In May this year we put out a REQUEST for people who might have grandmothers might have played jazz to get in touch with BBC researcher Hannah Loy in Cardiff. . Hannah has written  to confirm that the programme is about to be broadcast:

“I’m pleased to announce that The Lost Women of British Jazz is now complete and due to broadcast on Radio 4 next week. It will be on Tuesday 16th September 11:30-12:00 (with a repeat on Saturday 20th). The programme will be available on the i-player after it has been broadcast so people can still listen.”

A link to the programme website is HERE. The programme will be presented by Janine H. Jones, and tell the story of how “Ivy Benson, Gracie Cole and Kathy Stobart became household names in jazz and dancehall, only after battling throughout the 1940s and 50s to gain recognition and respect in a male-dominated industry; a struggle that was repeated by other women over many decades.” It will have contributions from Jen Wilson, Val Wilmer and Sheelagh Pearson, tell “the tragic story of how a burgeoning musical equality was deliberately snuffed out.”

LINK: Tribute to Kathy Stobart by Jimmy Hastings.