Shirley Ballas, Bed Bugs, Everything Now writer Ripley Parker - a podcast by BBC Radio 4

Shirley Ballas is best known for being one of the judges on BBC Strictly Come Dancing and her stellar career in Latin dance that earnt her the title, ‘Queen of Latin’. She joins Krupa to talk about Strictly, the menopause and her new book, Murder on the Dancefloor.

Last weekend’s earthquake in Western Afghanistan killed 1,300 people and injured many more according to UN figures. UNICEF have said more than 90% of those who died were women and children, as they were more likely to have been at home. Krupa speaks to Salma Braham, Afghanistan Country Director for the International Rescue Committee. She joins live from Kabul.

Bed bugs are everywhere in the news. The actress Sue Elliott Nicholls joins us to describe the shame she felt when her house became infested. Social media influencer and author “Queen of Clean” Lynsey Crombie says with education and vigilance bed bugs can be avoided in the first place. She shares her top tips on actions we should take now and what we must avoid.

Serious issues relating to cervical screening services in parts of Northern Ireland have led to 17,500 women having their smear tests re-checked as part of a major review of cervical screening dating back to 2008. Failures in screening has led to some abnormal tests not being followed up. Marie-Louise Connolly, the BBC’s NI Health Correspondent joins us to explain, together with a patient, we are calling Susan, who has been affected by previous failures within the screening system.

Ripley Parker is the 22-year-old writer and creator of the new Netflix series Everything Now. She joins Krupa to talk about why the series is so important to her, and how it came from her own personal experiences as a teenager.

Presenter: Krupa Padhy
Producer: Emma Pearce

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