When Mahynour’s daughter gets her first bra, it’s Mahynour who is the most excited – her little girl is a young lady now. But it also brings Mahynour’s memories of her own teenage years flooding back. She remembers not wanting to wear a bra – she felt ashamed of the changes in her body, and she didn’t know who to talk to. How can she make sure her daughter has a better experience? Luckily, her female relatives are on hand to help out…

Letter writer: Mahynour Dear Daughter is an award-winning podcast from the BBC World Service about love, life, family, and raising children. It is the brainchild of Namulanta Kombo, a mother on a quest to create a ‘handbook to life’ for her daughter, through the advice of parents from all over the world.

Each episode, a guest reads a letter they’ve written to their children (or their future children, or the children they never had) with the advice, life lessons, and personal stories they’d like to pass on. Expect extraordinary true stories, inspirational advice for parents, and moving accounts of families, relationships and raising daughters.

Share your letter! What do you want to say to your kids? Or the next generation? Do you have thoughts on motherhood, fatherhood, or parenthood to share? Whether you are a mum or mom, dad or papa, grandparent, uncle, aunt, daughter, son or just want to write a letter, send us a WhatsApp message on +44 800 030 4404 or visit www.bbcworldservice.com/deardaughter

Audio for this episode was updated on 1 May 2025.

Hot on the heels of our Stars season, stand by for Dear Daughter season 5, starting Friday April 25th.

Namulanta Kombo is collecting letters of advice from around the world to create a handbook to life for her daughter Koko – and daughters everywhere.

This season Namulanta’s been speaking to letter-writers all over the world, from India to Colombia to South Africa. We’ll hear from divorce lawyer Vandana Shah how the end of her marriage led her to retrain as a lawyer, and the advice she always gives to new clients. Listener Paola talks about the grief of losing her daughter aged just 17. Rahab writes to her daughter to apologise for missing out on so much of her childhood because she was in prison at the time. And blogger Malaka Grant tells Namulanta about the lesson she learned when her Pop-pop brought out her first erotic novel over Christmas brunch.

Plus we’ll hear letters about some of the big milestones in a daughter’s life. Shelley in Arkansas reads us the letter she slipped into her daughter’s suitcase as she was leaving for college. Azola in South Africa talks about the day his friends threw him a “nappy braai” or dads-only baby shower. And Mahynor in Egypt tells Namulanta about the excitement of buying her daughter her first bra.

More brilliant advice, thoughtful conversations, laughter, wisdom and tears – join us for the new season of Dear Daughter from Friday April 25th.

And we’d love to hear from you! We’d love to hear your letter for your daughter, or a daughter figure in your life, or your younger self. Email us on [email protected] or go to www.bbc.co.uk/deardaughter to find out more.

You can read our privacy notice here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/3ZFHNV8v7qgTm1zbKbkwsvR/dear-daughter-privacy-notice

Wen was raised believing sex is taboo but she knows she must change for her daughter’s sake.

Her grandmother was ashamed to talk about it. Her mum and dad had to visit the biology section of the library to find out how to do it. Wen wants to raise her daughter differently. In her letter, she says she wants to create a safe space at home to talk more openly. She passes on advice for navigating the world of dating, sex, and relationships: hug every day, dress in a way that pleases you and fart whenever and wherever…

Dear Daughter is an award-winning podcast from the BBC World Service about love, life, family, and raising children. It is the brainchild of Namulanta Kombo, a mother on a quest to create a ‘handbook to life’ for her daughter, through the advice of parents from all over the world.

Each episode, a guest reads a letter they’ve written to their children (or their future children, or the children they never had) with the advice, life lessons, and personal stories they’d like to pass on. Expect extraordinary true stories, inspirational advice for parents, and moving accounts of families, relationships and raising daughters.

Share your letter! What do you want to say to your kids? Or the next generation? Do you have thoughts on motherhood, fatherhood, or parenthood to share? Whether you are a mum or mom, dad or papa, grandparent, uncle, aunt, daughter, son or just want to write a letter, send us a Whatsapp message on +44 800 030 4404 or visit bbcworldservice.com/deardaughter.

You can read our privacy notice here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/3ZFHNV8v7qgTm1zbKbkwsvR/dear-daughter-privacy-notice