Naga Munchetty to deliver 2024-25 Alice Bacon Lecture
Journalist and broadcaster, Naga Munchetty, is set to deliver the 2024-25 Alice Bacon Lecture.
Celebrated broadcaster and journalist Naga Munchetty will speak about gendered inequalities in healthcare, medical misogyny, and her fight to have her health taken seriously.
Drawing on examples from her upcoming book, It's Probably Nothing: Critical Conversations on the Women's Health Crisis, she will also speak about the personal significance of this topic to her following her own experiences with the contraceptive coil and the gynaecological condition, adenomyosis.
The Alice Bacon lecture series hosted by the Centre for Democratic Politics at the University of Leeds celebrates the achievements of pioneering women and is named for the Leeds Labour MP who led a crusade to improve the education of working-class girls and boys.
Speaking ahead of the lecture which takes place on 6 February 2025, Naga said: “Alongside thousands of other women, I have experienced first-hand the inequalities in our healthcare system. These disparities are not merely statistics; they represent real lives affected daily.
I am delighted to speak at this esteemed lecture series, to share my story, and hopefully empower other women to self-advocate for the care they are all too often denied.
Naga, who is known nationwide for her work as a journalist and broadcaster, has spoken previously on the topic at the UK Commons Women's and Equalities Commission, where she described the “woefully misunderstood, ignorance, stigma and shame” surrounding women’s health.
Her career as a journalist began at the Evening Standard and The Observer newspapers, and Naga soon moved into reporting for Reuters Financial Television. Her love of financial matters, news and television led her to CNBC Europe where she became an Executive Producer.
She has also worked as a Producer and Reporter for Channel 4 News, before becoming an anchor for Bloomberg Television and then a regular presenter on BBC Breakfast. In addition to her prolific television work, Naga is a familiar voice on radio, fronting her own show on BBC Radio 5 Live.
She is now using her platform as a journalist to advocate for a change in the way that women’s health is treated.
Trailblazing women
Alice Bacon was elected to represent Leeds North East in 1945 and served her city constituents continuously until her retirement a quarter of a century later, when she took up a seat in the House of Lords as Baroness Bacon.
Leeds did not return another woman to the Commons until the election in 2010 of Leeds West and Pudsey MP, and now Chancellor of the Exchequer, the Rt Hon Rachel Reeves. Reeves is also the biographer of Baroness Bacon.
Ms Reeves partnered with the University’s School of Politics and International Studies to establish the lectures in the name of her trailblazing forebear, with the aim of celebrating the achievements of successful women – locally and nationally.
“I am thrilled to announce Naga Munchetty as our speaker for this year’s Alice Bacon Lecture,” she said.
“As a distinguished broadcaster, she has been a relentless advocate for women. Her efforts to challenge the limitations imposed on women's healthcare and to make information on self-advocacy more accessible to the broader public resonates deeply with the pioneering spirit of Alice Bacon.
Alice Bacon shattered political barriers for women, dedicating herself to enhancing opportunities for the people she served. Naga's commitment to her cause makes her a fitting speaker for this lecture, continuing the legacy of empowerment and progress.
The Alice Bacon Lecture Series
The inaugural lecture was given in 2018 by Harriet Harman – the House of Commons’ longest continuously serving female MP – followed in 2019 by Baroness Hale of Richmond, who was the first female President of the Supreme Court and the country’s most senior judge until her retirement from the role in December that year.
After a break in 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the series returned in 2021 with Baroness Doreen Lawrence, who spoke about women in the public eye and her personal journey.
In 2022, the lecture was given by celebrated classicist, Professor Mary Beard, who spoke on women in power.
Dame Sharon White, the Chair of the John Lewis Partnership, delivered the lecture in 2023 on the topic of female leadership.
Booking
The Alice Bacon Lecture will be held in the University’s Great Hall from 6:30pm to 7:30pm on 6 February 2025. The event is free of charge.
