Beyond Today

The third Monday in January is known as Blue Monday as a combination of money worries and winter weather push us to a collective low. Seventy per cent of the country also think things are getting worse, according to a poll from Ipsos Mori. But that’s not actually the case - in many circumstances life has improved. Rachel Schraer from BBC Reality Check and Joey D’Urso, a producer in the BBC political unit, tell us there are many reasons to be cheerful. They should know. They’ve seen the stats.

Producers: Philly Beaumont and Lucy Hancock.

Editor: John Shields.

Jon Ronson’s new podcast ‘The Last Days of August’ explores the reasons behind the death of the famous porn performer August Ames, who killed herself in 2017. It is a sad story that casts light on an industry of outsiders who support each other under difficult circumstances. We also spoke to Jon about how the internet transformed pornography and what we can all learn from that. He also tells us why porn films have such weird titles and how people react to his distinctive voice.

Producer: Duncan Barber

Editor: John Shields

Mixed by Nicolas Raufast

Gina Martin is a 27-year-old woman with a full time job. Two years ago a stranger at a festival took a photo up her skirt without her permission. After she discovered there was no law preventing it, she found herself in Parliament, campaigning for politicians change it. This week the upskirting law was officially passed. Gina tells us what it took to win.

The UN say there are as many people with intersex traits in the world as people with red hair. All over the world, children with intersex traits are being operated on to be sex assigned at birth. The BBC’s gender and identity correspondent Megha Mohan has met the people at the forefront of the intersex identity debate including Rosie, a six year-old with ambiguous genitalia, and those leading the way in Kenya. She tells us about sex, its misunderstood relationship with gender and asks who should be making those big decisions about who we are.

Producer: Lucy Hancock.

As MPs prepare to vote on the Prime Minister’s Brexit plan, we get the view from outside parliament. We speak to protesters on both sides who think that the current situation is getting embarrassing and shows the country in a bad light. We also hear from bemused tourists and speak to the BBC World Service’s Rob Watson on how he is reporting the country’s “biggest political crisis since World War Two”.

Producers: Philly Beaumont and Duncan Barber.

Editor: John Shields.

Mixed by Nico Raufast.

Andy Murray’s defeat at the Australian Open today might have been his last ever match as a professional tennis player. Even with a very dodgy hip, he showed the fight and determination characteristic of his career to make it a five set thriller. He’s clearly one of Britain’s greatest sports stars, but there’s a lot we can learn from him irrespective of our talent with a tennis racquet. Simon Mundie from the Don’t Tell me the Score podcast explains how we can all be more like Andy Murray.

Producers: Harriet Noble and Georgia Coan

Nish Kumar has made his career trying to make us laugh about the news. He talks to Matthew Price about what it’s like to be a Remainer on the tour and how he enraged some Leave voters into unplugging his mic.

Mixed by Nicolas Raufast.

The announcement by Jaguar Land Rover that it is cutting 4,500 job has been blamed on falling car sales in China, uncertainty about Brexit and the future of diesel. But what’s the longer term picture when it comes to the car industry? Rapid improvements in electric battery and self-driving technology mean that cars will change enormously in the coming years according to experts. Plus the public floatation of Uber this year is raising big questions about who controls transport in the future and whether we’ll even want to own our own cars. The BBC’s Justin Rowlatt tells us how it could happen.

Mixed by Nicolas Raufast

Across the country networks of so-called paedophile hunters are working to catch child sex offenders. They pose as boys and girls online, arranging to meet with men and then circulating videos of these “stings” online. Around 150 charges have been brought because of their work, but the naming and shaming extends to innocent families too. Andy Smythe and Catrin Nye from the Victoria Derbyshire Programme tell us the story of a paedophile hunter and the daughter of a man who was caught.

Producers: Heidi Pett and Harriet Noble

Now when talk about R Kelly, Harvey Weinstein, Kevin Spacey we always focus on victims and alleged abusers… but what about all the people who may have stood by and allowed an abuse of power, something they knew was wrong, to happen? Are we all guilty, and when we do witness abuse, what can we do to stop it?

Producers: Philly Beaumont and Lucy Hancock.