BBC Two’s Trigonometry. More recently, Ann played 'Bobbi' in Marvel Studios series Moon Knight on Disney+. 

Ann set up her own theatre company Harts in 2010, of which she was Artistic Director until 2020. Ann is extremely passionate about creative accessibility within theatre and has worked as movement director for Deafinitely Theatre as well as with National Youth Theatre as a writer and director, creating shows for audiences inclusive of deaf and visually impaired members. 

Ann’s book choices are:
** Secrets by Francine Pascal
** All About Love by bell hooks
** A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara
** Crying in H Mart by Michelle Zauner
** Cleopatra and Frankenstein by Coco Mellors

Vick Hope, multi-award winning TV and BBC Radio 1 presenter, author and journalist, is the host of season seven of the Women’s Prize for Fiction Podcast. Every week, Vick will be joined by another inspirational woman to discuss the work of incredible female authors. The Women’s Prize is one of the most prestigious literary awards in the world, and they continue to champion the very best books written by women.


Don’t want to miss the rest of season seven? Listen and subscribe now!


This podcast is sponsored by Baileys and produced by Bird Lime Media.

Award-winning British-Turkish novelist and 2022 Women’s Prize for Fiction shortlisted author Elif Shafak reveals the five books that have shaped her life and career.

Best-selling food writer, stylist, and author, Anna Jones explains how Nigella Lawson’s How to Be a Domestic Goddess gave her the confidence to just be herself in the kitchen.