Groundbreaking Dr Heba Kotb made her name as Egypt’s first ever licensed sexologist. She has more than a quarter of a million Instagram followers and an incredible 418,000 YouTube subscribers. Her work in sex and relationships uses the advice of the Qur’an as its basis and has led to her becoming the host of the weekly Big Talk sexual advice phone-in in Egypt and a popular newspaper columnist.

Dr Kotb was born in Egypt in 1967 and grew up wanting to be a surgeon. Her studies led to her to explore the topic of sexuality, and she realised that the Qur’an spoke of what she believes are healthy sexual relationships between married men and women that also recognise women’s rights. She spent time studying in both Cairo and Florida and became Egypt’s first licensed sexologist in 2003. Her professional career reaches its 20th anniversary with her reputation across the country stronger than ever.

Dr Kotb’s views are liberal within Egypt’s Islamic culture and have seen her draw criticism from more conservative clerics, particularly regarding her assertions regarding the rights of a woman within marital sex. However, they come with significant trigger warnings for more secular, liberal Westerners, as her beliefs about subjects such as homosexuality and masturbation adhere to the views of Qur’an (she sees the former and sinful and endorses conversion therapy for it. She does not agree with the latter for females).