Dame Jennifer Susan Murray,DBE (néeBailey; born 12 May 1950^[1]) is an English journalist and broadcaster, best known for presentingBBC Radio 4'sWoman's Hour from 1987 to 2020.

Dame Jenni Murray DBE
Murray in 2011
Born	Jennifer Susan Bailey 12 May 1950 (1950-05-12) (age 74) Barnsley,West Riding of Yorkshire, England
Occupation(s)	Journalist and broadcaster
Spouse(s)	Brian Murray (div.) David Forgham
Children	2

Murray was born inBarnsley,West Riding of Yorkshire to Alvin Bailey and Winifred Jones, and attended Barnsley Girls' High School, agrammar school, leaving withA levels in French, English and History.^{[citation needed]} She has a degree in French and Drama from theUniversity of Hull.^[2][3]

Murray joinedBBC Radio Bristol in 1973 before becoming a reporter and presenter for regional TV news programmeSouth Today. She was a newsreader and later one of the presenters of the BBC'sNewsnight television show for two years from 1983, before moving toBBC Radio 4 to presentToday. She took over fromSue MacGregor as presenter ofWoman's Hour in 1987. She has presented BBC Radio 4'sThe Message and written for magazines and newspapers includingThe Guardian,Daily Express and theDaily Mail.^[2][3] She hosted her finalWoman's Hour on 1 October 2020.^[4]

She has written several books, including:

• 1996 –Woman's Hour, 50 years of British Women
• 2003 –That's My Boy
• 2003 –Is It Me, or Is It Hot in Here?: A Modern Woman's Guide to the Menopause
• 2009 –Memoirs of a Not So Dutiful 'Daughter'
• 2011 -Ten Poems About Dogs
• 2011 –My Boy Butch: The heart-warming true story of a little dog who made life worth living again
• 2016 -A History of Britain in 21 Women
• 2017 –Woman's Hour: Words from Wise, Witty and Wonderful Women^[2]
• 2018 –A History of the World in 21 Women: A Personal Selection
• 2018 -Votes For Women!: The Pioneers and Heroines of Female Suffrage
• 2020 –Fat Cow, Fat Chance: The Science and Psychology of Size

She was brought up a Christian in theChurch of England. At the age of 14, however, just before visitingAuschwitz concentration camp, her father revealed he was Jewish by birth from his mother Edith Field (originally Feld).^[5] Murray subsequently wrote on 21st December 2022 inThe Daily Mail and on Twitter^[6] "Officially I have no claim to the Jewish faith, but I feel it deeply, and have done since the age of 14 when my father revealed to me what, until then, he had kept a closely guarded secret. I am not religious, but I feel my Jewish genes. They are part of my race. They took me to Israel in my early 20s, against the advice of my parents who were afraid for me, but I wanted to know more." She spent a year working at theFrank Meisler sculpture gallery inJaffa. She has also written of her abhorrence of racism ".. young people need to understand the history of slavery and how it influences modern racism, they need to understand what lay behind the Holocaust and how it continues to affect the Jewish population."

Murray married her first husband Brian Murray aged 21; their marriage ended after six years.^[7] She later married David Forgham and the couple have two grown-up sons.^[8][7]

Murray has been criticised for her statements ontransgender people. Writing forThe Sunday Times in March 2017, Murray penned an article headlined "Jenni Murray: Be trans, be proud – but don't call yourself a 'real woman'."^[9][10] In November 2018, Murray cancelled a scheduledOxford University History Society presentation following a backlash regarding her comments inThe Sunday Times.^[11] The following month, the University of Hull announced it was revisiting plans to name a lecture theatre after Murray amid protests; the university's Student President team released a statement reading, "We oppose the naming of a lecture theatre after Jenni Murray. We do not believe that someone who holds these views should be presented as a role model to students".^[12] In a 2020 article forThe Daily Mail, Murray claimed that the BBC had banned her from chairing "any discussions on the trans question or the proposed changes to theGender Recognition Act" following her departure fromWoman's Hour.^[13] In November 2023, Murry signed an open letter fromSex Matters urging UK Prime MinisterRishi Sunak "to take urgent action to halt an escalating campaign of violence and intimidation against women in the name of 'trans rights' ".^[14]

In December 2006 Murray announced, at the end ofWoman's Hour, she had been diagnosed withbreast cancer.^[15] She informed her audience that her prognosis was good; she did indeed return early in 2007. She reported that the most emotionally upsetting moment was losing her hair, and used this as an item on thecentrality of hair to definitions of femininity.^[16] In 2020 Murray announced that she would demonstrate proper self-breast examination techniques onThe Real Full Monty on Ice television program, alongsideLinda Lusardi andHayley Tamaddon.^[17]

Murray has been vocal and visible in the media with regard to her own experience of menopause,HRT and the importance of raising awareness of this aspect of women's health in theworkplace and more generally^[18][19][20]

In 2008 she had ahip replacement followingavascular necrosis.^{[citation needed]}

Murray had asleeve gastrectomy in June 2015, and had lost over 4 stone (56 lb; 25 kg) by October that year.^[21]

Murray was appointedOfficer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) for services to broadcasting in 1999 andDame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) in the2011 Birthday Honours.^[22][23]

In 2007 Murray was awarded a Doctor of Letters (DLitt) honorary degree from theUniversity of St Andrews in recognition of Jenni Murray's major contribution to broadcasting, journalism and writing.^[24]

In March 2012 Murray was awarded an honorary degree from theUniversity of Salford for contributions to the media industry and to the growing links between the University and its neighbours atSalford Quays.^[25]

On 5 November 2019 Murray was awarded a Doctor of Letters from theUniversity of Chester, for outstanding contribution to journalism and broadcasting.^[26]

In November 2007 it was announced Murray had been named patron of British medical research charityBreast Cancer Campaign.^[27] She is also patron of theFamily Planning Association, vice-president ofParkinson's UK and a supporter ofHumanists UK.^[28]