My Foetus
Director: Channel 4
Year: 2004
Country: UK
Duration: 30 mins
Rating: N/A
Julia Black's father set up the Marie Stopes clinic, which is the largest abortion provider outside the UK's National Health Service. She grew up with an unquestioning belief in a woman's freedom of choice, and she herself had an abortion at the age of 21. She was heavily pregnant during the making of this film, in which she challenges her - and society's - attitude towards abortion. The film contains graphic images of dismembered foetuses and shows an abortion using the "manual vacuum aspiration" method. The film, like its subject matter, is controversial, emotive and deeply unpleasant. But it would be difficult to question Ms Black's honesty and integrity, and - as one pro-life activist suggests - is it right that something too awful to be shown on television should be legal? (Aired Tuesday 20 April 2004, 23:05)