Episodes

  • Rylan Clark is joined by school teacher, CBBC presenter and TikTok star Kit Brown for a wide-ranging discussion about education and the pressures faced by children growing up in the 2020s.

    Kit, who is just 23 years old, thinks the rulebook on how to be a man is being rewritten and also reflects on his own life, which saw him abandon hopes of becoming a professional footballer to become a primary school teacher. He also reveals that his first class thought he was a married man of 40.

    In this series, Rylan opens up the fault lines of masculinity in lively and revealing conversations with diverse, prominent figures and celebrities. Together they explore toxic masculinity, old-fashioned male stereotypes, gender identity, body image, parenthood, how to educate the next generation, role models and cultural differences to try to understand How to Be a Man in the 2020s.

    Series Editor: Yvonne AlexanderExecutive Producer: Kevin MundyeA Mindhouse production in association with Simple Beast for BBC Radio 4

  • Rylan Clark is joined by writer and broadcaster Janet Street-Porter for her take on the challenges faced by men and boys in the 2020s. She reflects on her career as one of the only women working on Fleet Street in the 1960s and 1970s and how she adopted ‘masculine characteristics’ to get on.

    She also gives her opinion on the plight of working class boys and why they are failing in education, and lifts the lid on her four marriages and why she hates the word ‘couple’.

    In this series, Rylan Clark opens up the fault lines of masculinity in lively and revealing conversations with diverse, prominent figures and celebrities. Together they explore toxic masculinity, old-fashioned male stereotypes, gender identity, body image, parenthood, how to educate the next generation, role models and cultural differences to try to understand How to Be a Man in the 2020s. Series Editor: Yvonne AlexanderExecutive Producer: Kevin MundyeA Mindhouse production in association with Simple Beast for BBC Radio 4

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  • Rylan Clark is joined by trans man and dad of two, Freddy McConnell. In a frank and fascinating discussion, Freddy talks about transitioning, taking testosterone, becoming pregnant and how surgery has impacted on his life. He also opens up about solo parenting and how he deals with the challenges of gender stereotypes while bringing up his two children.

    In this series, Rylan opens up the fault lines of masculinity in lively and revealing conversations with diverse, prominent figures and celebrities. Together they explore toxic masculinity, old-fashioned male stereotypes, gender identity, body image, parenthood, how to educate the next generation, role models and cultural differences to try to understand How to Be a Man in the 2020s. Series Editor: Yvonne AlexanderExecutive Producer: Kevin MundyeA Mindhouse production in association with Simple Beast for BBC Radio 4

  • Rylan is joined by fellow Essex boy David Gandy for a candid conversation about his life and career as one of the most successful male models in the world. David opens up about male mental health, the lessons he has learned from female supermodels, what he makes of his own appearance and why he dislikes having his photograph taken.

    In this series, Rylan Clark opens up the fault lines of masculinity in lively and revealing conversations with diverse, prominent figures and celebrities. Together they explore toxic masculinity, old-fashioned male stereotypes, gender identity, body image, parenthood, how to educate the next generation, role models and cultural differences to try to understand How to Be a Man in the 2020s. Series Editor: Yvonne AlexanderExecutive Producer: Kevin MundyeA Mindhouse production in association with Simple Beast for BBC Radio 4

  • Rylan is joined by Jake Daniels, the first openly gay professional footballer in the UK in over 30 years.

    Jake reflects on the events and challenges that led him to come out in May 2022, at the age of 17 and they discuss why, with many female professional players in same-sex relationships, the stigmas and taboos surrounding homosexuality in the men’s game remain, along with homophobia off and on the pitch. Jake also talks about dating on social media.

    In this series, Rylan Clark opens up the fault lines of masculinity in lively and revealing conversations with diverse, prominent figures and celebrities. Together they explore toxic masculinity, old-fashioned male stereotypes, gender identity, body image, parenthood, how to educate the next generation, role models and cultural differences to try to understand How to Be a Man in the 2020s. Series Editor: Yvonne AlexanderExecutive Producer: Kevin MundyeA Mindhouse production in association with Simple Beast for BBC Radio 4

  • Rylan Clark is joined by former Royal Marine and Paralympian, Mark Ormrod, who became a triple amputee after stepping on an improvised explosive device while on a tour in Afghanistan.

    Mark lifts the lid on what it’s like to be a real life action man and, with a moving and vivid description of the incident that nearly cost him his life, tells how his devastating injuries made him reassess his own masculinity. He also recalls the hallucination where Will Smith came to visit him in hospital.

    In this series, Rylan opens up the fault lines of masculinity in lively and revealing conversations with diverse, prominent figures and celebrities. Together they explore toxic masculinity, old-fashioned male stereotypes, gender identity, body image, parenthood, how to educate the next generation, role models and cultural differences to try to understand How to Be a Man in the 2020s. Series Editor: Yvonne AlexanderExecutive Producer: Kevin MundyeA Mindhouse production in association with Simple Beast for BBC Radio 4

  • Rylan Clark is joined by interior designer Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen for a revealing conversation about the changing face of manhood through history, the evolution of gender stereotypes, toxic masculinity and penises, in life and in art.

    In this series, Rylan opens up the fault lines of masculinity in lively and revealing conversations with diverse, prominent figures and celebrities. Together they explore toxic masculinity, old-fashioned male stereotypes, gender identity, body image, parenthood, how to educate the next generation, role models and cultural differences to try to understand How to Be a Man in the 2020s. Series Editor: Yvonne AlexanderExecutive Producer: Kevin MundyeA Mindhouse production in association with Simple Beast for BBC Radio 4

  • Rylan Clark is joined by comedian Phil Wang for a revealing conversation about racial stereotypes, banter culture in comedy, body hair and feeling nervous around builders.

    Rylan opens up the fault lines of masculinity in lively and revealing conversations with diverse, prominent figures and celebrities. Together they explore toxic masculinity, old-fashioned male stereotypes, gender identity, body image, parenthood, how to educate the next generation, role models and cultural differences to try to understand How to Be a Man in the 2020s. Series Editor: Yvonne AlexanderExecutive Producer: Kevin MundyeA Mindhouse production in association with Simple Beast for BBC Radio 4

  • Boxing champion and Olympic medallist Amir Khan talks to Rylan Clark about punching people for a living, the inner turmoil he felt when he was robbed at gunpoint, hair removal, religion and how fame, fortune and being known as King Khan has impacted on him as a man. In this series, Rylan opens up the fault lines of masculinity in lively and revealing conversations with diverse, prominent figures and celebrities. Together they explore toxic masculinity, old-fashioned male stereotypes, gender identity, body image, parenthood, how to educate the next generation, role models and cultural differences to try to understand How to Be a Man in the 2020s. Series Editor: Yvonne AlexanderExecutive Producer: Kevin MundyeA Mindhouse production in association with Simple Beast for BBC Radio 4

  • Strictly star and wildlife cameraman Hamza Yassin talks to Rylan Clark about his Sudanese upbringing, his traditional values and being a gentleman, dating and feeling broody, and the wild animals that give him inspiration on how to be a good man. Rylan opens up the fault lines of masculinity in lively and revealing conversations with diverse, prominent figures and celebrities. Together they explore toxic masculinity, old-fashioned male stereotypes, gender identity, body image, parenthood, how to educate the next generation, role models and cultural differences to try to understand How to be a Man in the 2020s.

    Series Editor: Yvonne AlexanderExecutive Producer: Kevin MundyeA Mindhouse production in association with Simple Beast for BBC Radio 4

  • Rylan Clark opens up the fault lines of masculinity in lively and revealing conversations with diverse, prominent figures and celebrities to try and understand How to Be a Man in the 2020s.

    Does the average bloke exist anymore? Are we allowed to ‘Man Up’? Can boys still be boys? What does toxic masculinity really mean?

    Wherever you look there are different stories, different role models – and so many platforms for them to share their views on our rapidly changing world.

    Over 10 episodes, Rylan explores all things masculine and attempts to find out what it means to be a man.

    Listen on BBC Sounds from Tuesday 9 May 2023.

    A Mindhouse production in association with Simple Beast for BBC Radio 4.