Ruth Peacock

Ruth is the leader of the Religion Media Centre project and oversees its work. After studying theology and teaching RE, she trained as a journalist on a local paper, freelanced in print and radio and then joined the BBC, working in many news departments, including the main newsgathering desk. She also worked on the BBC’s move into the new W1 building and studied organisational change.

Written Content

Religion news 17 January 2025

Government announces national audit of grooming gangs; Eighteen charities demand justice for Palestinians; Survey says 12 per cent of UK adults are antisemitic; Acting on Makin review a “watershed moment” for CofE; Monthly bonus to Vatican families with three children

Religion news 15 January 2025

The lost music of Auschwitz uncovered by young British composer; Decision on changes to church repair scheme announced soon; Grooming gang debate descends into anger in Welsh Senedd; Three day meeting on the future of the United Reformed Church

Religion news 14 January 2025

Pope’s autobiography ‘Hope’ in a life of tension; National consultation on future of Inter Faith Week; Holocaust reception at Buckingham Palace; Peterborough Cathedral’s financial crisis may force part closure

Religion news 13 January 2025

“Muslim Leadership Council” the government can engage with; 400 million pilgrims expected for Hindu festival in India; Pope awarded US Presidential Medal of Freedom with Distinction; Would be children’s TV presenter turned nun, in line for sainthood

Religion news 10 January 2025

Religious buildings destroyed and communities ripped apart by fire in Los Angeles; Tributes to President Carter, whose life was ‘a testament to the goodness of God’; Founder of Sikh Youth UK jailed for theft; New church pilgrimage centre opened at site of Jesus’ baptism

Religion news 7 January 2025

Justin Welby leaves office after a turbulent 12 years; Archbishop of York takes over a church in turmoil today; Policy Exchange report on Muslim Council of Britain election; Progressive cardinal appointed to Washington DC as Trump moves in

Religion news 6 January 2025

Welby steps down after evensong tonight; Action, not ‘racist witch hunt’, needed to tackle grooming gangs; The vicar on ‘The Traitors’ obsessed with murder; Pope tells nuns not to adopt ‘a vinegar face’

Religion news 3 January 2025

Rosary podcast goes straight to number one in Apple charts; US Council on American-Islamic Relations denounces New Orleans attacker; The future of AI and its power to change people and the world; Notre Dame will welcome the next annual Taizé gathering

Religion news 2 January 2025

Pope’s New Year’s message: respect dignity of life, as Year of Jubilee 2025 begins; Jewish festival of lights, Hanukkah, ends today; Police record large rise in antisemitic and Islamophobic hate crimes; Priest jailed in Belarus for criticising government in his sermons