Jane Garvey hosts final Woman’s Hour show after 13 years

‘It’s been a huge privilege to be part of it,' she said on 31 December

(Rex Features)

Jane Garvey presented her final BBC Radio 4 Woman’s Hour programme on Thursday morning, after 13 years as a host.

Garvey was interviewed by How To Fail author Elizabeth Day about her career and time on the programme, which runs weekdays from Monday to Friday.

The 56-year-old, who announced she was leaving the show in early September this year, co-hosted alongside Jenni Murray, who also stepped down from her role earlier in 2020.

"It is the last time I'll ever be in this room with that cooker to do Woman's Hour," Garvey said. "Woman's Hour is a very special programme. It's been a huge privilege to be a part of it." 

Her last programme featured stories of birth, death, long Covid (when people experience symptoms of coronavirus for months) and the "everyday grind of ordinary life".

Garvey, who will host her own interview series, also on Radio 4, in 2021, said despite moving on she will "forever be known as a former presenter of Woman's Hour".

"That, as far as I'm concerned is absolutely fine, I'll settle with that," she said. And added that she is "leaving just as some of you [listeners] are getting used to me". 

When she announced she was leaving, Garvey said “there’s no other job like it” and gave the example of interviewing David Cameron and Mary J Blige in the same day. 

She later told the Fortunately...with Fi and Jane podcast that she was leaving because she felt “depleted” discussing the same issues.

She said: “It would be brilliant to have fresh indignation on the programme...my indignation bank was somewhat depleted...it is frustrating.”

“A lot of things I was talking about have never personally, thank God, impacted on me or my nearest and dearest - and I am talking about hideous sexual violence and all those terrible things that you are obliged as a presenter on Woman’s Hour to visit quite regularly.”

Former Radio 5 Live presenter Emma Barnett will now be hosting Woman’s Hour. The show has been on air for 74 years.