The HIV Podcast

It’s another African Voices episode and this month Sarah and Jess are heading to Zimbabwe, where we’re shining a spotlight on the brilliant work of Zvandiri. Meaning “As I am”, Zvandiri is all about young people living with HIV supporting other young people living with HIV. We look at where it all began, how peer support is changing lives, and hear some of the voices and music behind their work.

Zvandiri: Survive and Thrive- Zvandiri

Sources

Zimbabwe - Wikipedia

HIV/AIDS in Zimbabwe - Wikipedia

Audio Credits

Audio extracts taken from “AIDS Free in Zimbabwe,” “This Is Me – Zvandiri,” “Survive and Thrive – Zvandiri” and “Together Super Power.”

Audio and music featured in this episode are taken from videos and materials published by Zvandiri and the Zvandiri YouTube channel.

AIDS Free in Zimbabwe

This Is Me - Zvandiri

Survive and Thrive- Zvandiri

Together Super Power

African Voices is a year-long series from The HIV Podcast, sharing perspectives from across the African continent.

How to get involved:

We’re inviting people living with or affected by HIV to share short voice notes about what’s happening in their country, what the world needs to understand, and what education they want to share. These voice notes may be played on the podcast as part of the series.

Episodes will be released monthly, on the last Friday of each month

Voice notes may be played on the podcast

Send a voice note (max 5 minutes, no minimum) to: 07727 666791

Each country has a submission deadline, see image for details

If you’re from one of the 12 countries featured, we’d love to hear from you.

How to take part

Please send us a voice note (maximum 5 minutes, no minimum) to:

07727 666791

In your recording, please include:

• Your name (or a preferred name if you would like to remain anonymous)

• Your connection to HIV (for example: person living with HIV, peer educator, counsellor, activist, doctor, community worker, volunteer)

• The country you are in

Then tell us:

What do you want the world to know about HIV in your country?

This could include access to care, stigma, funding cuts, community realities, or anything you feel the world should understand.

What education would you like to share?

A myth to bust, a message for others, or knowledge that could help support your community.

For more information, please contact:

[email protected]

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Why did HIV become so closely associated with gay men? In this episode, we go back to the years before HIV appeared to explore attitudes towards sex, sexuality and gay men, and how stigma, morality and the media shaped the way the emerging epidemic was understood.

Ask our Sex Expert Anything! The HIV Podcast - Ask Us Anything: Sex, Dating & HIV

Donate: The HIV Podcast: Together, We're Changing the Conversation

Sources

Sexual network - Wikipedia

NICE rejects long-acting HIV prevention treatment for NHS use - The Pharmacist

Our response to NICE’s decision not to recommend lenacapavir as PrEP - National AIDS Trust

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Why is HIV still so often linked to the gay community? In this episode Sarah and Jess explore sexual networks, the connections between people through sexual relationships and how they can help us understand patterns of HIV transmission.

Ask our Sex Expert Anything! The HIV Podcast - Ask Us Anything: Sex, Dating & HIV

Donate: The HIV Podcast: Together, We're Changing the Conversation

Sources

Sexual network - Wikipedia

Turkish authorities launch crackdown on LGBTQ+ and HIV support groups | The Independent

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Russell T Davies, this one’s for you. From Queer as Folk and It’s a Sin, all the way back to Children’s Ward in 1993, Russell T Davies has been telling stories about HIV, queer lives, stigma, sex, shame and joy for decades. So obviously, Sarah and Jess decided it was about time we dedicated an episode to him! Plus, with his new memoir The Queerest of Folk: A Life in Television on the way, the timing couldn’t be better. Expect nostalgia, iconic telly, HIV history, lots of Russell T Davies love and, because it’s us, probably an unnecessary tangent or two.

Ask our sex expert! The HIV Podcast - Ask Us Anything: Sex, Dating & HIV

Donate: https://www.zeffy.com/en-GB/donation-form/the-hiv-podcast-together-were-changing-the-conversation

Sources

Russell T Davies - Wikipedia

Audio Credits

Audio extracts featured in this episode are taken from:

Queer as Folk — Episode 1

Written by Russell T Davies. Red Production Company for Channel 4.

Tip Toe — Episode 1

Written by Russell T Davies. Channel 4.

It’s a Sin — Episodes 1 & 4

Created and written by Russell T Davies. Red Production Company for Channel 4.

Children’s Ward (1993)

Written by Russell T Davies. Produced by Granada Television for ITV.

Extract sourced from the YouTube upload Children’s Ward 1993 (2) Part 2.

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In this episode of African Voices, Sarah and Jess head to Zambia! We explore the impact of US funding cuts on Zambia’s HIV response and the controversy around health aid being used as political leverage. But we also discover UkaniManje, an incredible Zambian organisation using music to educate, challenge HIV stigma and reach young people with accurate information. From global politics to grassroots creativity, this is a story about the challenges facing Zambia’s HIV response, and the brilliant people finding new ways to make sure the conversation continues.

Reading Pride Charity Single: We Can Do Anything - song and lyrics by Lolly, Reading Pride, Wilma, Bodacia | Spotify

UkaniManje: Wake Up Now | HIV Awareness in Zambia — UkaniManje

Audio Credits

“We Can Do Anything” – Lolly, Reading Pride, Wilma & Bodacia

Music featured in this episode.

UkaniManje

Audio extracts taken from videos published on the UkaniManje YouTube channel.

All audio clips are credited to their original creators and are featured for the purposes of discussion, education and commentary.

Sources

How We Work | HIV Education and Engagement — UkaniManje

No H.I.V. Aid Without More Access to Minerals: U.S. Ponders ‘Sticks’ Against Zambia - The New York Times

US accused of ‘shameless exploitation’ over proposed Zambian health aid deal | Global health | The Guardian

Zambia - Wikipedia

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Part 2 of the wonderful Ita O’Brien returning to The HIV Podcast and we’re talking all things intimacy. Ita chats with Sarah and Jess about her brilliant book Intimacy, and what her years spent choreographing some of the most memorable intimate moments on screen have taught her about sex, desire, consent, connection and our relationships with our own bodies and we also get into what all of this means when HIV enters the chat. Expect sex, stigma, awkward bits, fascinating insights and probably far too much oversharing from us. You know the drill!

Content note: This episode contains discussions of sex and intimacy; listener discretion is advised.

You can purchase a copy of intimacy here:

UK: Intimacy: A field guide to finding connection and feeling your deep desires – with foreword from Gillian Anderson: Amazon.co.uk: O'Brien, Ita: 9781529954036: Books

USA: Intimacy by Ita O'Brien: 9780593596623 | PenguinRandomHouse.com: Books

Let’s Talk the Joy of Later Life Sex © Relate. Campaign by Relate, Ogilvy UK and Rankin.

Let's talk the joy of later life sex | Relate

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She’s baaaaaack! The wonderful Ita O’Brien returns to The HIV Podcast and this time we’re talking all things intimacy. Ita chats with Sarah and Jess about her brilliant book Intimacy, and what her years spent choreographing some of the most memorable intimate moments on screen have taught her about sex, desire, consent, connection and our relationships with our own bodies and we also get into what all of this means when HIV enters the chat. Expect sex, stigma, awkward bits, fascinating insights and probably far too much oversharing from us. You know the drill!

Content note: This episode contains discussions of sex and intimacy; listener discretion is advised.

You purchase a copy of intimacy here:

UK: Intimacy: A field guide to finding connection and feeling your deep desires – with foreword from Gillian Anderson: Amazon.co.uk: O'Brien, Ita: 9781529954036: Books

USA: Intimacy by Ita O'Brien: 9780593596623 | PenguinRandomHouse.com: Books

This episode includes short excerpts from the following sources:

Intimacy: A Field Guide to Finding Connection and Sexual Empowerment — Ita O’Brien. Audiobook excerpt, read by Ita O’Brien.

“Channing Tatum Is Struggling To Get In Shape For ‘Magic Mike 3’” — The Kelly Clarkson Show. Interview with Channing Tatum. Clip accessed via the official Kelly Clarkson Show YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pmYFHuaxYdw

I May Destroy You, Episode 3, “Don’t Forget the Sea” — created and written by Michaela Coel. Originally broadcast by BBC One. Audio excerpt from the programme.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week, is part 2 of our conversation with the incredible Ita O'Brien, founder of the Intimacy On Set company and author of the groundbreaking Intimacy On Set Guidelines. In the second of this special two-part conversation, we continue our dive into It's A Sin and explore how some of the series' most intimate and emotionally powerful scenes were carefully choreographed and how this intimacy coordination helped bring one of television's most celebrated dramas to life.

Content note: This episode contains discussions of sex and intimacy; listener discretion is advised.

Ita O’Brien - Dedication for the HIV podcast - 28th July 2026 "I'd like to thank the wonderful Mike Dawson for connecting me with this podcast and for his inspiring support of the HIV and LGBTQ+ communities. I'd also like to dedicate this conversation to the memory of my dear singing teacher, Chris Edwards, who nurtured me as a musical theatre performer in the 1980's. Chris was the first person I knew who contracted HIV and sadly died just 18 months later. His kindness and encouragement have stayed with me ever since."

https://www.zeffy.com/en-GB/donation-form/the-hiv-podcast-together-were-changing-the-conversation

Audio credits

It's A Sin – © Channel 4 Television Corporation.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We may not have been sipping caipirinhas on Copacabana Beach, but that didn't stop us from virtually heading to Rio de Janeiro for the International AIDS Conference 2026! In this episode, Sarah and Jess have picked out the biggest news, the most exciting research and the stories that really caught our attention. From potential new HIV prevention options and treatment updates to ageing with HIV and a few moments that made us stop and think.

So, grab a cuppa, stick your headphones on, and join us as we unpack the biggest stories from one of the most important events in the HIV calendar, without the 12-hour flight.

Big thanks to Dan Hall, Dan Glass and HIV: The Morning After for bringing us insights from Rio.

Song: Rethink, Rebuild, Rise (Rio Calling) https://open.spotify.com/album/37bmKKm1NWUy6NdFAZ3DR2?si=GGhrbI-kS7CCgSuxobtrPw

Sources

The US government’s mislabelled map of Africa at a global Aids conference shows again a failure to understand the continent | Kenneth Ngure | The Guardian

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week, Sarah and Jess are thrilled to welcome the incredible Ita O'Brien, founder of the Intimacy On Set company and author of the groundbreaking Intimacy On Set Guidelines. In the first of this special two-part conversation, we dive into It's A Sin and explore how some of the series' most intimate and emotionally powerful scenes were carefully choreographed. Ita shares the thinking behind intimacy coordination, why consent and communication are at the heart of every scene, and how this groundbreaking approach helped bring one of television's most celebrated dramas to life.

Content note: This episode contains discussions of sex, intimacy and intimacy coordination in the context of television production.

Ita O’Brien - Dedication for the HIV podcast - 28th July 2026 "I'd like to thank the wonderful Mike Dawson for connecting me with this podcast and for his inspiring support of the HIV and LGBTQ+ communities. I'd also like to dedicate this conversation to the memory of my dear singing teacher, Chris Edwards, who nurtured me as a musical theatre performer in the 1980's. Chris was the first person I knew who contracted HIV and sadly died just 18 months later. His kindness and encouragement have stayed with me ever since."

https://www.zeffy.com/en-GB/donation-form/the-hiv-podcast-together-were-changing-the-conversation

Audio credits

It's A Sin – © Channel 4 Television Corporation.

"It's a Sin" – written by Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe, performed by Pet Shop Boys. Excerpt accessed via YouTube.

Boris Johnson COVID-19 address – excerpt from The Guardian YouTube channel.

"Tombstone" HIV/AIDS public information campaign advertisement – excerpt from YouTube (original UK Government public information campaign).

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.