Why I Changed My Mind

Episodes

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0101Mark Lynas2015020420150208 (R4)In this series Dominic Lawson interviews people who have changed their mind on controversial matters.

This week he asks the environmentalist Mark Lynas, who was once a prominent figure in direct actions to destroy genetically modified crops, why he now advocates for GM technology and what the reaction has been from his former allies.

Producer: Martin Rosenbaum.

Dominic Lawson asks the environmentalist Mark Lynas why he now supports GM crops.

In this series Dominic Lawson interviews people who have changed their mind on controversial matters.

This week he asks the environmentalist Mark Lynas, who was once a prominent figure in direct actions to destroy genetically modified crops, why he now advocates for GM technology and what the reaction has been from his former allies.

Producer: Martin Rosenbaum.

Dominic Lawson asks the environmentalist Mark Lynas why he now supports GM crops.

0102Tim Montgomerie20150211In this series Dominic Lawson interviews people who have changed their mind on controversial matters.

This week he asks Tim Montgomerie, founder of the Conservative Christian Fellowship, why he has abandoned his opposition to same-sex marriage and about the emotional backlash.

Producer: Martin Rosenbaum.

Dominic Lawson asks Tim Montgomerie why he now supports same-sex marriage.

0103Sean O'callaghan20150218Dominic Lawson asks Sean O'Callaghan about why he became an informer within the IRA.

Dominic Lawson interviews people who have changed their mind on controversial matters.

0201Trevor Phillips2016042420160427 (R4)Trevor Phillips was for nine years head of the Commission for Racial Equality and then the Equality and Human Rights Commission. But he became deeply unpopular with some former colleagues and supporters after he revealed he had become convinced there were deep problems with the policy of multi-culturalism.

Dominic Lawson asks him why he altered his views and what he felt about the reaction it provoked. In an emotional interview they discuss child protection and the murder of Victoria Climbie, trans-racial adoption, the expression of prejudice, the use of racial epithets, Britishness and integration.

"Why I Changed My Mind" is a series in which Dominic explores how and why prominent individuals have modified their views on controversial topics.

Producer: Martin Rosenbaum.

Dominic Lawson asks Trevor Phillips why he abandoned support for multiculturalism.

Dominic Lawson interviews people who have changed their mind on controversial matters.

Trevor Phillips was for nine years head of the Commission for Racial Equality and then the Equality and Human Rights Commission. But he became deeply unpopular with some former colleagues and supporters after he revealed he had become convinced there were deep problems with the policy of multi-culturalism.

Dominic Lawson asks him why he altered his views and what he felt about the reaction it provoked. In an emotional interview they discuss child protection and the murder of Victoria Climbie, trans-racial adoption, the expression of prejudice, the use of racial epithets, Britishness and integration.

"Why I Changed My Mind" is a series in which Dominic explores how and why prominent individuals have modified their views on controversial topics.

Producer: Martin Rosenbaum.

Dominic Lawson asks Trevor Phillips why he abandoned support for multiculturalism.

Dominic Lawson interviews people who have changed their mind on controversial matters.

0202Prof Edzard Ernst2016042720160512 (R4)
20160504 (R4)
Dominic Lawson talks to Edzard Ernst, who was once the world's first professor of complementary medicine, about why he abandoned his belief in homeopathy, the reaction his change of mind provoked, and how it led to a dispute with the office of the Prince of Wales.

"Why I Changed My Mind" is a series in which Dominic explores how and why prominent individuals have modified their views on controversial topics.

Producer: Martin Rosenbaum.

Dominic Lawson asks Prof Edzard Ernst why he abandoned his belief in homeopathy.

Dominic Lawson interviews people who have changed their mind on controversial matters.

Dominic Lawson talks to Edzard Ernst, who was once the world's first professor of complementary medicine, about why he abandoned his belief in homeopathy, the reaction his change of mind provoked, and how it led to a dispute with the office of the Prince of Wales.

"Why I Changed My Mind" is a series in which Dominic explores how and why prominent individuals have modified their views on controversial topics.

Producer: Martin Rosenbaum.

Dominic Lawson asks Prof Edzard Ernst why he abandoned his belief in homeopathy.

Dominic Lawson interviews people who have changed their mind on controversial matters.

0203Prof Deirdre Mccloskey20160511Dominic Lawson asks the distinguished American academic Professor Deirdre McCloskey why she changed her views on politics and economics, her faith in God, and her gender.

"Why I Changed My Mind" is a series in which Dominic explores how and why prominent individuals have modified their views on controversial topics.

Producer: Martin Rosenbaum.

Dominic Lawson asks Prof Deirdre McCloskey why she changed politics, faith and gender.

Dominic Lawson interviews people who have changed their mind on controversial matters.

0204Sir Stephen Wall2016042420160518 (R4)Sir Stephen Wall was one of Britain's leading diplomats, having been the UK's representative to the EU and Tony Blair's adviser on European policy in Downing Street. A practising Catholic for most of his life, after leaving the diplomatic service he worked as principal adviser to the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Westminster. But after that he discarded his faith, and later in his late sixties came out as gay. Dominic Lawson asks him why he changed his mind.

"Why I Changed My Mind" is a series in which Dominic explores how and why prominent individuals have modified their views on controversial topics.

Producer: Martin Rosenbaum.

Dominic Lawson asks Sir Stephen Wall why he abandoned his Catholic faith.

Dominic Lawson interviews people who have changed their mind on controversial matters.

0205Peter Hitchens20160525Peter Hitchens is a prominent and trenchant conservative writer. But as a young man, he was a deeply committed Trotskyist. Dominic Lawson talks to him about how and why his political views have changed over the years, and whether in fact his old and new beliefs have something in common.

"Why I Changed My Mind" is a series in which Dominic explores how and why prominent individuals have modified their views on controversial topics.

Producer: Martin Rosenbaum.

Dominic Lawson asks Peter Hitchens about his transition from Trotskyism to conservatism.

Dominic Lawson interviews people who have changed their mind on controversial matters.

03Bill Browder2017110120171227 (R4)Bill Browder was the biggest foreign investor in Russia, but a tragic death - and changing his mind about what truly matters to him - have made him Vladimir Putin's great enemy.

Browder managed Hermitage Capital Management, with billions invested in Russia until one night in 2009 when his Russian lawyer was beaten to death inside a Moscow prison. The two men had been trying to expose corruption at the heart of the Russian state.

When Sergei Magnitsky died, Bill Browder decided to abandon his career as one of the most successful capitalists in the world, and dedicate his life to campaigning for human rights and specifically justice for his dead friend. He has successfully persuaded many Western governments to consider and introduce laws to ban those he holds responsible for Magnitsky's death from travelling to several countries, and to freeze assets they own in states outside Russia.

But this campaign has come at a price. Browder is now in fear of his life and feels the need to be eternally vigilant to the possibility that Russian agents have plans to assassinate him.

In "Why I Changed My Mind", Dominic Lawson interviews people who have changed their mind on controversial matters.

Producer: Jonathan Brunert.

How Bill Browder's change of mind has made him Vladimir Putin's great enemy.

Bill Browder was the biggest foreign investor in Russia, but a tragic death - and changing his mind about what truly matters to him - have made him Vladimir Putin's great enemy.

Browder managed Hermitage Capital Management, with billions invested in Russia until one night in 2009 when his Russian lawyer was beaten to death inside a Moscow prison. The two men had been trying to expose corruption at the heart of the Russian state.

When Sergei Magnitsky died, Bill Browder decided to abandon his career as one of the most successful capitalists in the world, and dedicate his life to campaigning for human rights and specifically justice for his dead friend. He has successfully persuaded many Western governments to consider and introduce laws to ban those he holds responsible for Magnitsky's death from travelling to several countries, and to freeze assets they own in states outside Russia.

But this campaign has come at a price. Browder is now in fear of his life and feels the need to be eternally vigilant to the possibility that Russian agents have plans to assassinate him.

In "Why I Changed My Mind", Dominic Lawson interviews people who have changed their mind on controversial matters.

Producer: Jonathan Brunert.

How Bill Browder's change of mind has made him Vladimir Putin's great enemy.

03Katharine Birbalsingh2017102520171220 (R4)A lifelong supporter of state education, headteacher Katharine Birbalsingh chose a Conservative Party conference platform to declare Britain's state education system badly broken. She explains to presenter Dominic Lawson how she came to change her mind about Britain's education system.

She grew up a passionate supporter of socialism and became a teacher in Britain's state schools. But what Katharine Birbalsingh found there made her change her mind about the fundamentals of how schools are run and how pupils are taught. She chose the Conservative conference of 2010 to make a platform speech which attacked well-meaning liberals for ruining the education chances of many from low-income and ethnic minority backgrounds. Revealing herself to be a supporter of the new Conservative-led government, she felt ostracised by the state education system and has struggled for years to found her own free school.

Having established the Michaela Community School in north London, she is able to put her radical ideas into practice there, leading some to dub it the 'Strictest school in Britain'.

In "Why I Changed My Mind", Dominic Lawson interviews people who have changed their mind on controversial matters.

Producer: Jonathan Brunert.

Katharine Birbalsingh reveals why she declared Britain's state education system broken.

A lifelong supporter of state education, headteacher Katharine Birbalsingh chose a Conservative Party conference platform to declare Britain's state education system badly broken. She explains to presenter Dominic Lawson how she came to change her mind about Britain's education system.

She grew up a passionate supporter of socialism and became a teacher in Britain's state schools. But what Katharine Birbalsingh found there made her change her mind about the fundamentals of how schools are run and how pupils are taught. She chose the Conservative conference of 2010 to make a platform speech which attacked well-meaning liberals for ruining the education chances of many from low-income and ethnic minority backgrounds. Revealing herself to be a supporter of the new Conservative-led government, she felt ostracised by the state education system and has struggled for years to found her own free school.

Having established the Michaela Community School in north London, she is able to put her radical ideas into practice there, leading some to dub it the 'Strictest school in Britain'.

In "Why I Changed My Mind", Dominic Lawson interviews people who have changed their mind on controversial matters.

Producer: Jonathan Brunert.

Katharine Birbalsingh reveals why she declared Britain's state education system broken.

03Lord Carey2017101820171213 (R4)Dominic Lawson asks former Archbishop of Canterbury George Carey why he changed his mind from opposition to any euthanasia to support for assisted dying to be made legal in the UK.

A lifelong opponent of euthanasia, George Carey recently changed his mind on an issue which the Church of England has always opposed - assisted dying for those who can decide for themselves that their suffering as a result of very serious medical problems is too much to bear. He explains how he decided to change his views on such a significant issue for the Church.

In "Why I Changed My Mind", Dominic Lawson interviews people who have changed their mind on controversial matters.

Producer: Jonathan Brunert.

Former archbishop of Canterbury Lord Carey explains his change of mind on assisted dying.

Dominic Lawson asks former Archbishop of Canterbury George Carey why he changed his mind from opposition to any euthanasia to support for assisted dying to be made legal in the UK.

A lifelong opponent of euthanasia, George Carey recently changed his mind on an issue which the Church of England has always opposed - assisted dying for those who can decide for themselves that their suffering as a result of very serious medical problems is too much to bear. He explains how he decided to change his views on such a significant issue for the Church.

In "Why I Changed My Mind", Dominic Lawson interviews people who have changed their mind on controversial matters.

Producer: Jonathan Brunert.

Former archbishop of Canterbury Lord Carey explains his change of mind on assisted dying.

03Martin Padfield2017110820180103 (R4)Martin Padfield was a Scientologist for 28 years, after meeting a member of the group when he was just 19 years old. He joined the elite corps at the heart of Scientology, as his whole life became dominated by the teachings and strictures of the movement. But after he married, he started to question the way he and his new family were treated. He began to doubt the organisation's integrity, and embarked on a journey that forced him to confront the reality that his whole identity was defined by Scientology.

Martin tells Dominic Lawson how hard it was to extricate himself from what many consider to be a powerful cult, and how tough the journey has been to rediscover an identity lost from the point in his youth when he threw himself into the unusual world of L Ron Hubbard and his disciples.

In "Why I Changed My Mind", Dominic Lawson interviews people who have changed their mind on controversial matters.

Producer: Jonathan Brunert.

A former Scientologist for 28 years tells why he quit what some see as a dangerous cult.

Martin Padfield was a Scientologist for 28 years, after meeting a member of the group when he was just 19 years old. He joined the elite corps at the heart of Scientology, as his whole life became dominated by the teachings and strictures of the movement. But after he married, he started to question the way he and his new family were treated. He began to doubt the organisation's integrity, and embarked on a journey that forced him to confront the reality that his whole identity was defined by Scientology.

Martin tells Dominic Lawson how hard it was to extricate himself from what many consider to be a powerful cult, and how tough the journey has been to rediscover an identity lost from the point in his youth when he threw himself into the unusual world of L Ron Hubbard and his disciples.

In "Why I Changed My Mind", Dominic Lawson interviews people who have changed their mind on controversial matters.

Producer: Jonathan Brunert.

A former Scientologist for 28 years tells why he quit what some see as a dangerous cult.

04Gisela Stuart2018072520180805 (R4)Dominic Lawson hears from people who have changed their mind in a fundamental way on issues of great public significance.

The former Labour MP Gisela Stuart was ardently pro-EU and built a political career helping to promote British membership. But she changed her mind about the whole enterprise and became a key national leader of the Leave campaign to take Britain out of the EU. In this programme she reveals the true story of how her views were transformed and she then faced the uncomfortable challenges of campaigning for an issue that set her against friends, colleagues and family.

Producer: Jonathan Brunert.

Gisela Stuart reveals why she changed her mind on the EU and led the campaign for Brexit.

Dominic Lawson interviews people who have changed their mind on controversial matters.

Dominic Lawson hears from people who have changed their mind in a fundamental way on issues of great public significance.

The former Labour MP Gisela Stuart was ardently pro-EU and built a political career helping to promote British membership. But she changed her mind about the whole enterprise and became a key national leader of the Leave campaign to take Britain out of the EU. In this programme she reveals the true story of how her views were transformed and she then faced the uncomfortable challenges of campaigning for an issue that set her against friends, colleagues and family.

Producer: Jonathan Brunert.

Gisela Stuart reveals why she changed her mind on the EU and led the campaign for Brexit.

Dominic Lawson interviews people who have changed their mind on controversial matters.

04Manwar Ali2018080820180819 (R4)Manwar Ali tells Dominic Lawson why he changed from violent Islamist fighter pursuing global jihad, to become a leading campaigner in Britain against violence and extremism.

Manwar Ali fought in many wars around the globe to achieve the victory of radical Islam. He backed armed conflict to right what he saw as fundamental injustice done to him and fellow Muslims. He fought in Afghanistan, Kashmir and Burma, and helped recruit and radicalise hundreds of others for this cause. But witnessing specific horrors on the battlefield led him to change his mind about jihad. He became convinced that the very means he had embraced to liberate his people were actually destroying individuals and their community. He tells his story of how he realised that violence would not serve the aims he sought, and how he overcame suspicion and intimidation from within his own community to campaign for anti-radicalisation measures against the extremists he sees as destroying Muslim communities around the globe.

Producer: Jonathan Brunert.

Manwar Ali reveals why he changed from violent Islamist fighter to anti-radical campaigner

Dominic Lawson interviews people who have changed their mind on controversial matters.

Manwar Ali tells Dominic Lawson why he changed from violent Islamist fighter pursuing global jihad, to become a leading campaigner in Britain against violence and extremism.

Manwar Ali fought in many wars around the globe to achieve the victory of radical Islam. He backed armed conflict to right what he saw as fundamental injustice done to him and fellow Muslims. He fought in Afghanistan, Kashmir and Burma, and helped recruit and radicalise hundreds of others for this cause. But witnessing specific horrors on the battlefield led him to change his mind about jihad. He became convinced that the very means he had embraced to liberate his people were actually destroying individuals and their community. He tells his story of how he realised that violence would not serve the aims he sought, and how he overcame suspicion and intimidation from within his own community to campaign for anti-radicalisation measures against the extremists he sees as destroying Muslim communities around the globe.

Producer: Jonathan Brunert.

Manwar Ali reveals why he changed from violent Islamist fighter to anti-radical campaigner

Dominic Lawson interviews people who have changed their mind on controversial matters.

04Samantha Kane2018080120180812 (R4)Samantha Kane has changed gender three times, from male to female and then back to male, before transitioning a second time to female. She tells Dominic Lawson the powerful story of her personal journey, and the challenges she faced whilst building three careers as a barrister, entrepreneur and published author. And she replies to critics who have questioned whether transgender women like her should be considered 'real women'.

Producer: Jonathan Brunert.

Sam Kane reveals why she has changed gender three times in the last twenty years.

Dominic Lawson interviews people who have changed their mind on controversial matters.

Samantha Kane has changed gender three times, from male to female and then back to male, before transitioning a second time to female. She tells Dominic Lawson the powerful story of her personal journey, and the challenges she faced whilst building three careers as a barrister, entrepreneur and published author. And she replies to critics who have questioned whether transgender women like her should be considered 'real women'.

Producer: Jonathan Brunert.

Sam Kane reveals why she has changed gender three times in the last twenty years.

Dominic Lawson interviews people who have changed their mind on controversial matters.

04Waney Squier2018081520180826 (R4)World-renowned doctor, Waney Squier, tells Dominic Lawson the price she paid for changing her mind about shaken-baby syndrome. Having supported the existence of the syndrome and testified that people - often parents - were the ones inflicting death and serious injury on children this way, she changed her mind.

Waney Squier was one of the foremost medical experts on the developing brain of infants and babies before their birth. She appeared many times as an expert witness for the prosecution in cases of shaken-baby syndrome. But she changed her mind and decided the evidence now suggests this syndrome does not exist, casting doubt on any explanations for a baby's demise that rest on this theory. Her change of mind was followed by a complaint from the police that led to her being struck off the medical register. Here she tells her story, and how her change of mind led to professional disaster and personal heartache.

Producer: Jonathan Brunert.

Waney Squier reveals the price she paid for changing her mind about shaken-baby syndrome.

Dominic Lawson interviews people who have changed their mind on controversial matters.

World-renowned doctor, Waney Squier, tells Dominic Lawson the price she paid for changing her mind about shaken-baby syndrome. Having supported the existence of the syndrome and testified that people - often parents - were the ones inflicting death and serious injury on children this way, she changed her mind.

Waney Squier was one of the foremost medical experts on the developing brain of infants and babies before their birth. She appeared many times as an expert witness for the prosecution in cases of shaken-baby syndrome. But she changed her mind and decided the evidence now suggests this syndrome does not exist, casting doubt on any explanations for a baby's demise that rest on this theory. Her change of mind was followed by a complaint from the police that led to her being struck off the medical register. Here she tells her story, and how her change of mind led to professional disaster and personal heartache.

Producer: Jonathan Brunert.

Waney Squier reveals the price she paid for changing her mind about shaken-baby syndrome.

Dominic Lawson interviews people who have changed their mind on controversial matters.