Dr Laura Wright continues to co-host BBC Radio 4’s Word of Mouth, a series which explores the world of words and the ways in which we use them.

Monday 22 January – Hello! Is it me you’re looking for? – The art of greetings

Michael Rosen and Dr Laura Wright discuss the origins and psychology of greetings with former diplomat Andy Scott.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b09ly6rr

 

Monday 5 February – Best wishes, kind regards or none of the above?

With so many forms of written communication – email, text, Twitter, What’s App – Michael rosen and Dr Laura Wright explore what new etiquettes are emerging, and ask where are ‘digital natives’ simply getting it wrong?

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b09plwxh

 

Monday 12 February – Naming Diseases

Michael Rosen and Dr Laura Wright explore how diseases are named and the political, economic and social impact of disease names past and present.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b09qd70t

 

Monday 19 February – Language and Gender Identity

Michael Rosen and Dr Laura Wright are joined by CN Lester, author of ‘Trans Like Me: A Journey for All of Us’ to talk about language and gender identity. What does it mean to be transgender and how is language being used (by and about) people who identify as transgender, non-binary or genderqueer?

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b09r4k4l

 

Monday 26 February – Haggard Hawks

Michael Rosen and Dr Laura Wright are joined by Paul Anthony Jones, the writer behind the popular etymology blog Haggard Hawks to talk about the origins of common idioms, the stories behind words we use every day, and the forgotten words Paul would like to see brought back into use.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b09ry6k0