BBC Radio 4

Marilyn Monroe and her ilk aspired to be brilliant in conversation as well as on camera; they wanted to pose with books as well as blonde hair. They understood the value of their sexual currency and they had enough sense to take advantage of their assets.

In this programme, Maureen Dowd brings together some of her most eminent friends and colleagues (amongst them, Harvey Weinstein and Mike Nichols) to travel back to a time when glamour and brains were not mutually exclusive. With the help of archive and some brilliant personal anecdotes, they’ll debate why the figureheads of the 50s believed in education as a mark of status and success; and why intellectual ambition is mocked by our role models today. 

Pick of the Week in the Radio Times.

"This is a quality piece of radio and gives women of every hair colour something to think about." Jane Anderson (Radio Times)