Stephanie Hirst joins us on the Virgin Radio Pridecast this week!

Virgin Radio

8 Apr 2022, 16:36

This week on the Virgin Radio Pridecast, we’re continuing our celebration of Trans Day of Visibility, which took place at the end of March. Last week, we examined the rise in anti-trans discourse and debate in the UK, and this week, we are going to be looking at the experiences of trans people in their day-to-day lives and careers. Alex is away for this one, so Shivani will be joined by super-sub producer Felix for one week only!

They’ll be hearing again from actor Jake Graf, who chatted to Matt Cain for his Sunday Roast on Virgin Radio Pride about the impact which anti-trans discourse and debate has on the lives of the trans community, as well as their families and loved ones. 

They’ll also be hearing from author Juno Dawson on her experiences of dating as a trans woman: 

‘I was basically selling myself short… And I think I allowed myself to be in relationships with men who were not treating me properly, and actually two things happened: 1. I transitioned, and 2. I went into my thirties and I took everything that I’d learnt from my twenties and applied it to my love life, and so I basically set my standards higher…’

Couple Amanda and Thea also spoke on Virgin Radio Pride about relationships, and Shivani and Felix will be hearing about Amanda’s journey with her own sexuality after Thea came out.

Plus, they’ll hear from footballer Natalie Washington, who heads up the Football Vs. Transphobia campaign, about the process which she had to go through in order to continue playing football:

‘I had to apply directly to the FA centrally for permission to play in the women’s game (and that applies at all levels, from the elite right down to park football) - so I had to apply and then I had to give them permission to speak to my doctor to get a load hormone test results, basically, which then had to come back below a certain level of testosterone over the course of a year… And actually, initially I had to make some changes to my medication to push my testosterone level lower, because the required level is very low…’ 

Finally, Shivani and Felix will be chatting to broadcaster and motivational speaker Stephanie Hirst about her incredible coming out story, her career, and her ‘Believe Achieve’ mindset which has helped her to overcome so much… 

You can listen to the latest episode here. 

The Virgin Radio Pridecast is a weekly look back through the archives of Virgin Radio Pride, our fabulous three-month pop-up radio station which ran last summer. Each week, Alex Milsom and Shivani Dave re-live some of the best moments, as well as attempting to continue the great conversations that Virgin Radio Pride started last summer. There are entertaining guests, jaw-dropping stories, and of course loads of the laugh out loud moments and insightful, important discussions which made Virgin Radio Pride so special…