Gisèle Pelicot: My Life Before The World Knew My Name | Pt. 1

Begin Again with Davina McCall

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Thursday, 25 June 2026 - 21 minutes

Gisèle Pelicot became known around the world when she waived her right to anonymity in the sexual assault trial that shocked France and beyond. But before the headlines, before the courtroom, and before the world knew her name, Gisèle had a life, a family, a marriage, and a story of her own.

This is Part 1 of Gisèle Pelicot’s story on Begin Again.

In this episode, Gisèle joins Davina to talk about her life before the case became public. She reflects on falling in love as a teenager, building a family, becoming a mother, and the life she believed she was living with the man she had trusted for decades.

Gisèle speaks with extraordinary dignity about the moment her life began to change, the questions she had no answers for, and the painful process of discovering what had happened to her. She reflects on the moments she could not explain at the time, the questions that went unanswered, and the devastating betrayal of discovering what had happened to her.

Davina and Gisèle also discuss why so many victims struggle to speak, and why shame should never belong to the person who has been harmed.

This conversation ends as Davina asks Gisèle what it felt like for people not to believe her. That question, and everything that followed, continues in Part 2 of Gisèle’s story.

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Hardback:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Hymn-Life-Shame-Change-Sides/dp/184792896X/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&dib_tag=se&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.pKtWbZhPB1Me57eLekSRlRNTiKNoYduQoXz3CqbwwvY.6BNLixMym6UnLPYhwlSkqOF7fhXDf1AKLW_mmcGaeSM&qid=1781522906&sr=8-1

Audiobook (read by Emma Thompson):

https://open.spotify.com/show/1Gy9pylmMgYWm6zOvcvv6Y?si=d3f1f19009134671

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(00:00) Intro
(00:01) Do Health Ad
(01:11) Why Gisèle Pelicot’s Story Matters
(01:55) What Beginning Again Means To Gisèle
(03:02) Meeting Dominique Pelicot At 19
(04:30) Gisèle’s Life Before The World Knew Her Name
(05:33) When The Abuse Began
(06:29) The First Time Gisèle Questioned Him
(08:26) How Gisèle Discovered The Truth
(10:33) Seeing The Photos For The First Time
(12:46) How The Drugging Was Uncovered
(13:51) Chemical Submission, Shame & Speaking Out

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