The 24 Weekers

Elaine Gregersen was 24 weeks pregnant when her waters broke. Having endured sickness throughout her high-risk pregnancy, she and husband Mark had not suspected anything sinister was happening when she appeared to be suffering from bladder weakness too.  After a traumatic 24 hours in the maternity ward, the Gregersens were faced with the reality that their twin boys, Henry and Blake, were unlikely to both survive beyond the neonatal unit. In this interview with Olly, they tell their story.  Content warning: intense experience, infant mortality.  — Meanwhile, in the Zeitgeist, Ollie Peart investigates if, following the Coronation of King Charles III, Republican sentiment is trending upwards. What path is there for Royal refuseniks to achieve their desire for an elected UK Head of State? Thanks to columnist and commentator Yasmin Alibhai-Brown, Ollie unpicks the arguments monarchists put forward - and rewrites the National Anthem whilst he’s at it… If you’ve got a trend for Ollie to test in a future edition of the Zeitgeist, head to our website and fill out the feedback form. — Elsewhere, in the Foxhole, Alix Fox - high on life from some Personal News - answers your sex questions: this month, a Mannfan whose girlfriend burst into tears when he called her a ‘whore’ in the missionary position. Is there a way to recover his mojo? Must he apologise for overstepping the mark? And how should you do ‘pillow talk’ - whilst respecting your partner’s boundaries? With the help of sex educator Lola Jean and playwright and storyteller Cameryn Moore, Alix has the answers! If you’ve got a sex and relationships question for Alix to tackle in a future edition of the Foxhole, submit it via the feedback form on our website. — Finally, our record of the month is ‘Letter To Myself’, something peppy and fun from Leigh’s The Lottery Winners featuring Frank Turner. It’s out now. — Love the show? Support the show! We rely on listeners like you to fund our independent podcast and bring you these stories.  Buy Olly and the team a beer right now - using our secure payment form at MODERNMANN.CO.UK — See you on June 10th! Presenter: Olly Mann. Contributors: Ollie Peart, Alix Fox, Elaine Gregersen, Mark Gregersen, The Lottery Winners. Producer: Matt Hill. Theme Music: ‘Skies Over Cairo’ by Django Django. Graphic Design: Terry Saunders. Copyright: Olly Mann / Rethink Audio 2023. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices