In this powerful new episode, Cath Leng and Julie Bindel revisit a forgotten moment in BBC history — the 2007 Hecklers debate — and ask whether such a programme could even be made today.
Eighteen years before the Cass Review, Julie was already warning about the dangers of gender medicalisation, the erasure of women’s rights, and the capture of British institutions by an ideology that rejects evidence.
Together, Cath and Julie explore:
The BBC’s recent editorial bias dossier on sex and gender
The rise of activist-journalism under figures like Megha Mohan and Ben Hunte
Why the BBC’s founding principles of accuracy and impartiality must be reclaimed
How “gender identity” became a journalistic taboo topic
The original Hecklers debate — when Julie faced four gender ideologues, a hostile audience, and even had a bottle thrown at her
What has (and hasn’t) changed in Britain’s cultural institutions since 2007
The making of Genderland — Julie’s groundbreaking podcast series about families and detransitioners
The untold emotional toll on parents and detransitioners — and why their stories could transform public understanding
📎 Mentioned in this episode
BBC Hecklers (2007) — “Gender medicalisation is a mutilating act.” Listen to the recovered recording on Julie Bindel’s Substack
Julie Bindel’s column archive: The Guardian (2004) • UnHerd (2025)
The Cass Review: independent review of gender identity services
BBC Editorial Guidelines: bbc.co.uk/editorialguidelines
🧩 Further listening
🎧 Genderland – Series One Julie’s long-form interviews with parents and detransitioners.
🎙️ Seen in Journalism archive: All episodes here →
💬 Quotes from the episode
“Everything trans activism touches turns to dust — let’s hope the BBC isn’t next.”
— Cath Leng
“If you told people the earth is flat, they’d stop asking questions. That’s what gender ideology has done to journalism.”
— Julie Bindel
