‘I put some lippy on just for you,’ laughs Anita Rani, beaming at me on Zoom from her east London home. When we speak, it’s just two days since she presented her first Woman’s Hour and she’s still buzzing.
‘Up until the point of doing it, I was so nervous,’ she says. ‘It’s like you’re boarding the mothership. I sat there and my heart rate went through the roof, the news was on, the bleeps happened, the announcer said my name and I had a sip of water, my hand was shaking. Live radio is terrifying.’
And not just any live radio, but a BBC institution. The news that stalwart presenters Jenni Murray and Jane Garvey were departing, to be replaced by Newsnight’s 35-year-old Emma Barnett as main presenter and 43-year-old Countryfile host Anita in the weekend slot, has drawn a slew of headlines. Former BBC presenter Libby Purves noted that older female broadcasters have often seen their careers cut short, while men enjoy long-lasting positions.
Debate about the future of the show continued when Emma made it clear she would be changing things, putting an end to live cooking (‘I don’t want to eat on the microphone. I think it’s horrible,’ she told The Times) and bringing her forensic scrutiny of politicians to the forefront.
So what will Anita’s agenda be? ‘Before Emma and I joined, people said the show was a bit like “social services”, but that to me is a disservice,’ Anita says. ‘So if you want to talk about people’s lives and the issues that matter to them that’s somehow less important than politics? That’s crazy.
‘I’m excited to have a space where I can just indulge everything. So yes, politics, but for me, it’s about how politics affects our everyday lives. I’m interested in hearing from real people. I want to do big human-interest stories, women’s health, wellness and absolutely food. Fashion too, because fashion is political and I hate that it’s always put in a corner as something frivolous that women do. If we take football seriously, then we should be taking fashion seriously.’
One of the most important subjects on her mind, though? Race. ‘Race is a conversation that the whole of the country should be having: who are we and how do we identify as British?’ explains Anita, who grew up in Bradford, West Yorkshire, and has Punjabi Indian heritage. ‘I want to get people on who feel like outsiders and create a safe space for those who feel they aren’t heard elsewhere. I’m someone who has felt like quite an outsider, historically. Growing up, I didn’t feel like there was a space where my story was being told on the radio or television. It’s really important for me that we hear from people who fall between the gaps – Woman’s Hour is for everybody.’
Anita admits she’s finding the current national lockdown difficult. ‘It’s winter, the weather is horrendous, the days are dark and I’m struggling. I’m desperate to see my friends.’ Luckily, being trapped in the house with her husband Bhupi, a tech exec, hasn’t been tough on her marriage (‘Thankfully, I like him,’ she jokes) – she cites working in separate rooms for that. ‘On a personal level, what’s got me through is remembering how grateful I am for the life I have,’ she adds.
Anita’s new job will be a welcome break from the monotony of lockdown. She credits the ‘incredible team of women’ behind the show for putting her at ease for her debut; a power outfit helped too. ‘Because we’re living in these strange times, I feel like I want to dress up every week. I wore a Mother of Pearl dress, changed my shoes about three times before I went and put on a red lippy. I always feel quite empowered in a bold lip, and make-up generally.’
Given her 20-year-long career in broadcasting, it would surprise some to learn Anita could feel so nervous (not that listeners would have been able to tell). Does she, like so many women, suffer from imposter syndrome? ‘Absolutely I feel imposter syndrome, which is crazy because I have so much experience and I’ve earned my right to be in that space,’ she says. ‘But for a long time, Radio 4 and Woman’s Hour were spaces I didn’t know whether I belonged in – as an Asian woman from Yorkshire I thought, “Is this for me?” But now I’m here I’m like, “Yes, this is for me, I can own this space.”’
Anita Rani presents Radio 4’s ‘Woman’s Hour’ on Fridays and Saturdays