Jenni Murray says Woman’s Hour has ‘lost its way’ and is ‘rather dull’

Dame Jenni Murray has said BBC Radio 4’s Woman’s Hour, which she hosted for 33 years, has become a “rather dull programme” and has “lost its way”.

The 75-year-old broadcaster became the longest-serving host in the BBC Radio 4 programme’s history before her exit in 2020, having first appeared on the show in 1987.

Speaking to Saga Magazine, Dame Jenni who hosts the Experience Is Everything podcast, was asked for an “honest assessment” of Woman’s Hour, and said: “Well, I could tell you, if I was a listener. I don’t make an effort to actually be a listener.

“I don’t think it’s sharp enough. It doesn’t have the intellect. It doesn’t have the fun. I think it’s a rather dull programme these days. It has lost its way.”

Woman’s Hour is currently presented by Nuala McGovern and Anita Rani.

Dame Jenni left the show in October 2020, and said at the time that bosses had said she was not allowed to chair any discussion on transgender rights due to her opinions.

She told Saga: “I’d been a completely trustworthy, impartial presenter for decades.

“I don’t think I’ve ever been so angry about anything.”

In 2020, Dame Jenni wrote in the Daily Mail that she had stepped down because she wanted to be “free of the leash” that had caused her to be “cancelled”, and added that BBC bosses also barred her from covering the 2019 election due to her opinions on Brexit.

She said “younger, less experienced presenters” were earning “twice or even three times” as much as her during her time at the broadcaster, hitting out against the corporation’s pay structure.

A BBC spokeswoman said at the time: “We wish Jenni well in her new career as a columnist but the public will understand the importance of impartiality whilst working at the BBC.”

Asked about regrets, Dame Jenni added: “Funnily enough, I haven’t regretted it at all. I thought, I’ll find somewhere I can go and openly express my views.”

During her tenure at the BBC, Dame Jenni interviewed high-profile figures such as Bette Davis, Margaret Thatcher, Monica Lewinsky, Hillary Clinton, Kate McCann, Dame Judi Dench, Saoirse Ronan and Joan Baez, who sang Diamonds And Rust in the studio for her.

Dame Jenni said it is time for a woman to take the top job at the BBC, after the announcement last month that director-general Tim Davie will be leaving.

She said: “One hundred years and it has never been a woman. Of course it needs to be now.

“In fact, I’ve had quite a few emails from people who read my columns suggesting I apply for it myself, to which I say no way would I take on that job. It’s huge. You’re responsible for so many people.”

Dame Jenni joined BBC Newsnight in 1983, before moving to Radio 4 as a presenter on the Today programme.

She became the regular presenter of Woman’s Hour in 1987 and was made a dame in 2011 in recognition of her contribution to broadcasting.

The BBC has been contacted for comment.

The full interview is available in Saga Magazine’s January issue.