News
Watch Archival Footage of Ann Oakley discussing the original Becoming a Mother Project
In October 1978, Professor Ann Oakley appeared on Thames Television’s After Noon with Mavis Nicholson. Joined by two mothers from the original Becoming a Mother study, they discuss the realities of first-time motherhood. In this clip, Ann introduces the project. Thanks to Fremantle for providing access to this archival material.
BAM50 paper presented at Politics of Motherhood conference
BAM50 Research Fellow, Kate Errington, presented a paper at the Politics of Motherhood: Maternalism, Maternity and Mothering conference, hosted by the University of Worcester. In it she reflected on the process of re-analysing Oakley’s original transcripts, the practical challenges, ethical implications, and opportunities for identifying “new” research themes using historical data.
Charlotte Faircloth features on BBC Radio 4’s ‘Child’ podcast
How have our ideas about parenting changed over the last 50 years, and specifically, why are we more ‘anxious’ than ever in how to go about it? You can hear BAM50 project leader Charlotte Faircloth on the BBC Radio 4 programme/Podcast ‘Child’, episode 7 on “Anxiety’
Fertility and Parenting Culture
How do our ideas about motherhood affect the decision to have a child or not? Charlotte was recently a speaker at the ‘Fertility Intentions and Behaviour in Iceland’ final project conference at the University of Iceland in Reykjavik, discussing parenting culture and declining fertility rates with colleagues from around the world. You can see more…
BAM50 Project Launch Event
We held a launch for the project in April, featuring Ann Oakley in conversation with Kate Brintworth, Chief Midwife NHS England. Thank you to all of you who came and made this such a special evening. Watch recording
Listen to Charlotte and Ann talk about the project on Woman’s Hour
Charlotte and Ann were recently invited on to BBC Radio 4’s Woman’s Hour to discuss the project and share their reflections on revisiting the project as well as how things have changed for mothers over the last 50 years. You can listen to the recording here: (from 42 minutes in)
International Child and Family Conference
Charlotte recently presented a paper on behalf of the team at the International Child and Family Conference in Bristol (June 2025) reflecting on some of the ethical, methodological and practical challenges of carrying out research over a 50-year period. It was a great opportunity to connect with other scholars in the field, particularly those who…