**Kitty to appear on BBC R4 Woman’s Hour 20th November 10am!!**

**Kitty to appear on BBC R4 Woman’s Hour 20th November 10am!!**

by Lisa Millar
Now, this might come as a bit of a surprise to some of you, but actually I’m NOT as dim as I may first appear. I wouldn’t describe myself as an intellectual by a long shot, but I am one of those people who likes to ‘know’ about things that go on in the world, I’m a tad nosey like that. Anyhoo, when I’m at home I’m an avid Radio 4 listener, because it broadcasts some astonishing programmes and it comes as no surprise that it has just been awarded ‘Radio Station of the Year 2008’. In fact, I *LOVE* Radio, full stop. I find it infinitely more pleasurable to listen to a radio broadcast than I do to flop on the sofa in front of the gogglebox.
I studied Journalism and Broadcasting at college as a teen with aspirations of being a presenter. I performed all those production tasks, like editing and cutting and splicing tapes to craft interviews, but as with most dreams real life got in the way, as it has a tendency to do, so I never fulfilled my ambitions. I’ve said before that blogging allows me to achieve some of them in a roundabout way, but can you imagine how excited I was yesterday when I was contacted by Radio 4 Woman’s Hour with a view to participating in a live debate? OMG!!! Of course I squealed a bit because Woman’s Hour is one of the most esteemed programmes ever to be broadcast on radio, and has been aired for over 60 years now. It’s a veritable institution, and of course it’s presented by the ever wonderful Jenni Murray, a journalist who I have the upmost respect for.
So, to cut to the chase then, I’ve been invited to talk about virtual worlds, with the interview focus upon virtual relationships, because as I’m sure you’re aware they are being heavily discussed in the press at the moment (see my article a little further down this page about the same)

I’m stunned that they’ve asked me to participate. Out of all the wonderful blogs on the internet that discuss Second Life and issues pertaining to it, the fact that mine was spotted has of course been a real ego-boost, and I’m really excited about speaking to Jenny and her other interviewees. The participants are Monica Whittey who studies virtual worlds out of Nottingham University and Tim Guest, esteemed author of ‘My Life in Orange’ and ‘Second Lives’ (a book that sits upon my real life bookshelf!) so I’m eager to hear their contributions. I hope I get the chance to get a word in edgeways, and I’m going to strive to ensure that I don’t come across as sounding like a complete pleb. Obviously I don’t want to sound like some sort of nutter who spends all her life pretending to be a virtual character( even though I do!) but hey, this is a perfectly reasonable hobby to participate in and it’s given me lots of personal satisfaction and success. I’m sure other people are as passionate about stamp collecting. Ahem.

Obviously I work in real-life but my boss has very kindly granted me leave so that I can drive over to Radio Sheffield in the morning and take part *LIVE* in the show. I understand that our segment will be first, and I believe the interview will last about ten minutes. I’m probably going to sound a bit silly here, but I take all this relatively seriously (snigger) and will do my utmost to make sure that the subject is treated respectfully, and .with that in mind I promise not to say pissflaps or go all giddy with excitement:)

So dear reader, if you’d like to have your illusions shattered and hear Kitty O’Toole in real life (mad northern bird alert!) then tune in to ‘Woman’s Hour’ on BBC Radio 4 at 10am tomorrow morning! EEP! You can also visit the Woman’s Hour website to access the ‘Listen Again’ feature if you can’t listen live (no guesses for what I’ll be doing when i get home then!) or alternatively download as a podcast.

 

 

 

(Wanna know the sad bit about this? The one person who I’m excited about telling all this to is no longer with us anymore. When something really exciting happens you always want to share with it with your best friends, and I can so imagine how chuffed and excited Dee would be. It’s at times like this that I really feel her loss especially keenly)

3 thoughts on “**Kitty to appear on BBC R4 Woman’s Hour 20th November 10am!!**”

  1. Trust me, that one person knows 😉 I know she does 😀

    Can you get Twatface to record it? I won’t be able to listen, but would really love to hear the whole thing!!!

    Oh and lastly… Congratulations!

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