Emilie Siobhan Geoghegan François (born December 1982), known as Myriam François and formerly as Myriam François-Cerrah, is a British journalist, filmmaker and writer. Her work has appeared on the

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by Channel Four Television Corporation. It is state-owned enterprise, publicly owned but, unlike the BBC, it receives no public funding and is funded en ...

and

Al Jazeera Al Jazeera Media Network (AJMN; , ) is a private-media conglomerate headquartered in Wadi Al Sail, Doha, funded in part by the government of Qatar. The network's flagship channels include Al Jazeera Arabic and Al Jazeera English, which pro ...

. She is the founder and CEO of production company MPWR Productions, which specialises in documentary films centred on minority voices.

Early life, early career and education

François was born in Camden, London, to an Irish mother and a French father. She attended a French school in London and is bilingual. She was born Emilie François, but has used Myriam instead of her given name since she became Muslim in 2003. François was a

child actress The term child actor or child actress is generally applied to a child acting on stage, television, or in movies. An adult who began their acting career as a child may also be called a child actor, or a "former child actor". Closely associated te ...

, whose performance as Margaret Dashwood in the Oscar-winning film ''

Sense and Sensibility ''Sense and Sensibility'' ( working title; ''Elinor and Marianne'') is the first novel by the English author Jane Austen, published in 1811. It was published anonymously: ''By A Lady'' appears on the title page where the author's name might h ...

'' (1995) earned her critical acclaim. She went on to appear in ''

Paws A paw is the soft foot-like part of a mammal, generally a quadruped, that has claws. Common characteristics The paw is characterised by thin, pigmented, keratinised, hairless epidermis covering subcutaneous collagenous and adipose tissue, whi ...

'' (1997), alongside

Billy Connolly Sir William Connolly (born 24 November 1942) is a Scottish actor, musician, television presenter, artist and retired stand-up comedian. He is sometimes known by the Scots nickname the Big Yin ("the Big One"). Known for his idiosyncratic and of ...

and Nathan Cavaleri, and in ''

New Year's Day In the Gregorian calendar, New Year's Day is the first day of the calendar year, January 1, 1 January. Most solar calendars, such as the Gregorian and Julian calendars, begin the year regularly at or near the December solstice, northern winter ...

'' (2001). François holds an MA from

Georgetown University Georgetown University is a private university, private Jesuit research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Founded by Bishop John Carroll (archbishop of Baltimore), John Carroll in 1789, it is the oldest Catholic higher education, Ca ...

(United States) and a BA from the

University of Cambridge The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...

(UK). She completed her PhD (DPhil) at

Oxford University The University of Oxford is a collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the second-oldest continuously operating u ...

, focusing on Islamic movements in Morocco in 2017.

Career

François was an assistant editor and features writer at ''Emel'' magazine (2008–2009) and worked at the Islam Channel in London. She translated

Asma Lamrabet Asma Lamrabet (Rabat, Morocco, 1961) is a Moroccan doctor, Islamic feminist, scholar and author. Personal life Asma Lamrabet was born in Rabat. She currently resides in Rabat, Morocco. She considers her education to be occidental. She is marri ...

's book, Women in the Qur’an: An Emancipatory Reading which won the

English Pen Founded in 1921, English PEN is one of the world's first non-governmental organisations and among the first international bodies advocating for human rights. English PEN was the founding centre of PEN International, a worldwide writers' associa ...

Award. François began her career in documentary filmmaking as a presenter and producer at the BBC. Her first documentary on

BBC One BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's oldest and flagship channel, and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television b ...

, ''A Deadly Warning: Srebrenica Revisited'' (2015), was nominated for the Sandford St Martin Religious Programming Award in 2016. In 2016, she presented her second documentary, ''The Muslim Pound'' (2016), which explores the growing consumer goods market for Muslims in the UK. She was also a programme researcher and presenter at the BBC and a regular guest on its flagship channel's ''

The Big Questions ''The Big Questions'' was an interfaith dialogue and ethics television programme usually presented by Nicky Campbell. It was broadcast live on BBC One on Sunday mornings, replacing ''The Heaven and Earth Show'' as the BBC's religious discussion ...

'' from 2008 to 2011 and on '' Sunday Morning Live'' also in 2015. François then worked as a programme producer on Al Jazeera English's ''Head to Head''. In 2017, François presented ''The Truth About Muslim Marriage'' (Channel 4, 2017), which was nominated for Best Investigative Documentary at the Asian Media Awards in 2018. François then joined

TRT World TRT Global, previously named TRT World, is a Turkish public broadcaster which broadcasts in English 24 hours a day and is operated by the TRT and based in the Ulus quarter of Ankara. It provides worldwide news and current affairs focusing on ...

as Europe correspondent, covering European breaking news. Between 2017 and 2018, she also developed, produced and presented ''Compass'', a monthly arts and culture documentary for the channel. In 2019, François left TRT World and began working with

BBC World Service The BBC World Service is a British Public broadcasting, public service broadcaster owned and operated by the BBC. It is the world's largest external broadcaster in terms of reception area, language selection and audience reach. It broadcas ...

, where she produced and presented a series of short documentaries, including ''

Tariq Ramadan Tariq Ramadan (, ; born 26 August 1962) is a Swiss Muslim academic, philosopher and writer. He was a professor of contemporary Islamic studies at St Antony's College, Oxford and the Faculty of Theology and Religion, University of Oxford, He is ...

: #MeToo in the Muslim World'' (2018), and ''Is Brexit-Voting Llanelli Changing Its Mind?'' (2019) which looks at the impact of

Brexit Brexit (, a portmanteau of "Britain" and "Exit") was the Withdrawal from the European Union, withdrawal of the United Kingdom (UK) from the European Union (EU). Brexit officially took place at 23:00 GMT on 31 January 2020 (00:00 1 February ...

Llanelli ; ) is a market town and community (Wales), community in Carmarthenshire and the Preserved counties of Wales, preserved county of Dyfed, Wales. It is on the estuary of the River Loughor and is the largest town in the Principal areas of Wales, ...

, a Leave-voting town in Wales. In 2019, her documentary ''City of Refuge'', which examined the plight of Syrian refugees in Lebanon, aired on BBC Radio 4 in April and on BBC World service in May. In 2022, she presented the BBC World Service audio documentary ''When Rape Becomes a Crime'', which focuses on rape laws in Senegal. François also began hosting and producing ''The Big Picture: France in Focus,'' a four-part series for Al Jazeera English focused on the fault lines within French society.

Writing

François was a

correspondent A correspondent or on-the-scene reporter is usually a journalist or commentator for a magazine, or an agent who contributes reports to a newspaper, or radio or television news, or another type of company, from a remote, often distant, locati ...

for the ''

Huffington Post ''HuffPost'' (''The Huffington Post'' until 2017, itself often abbreviated as ''HPo'') is an American progressive news website, with localized and international editions. The site offers news, satire, blogs, and original content, and covers ...

'' (2014–2015), where she broke a headline story on an exclusive 36-page document written by alleged al-Qaeda kingpin Khalid Sheikh Mohammed. She has appeared on ''

Newsnight ''Newsnight'' is the BBC's news and current affairs programme, providing in-depth investigation and analysis of the stories behind the day's headlines. It is broadcast weeknights at 10:30 on BBC Two and the BBC News channel; it is also avail ...

'' (2009), '' 4thought.tv'' (2011),

BBC News BBC News is an operational business division of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs in the UK and around the world. The department is the world's largest broad ...

(2010), ''

Crosstalk In electronics, crosstalk (XT) is a phenomenon by which a signal transmitted on one circuit or channel of a transmission system creates an undesired effect in another circuit or channel. Crosstalk is usually caused by undesired capacitive, ...

'' (2010),

BBC Radio BBC Radio is an operational business division and service of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) which has operated in the United Kingdom under the terms of a royal charter since 1927. The service provides national radio stations cove ...

(2012),

Sky News Sky News is a British free-to-air television news channel, live stream news network and news organisation. Sky News is distributed via an English-language radio news service, and through online channels. It is owned by Sky Group, a division of ...

and documentaries including ''Divine Women'', presented by

Bettany Hughes Bettany Mary Hughes (born May 1967) is an English historian, author, and broadcaster, specialising in classical history. Her published books cover classical antiquity and myth, and the history of Istanbul. She is active in efforts to encourag ...

. A former columnist at the ''

New Statesman ''The New Statesman'' (known from 1931 to 1964 as the ''New Statesman and Nation'') is a British political and cultural news magazine published in London. Founded as a weekly review of politics and literature on 12 April 1913, it was at first c ...

'', François's writing has featured in the British press, including ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

'', ''TIME'', ''

Foreign Policy Foreign policy, also known as external policy, is the set of strategies and actions a State (polity), state employs in its interactions with other states, unions, and international entities. It encompasses a wide range of objectives, includ ...

'', ''

The Telegraph ''The Telegraph'', ''Daily Telegraph'', ''Sunday Telegraph'' and other variant names are often names for newspapers. Newspapers with these titles include: Australia * The Telegraph (Adelaide), ''The Telegraph'' (Adelaide), a newspaper in Adelaid ...

'',

CNN Cable News Network (CNN) is a multinational news organization operating, most notably, a website and a TV channel headquartered in Atlanta. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable ne ...

online and ''

Middle East Eye ''Middle East Eye'' (MEE) is a United Kingdom-based media website and channel that primarily focuses on news related to the Middle East, North Africa, and the broader Muslim world. The ownership of the organisation is undisclosed. Some sources ...

''. François is a former senior fellow at the Center for Global Policy (CGP), a think tank where, between 2019 and 2020, she produced an in-depth report looking at the plight of European children of

ISIS Isis was a major goddess in ancient Egyptian religion whose worship spread throughout the Greco-Roman world. Isis was first mentioned in the Old Kingdom () as one of the main characters of the Osiris myth, in which she resurrects her sla ...

fighters in camps in Northern Syria, as well as an accompanying piece for ''

''. She has been an outspoken critic of

Islamophobia Islamophobia is the irrational fear of, hostility towards, or hatred against the religion of Islam or Muslims in general. Islamophobia is primarily a form of religious or cultural bigotry; and people who harbour such sentiments often stereot ...

. She is a former research associate at School of Oriental and African Studies at the University of London (SOAS), in the Department of the Languages and Cultures of the Near and Middle East, where she researched issues related to British Muslims, integration, and racism. Her articles also appeared in ''The Huffington Post'', ''

'', ''Your Middle East'', ''

The London Paper ''The London Paper'' (stylised as ''thelondonpaper'') was a free daily newspaper, published by NI Free Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of News International (who also own the companies that publish ''The Sun'' and ''The Times''). It was available fr ...

'', ''Jadaliyya'', the

Australian Broadcasting Corporation The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) is Australia’s principal public service broadcaster. It is funded primarily by grants from the federal government and is administered by a government-appointed board of directors. The ABC is ...

, ''

The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a British daily broadsheet conservative newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed in the United Kingdom and internationally. It was found ...

'', ''

Salon Salon may refer to: Common meanings * Beauty salon A beauty salon or beauty parlor is an establishment that provides Cosmetics, cosmetic treatments for people. Other variations of this type of business include hair salons, spas, day spas, ...

'', ''

Index on Censorship Index on Censorship is an organisation campaigning for freedom of expression. It produces a quarterly magazine of the same name from London. It is directed by the non-profit-making Writers and Scholars International, Ltd (WSI) in association wit ...

'', The F-Word, and the magazine '' Emel''.

Other work

François gave guest lectures at

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

(2014), the

University of Birmingham The University of Birmingham (informally Birmingham University) is a Public university, public research university in Birmingham, England. It received its royal charter in 1900 as a successor to Queen's College, Birmingham (founded in 1825 as ...

(2014), and Luther College (2015) in

Decorah, Iowa Decorah is the largest city in and county seat of Winneshiek County, Iowa, Winneshiek County, Iowa, United States. The population was 7,587 at the time of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Decorah is located at the intersection of Iowa ...

, and presented an annual guest lecture at

Kingston University Kingston University London is a Public university, public research university located within the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames, in South London, South West London, England. Its roots go back to the Kingston Technical Institute, founded ...

, in England, in 2012–2014. She spoke at the 2015 '' HowTheLightsGetsIn'' at the Hay-on-Wye Festival. She has been a regular presenter at high-profile events, including the Mayor of London's Eid Festival 2019 and the London Modest Fashion Festival 2018. She was a judge for the 2019

Baillie Gifford Prize The Baillie Gifford Prize for Non-Fiction, formerly the Samuel Johnson Prize, is an annual British book prize for the best non-fiction writing in the English language. It was founded in 1999 following the demise of the NCR Book Award. With its ...

for non-fiction books.

Personal life

In 2003, at the age of 21, François became a

Muslim Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...

after graduating from Cambridge. At the time, she was a sceptical

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

. She rejects the use of the words "convert" and "revert" as "exclusionary", describing herself as "just Muslim". François chose to stop wearing a

hijab Hijab (, ) refers to head coverings worn by Women in Islam, Muslim women. Similar to the mitpaḥat/tichel or Snood (headgear), snood worn by religious married Jewish women, certain Christian head covering, headcoverings worn by some Christian w ...

in the late 2010s. She said that the subsequent lack of

due to her being a white woman in Western attire made her feel enmeshed in

white privilege White privilege, or white skin privilege, is the Social privilege, societal privilege that benefits white people over Person of color, non-white people in some societies, particularly if they are otherwise under the same social, political, or ...

. Nevertheless, she did not decide to return to the hijab. As of 2015, François was married to a Turkish man. By early 2022, they had divorced.

Filmography

* ''A Deadly Warning: Srebrenica Revisited'', BBC One, 2015 (presenter) * ''The Muslim Pound'', BBC One, 2016 (presenter) * ''The Truth About Muslim Marriage'', Channel 4, 2017 (presenter) * ''Compass'' series, TRT World, 2018–19 (presenter/producer) ** ''Witnesses of Stone'' ** ''Crafting an Identity - 'Britishness' After Brexit'' ** ''Art Against All Odds'' * ''France in Focus'' series, Al Jazeera English, 2022 (presenter/producer) ** ''The Big Picture'' ** ''Flirting with the Far Right'' ** ''The Legacy of Colonialism in France'' * ''Finding Aicha'', BBC's Our World/

BBC Arabic BBC Arabic () consisted of the Modern Standard Arabic, Literary Arabic language radio station which was run by the BBC World Service, as well as the BBC Arabic Television, BBC's satellite TV channel, and the website that serves as a Literary Ar ...

CBC CBC may refer to: Media * Cadena Baja California or Grupo Cadena, a radio and television broadcaster in Mexico * Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, Canada's radio and television public broadcaster ** CBC Television ** CBC Radio One ** CBC Music ** ...

, 2023 (director/producer)

References

External links

Official website
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Francois, Myriam 1982 births 20th-century English actresses 21st-century British women writers Academics of SOAS University of London Actors from the London Borough of Camden Actresses from London Al Jazeera people Alumni of the University of Cambridge BBC television presenters British women columnists Converts to Sunni Islam from Roman Catholicism British child actresses English columnists English film actresses English former Christians English Muslims English people of French descent English people of Irish descent English television presenters English women journalists Georgetown University Graduate School of Arts & Sciences alumni HuffPost writers and columnists Living people Television personalities from the London Borough of Camden Turkish Radio and Television Corporation people Writers from the London Borough of Camden 21st-century English women Place of birth missing (living people)