Woman in a Man’s World

Pioneering career women of the twentieth century

Here in their own words are the life stories of ten remarkable British women, each of whom pursued a successful career long before ‘career women’ were the norm. From Helen Brook, family planning pioneer and founder of the Brook Advisory Centre, to Betty Boothroyd, first woman Speaker of the House of Commons, their stories are inspiring examples of courage, enthusiasm and determination. Their private and public experiences vividly describe the challenges and conflicts they each faced as they went against the grain for women of their generation by entering into a ‘man’s world’.

Exploring the ‘lost years’ between the suffragettes and the feminists, the lives of these ten women shed fascinating light on a key period in the emergence of women into the workplace.

Featuring interviews with: Josephine Barnes, consultant gynaecologist; Betty Boothroyd, politician; Helen Brook, family planning pioneer; Hilda Brown, factory inspector; Lucy Faithfull, social services director; Livia Gollanz, publisher; Jean Graham Hall, high court judge; Una Kroll, medicine; Sheila Parkinson, special operations; and Mary Smith, housing.

“We used to sew them up with very coarse gut so that if the man did want intercourse it jolly well hurt him.” 

HELEN BROOK