Princess Beatrice and Laura Tobin headline World Prematurity Day podcast
Borne is marking World Prematurity Day with a powerful extension of its Every Week Counts campaign, championed by patron HRH Princess Beatrice, Professor Mark Johnson, and Borne Ambassador Laura Tobin, to shine a spotlight on the urgent need for greater understanding and research into premature birth. The campaign builds on a series of events and activations throughout November, culminating today with a new episode of The Borne Podcast and a special live appearance from Professor Mark Johnson and Laura Tobin on ITV’s Lorraine.
Listen to the World Prematurity Day Special podcast episode NOW
Each year, 60,000 babies are born prematurely in the UK, that’s 1 in 13 births, yet pregnancy and childbirth receive less than 2% of medical research funding. Globally, 15 million babies arrive too soon, and complications from prematurity remain the leading cause of neonatal death and lifelong disability. The Every Week Counts campaign draws attention to this crisis by emphasising the critical importance of keeping babies safely in the womb for as long as possible.
This morning, Laura Tobin and Professor Mark Johnson appeared live on ITV’s Lorraine, discussing the realities of premature birth, the challenges faced by families, and the groundbreaking research Borne is funding to prevent babies being born too soon. The conversation set the tone for World Prematurity Day, highlighting the immense gap between the scale of the challenge and the level of investment currently directed toward solving it. To coincide with the day, Borne has also launched a special episode of The Borne Podcast, featuring HRH Princess Beatrice, Professor Mark Johnson, and Laura Tobin. In this heartfelt and revealing conversation, they discuss experiences of premature birth, the science behind the charity’s research, and the urgent need to expand our understanding of pregnancy, a field that remains one of the most underfunded and least understood areas of medicine. The episode provides listeners with a rare insight into both the emotional realities and scientific complexities of prematurity, underscoring the transformative potential of future breakthroughs.
In addition, to understand public awareness around premature birth, Borne captured two sets of street-interview vox pops filmed across London, revealing widespread uncertainty about how common preterm birth is, what causes it, and how significantly it affects families. These interviews will be shared across the charity’s social channels throughout the week, encouraging conversation and greater public engagement at a time when awareness is needed most.
Today’s activities follow a series of campaign events earlier this month. On Monday 10 November, HRH Princess Beatrice and Laura Tobin visited Borne’s research laboratories at Chelsea and Westminster Hospital to learn more about the charity’s pioneering work into the causes of premature birth. The visit highlighted Borne’s commitment to unravelling the mysteries of pregnancy, supporting scientists and clinicians as they work to develop treatments that could prevent babies from being born too soon. The following day, on Tuesday 11 November, HRH Princess Beatrice and Professor Mark Johnson hosted a
special event at Control Room B at Battersea Power Station, bringing together supporters, researchers, and families united by Borne’s mission. The event celebrated Borne’s progress, spotlighted the campaign’s message that every week counts, and reinforced the importance of investing in research that could change the future for thousands of families.
Reflecting on the campaign, HRH Princess Beatrice, Patron of Borne, said:
“The work that Borne is undertaking is incredibly close and personal to me following the birth of my daughter. Every year in the UK, 60,000 babies are delivered too soon, with little information or research as to why this is. That is why I am really looking forward to supporting Borne and its programme of groundbreaking research, which I hope will help thousands of parents and children in the future.”
David Badcock, Chief Executive of Borne, added:
“We were honoured to welcome HRH Princess Beatrice to launch our campaign. Her support helps raise awareness of the urgent need for research into prematurity; an area that has for too long been underfunded and underexplored. At Borne, we believe every week counts — and by investing in science today, we can transform outcomes for families tomorrow.”
