That'll be the Day

To what extent have women's lives changed in the past 60 years?   This is the question I discuss in this podcast with the visually impaired writer and actor, Mandy Redvers-Rowe.   Working with the Liverpool-based theatre group, Collective Encounters, Mandy has written Auntie, which draws on BBC archive material to shed light on how women's lives were portrayed in the 1960s.   Collective En...

In this podcast, Tom Walker talks to Dave Evans who grew up in apartheid South Africa. On leaving school, Dave became increasingly aware of the injustices caused by the South African government's racist policies. Dave now lives in Wallasey, Merseyside,  with his partner jenny, where he continues to write and champion the cause of social justice.

In this podcast, I talk to a visually impaired storyteller, teacher and voice-coach about the challenges his disability presents him with during his working life.

This is an interview with Graham Trust from the Liverpool band The Vow, which was originally broadcast on Mandy Woodman's All things Rock and Indie show on Ultimate Radio in February 2022. Very sadly, Graham passed away earlier this week so I'm issuing this as a podcast in tribute to him. Rest in peace old boy! You left us with loads of marvellous memories and a stash of great music to lis...

In this podcast, tom Walker talks to Geoff Cope who, after a successful career playing cricket for Yorkshire and England, was diagnosed at the age of 37 with the eye condition, Retinitis Pigmentosa. Geoff shared dressing rooms with some giants of the game including Geoffrey Boycott and Freddie Trueman and has a wealth of stories to share.  

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to lose your eyesight?  The American author and writer, Jon Gingerich has retinitis pigmentosa. RP is a  progressive condition which means that a person’s sight will continue to get worse over the years. Often, after the vision has been stable for a while, it can get worse suddenly over a short period of time. This is Jon's story.

From a victim of the Omagh bombing to a winner of The Voice, Tom Walker talked to some extraordinary visually impaired people while recording an edition of the In Touch Programme for BBC Radio 4 some years ago. 

As you will hear in the Christmas edition of my That'll be the Day podcast, there's so much more to Penny Melville-Brown from Fareham, than losing her sight or being the first female naval barrister.  Throughout her life, Penny has known success and disaster in equal measure, but what becomes patently clear, is that resilience is conspicuous by its presence. By any standards, Penny is a remar...

In this podcast, Tom Walker talks to Deborah Fairclough, a visually impaired woman from Sheffield, whose recent experience of travelling by train was quite traumatic. When the assistance Deborah booked didn’t turn up to help her to get off the train, she had no option other than to try to do that independently. It very nearly didn’t end well. Thankfully, Deborah is still here and able to tell the...

In this podcast, Tom Walker talks to Alan McCoomb from Liverpool who, at the age of 34, had a stroke which resulted in him losing his sight and in considerable cognitive deficit. The doctors said Alan was lucky to survive. Since then, Alan has taken advantage of the opportunities that have come his way, including studying for a degree in History and continuing with his love of cricket.

In this podcast, Tom Walker talks to a visually impaired man whose graduation ceremony was ruined by disability discrimination and thoughtlessness. But as you will hear, there’s much more to Connor Scott-Gardner than this. In addition to campaigning and raising awareness of the challenges visually impaired people face, Connor has spent a year living in Colombia and is trans-gender.

In this podcast, Martin Conway who’s totally blind, tells Tom Walker about his experiences of waiting for a very long time for help to get off and on aeroplanes. Martin regularly flies between Manchester and Ireland to attend GAA and other sports fixtures. Martin isn’t alone … the BBC’s Security Correspondent, Frank Gardner who uses a wheelchair, has also recently been forced to wait for way too l...

In this podcast, Margaret Ord tells Tom Walker about how she coped with her visual impairment. At school, university and in her working life, virtually no adjustments were made for Margaret, with the exception of in her Biology O Level. It’s a story of determination - with a bit of blag thrown in!

In this podcast, Tom Walker talks to the visually impaired drag queen, Jake Sawyers, aka Venetia Blind. As you will hear, there’s much more to Jake than his drag queen act. Jake Talks about the challenges he experienced when attending mainstream school and when training to be an actor.

In this podcast, Tom Walker speaks to the Blind Braille Artist, Clarke Reynolds, about how he uses Braille to create art installations, how he has coped with losing his sight and so much more. Given that he has only recently lost his sight, Clarke has developed considerable insight and understanding of the challenges blind and partially sighted people face. In this conversation, Clarke talks openl...

In this podcast, Tom Walker talks to Sean Harrington, a visually impaired singer/song-writer, who is making waves on the Irish music scene. Tom caught up with Sean just before he was due to go on stage at the Irish Centre in Liverpool.

In this podcast, Tom Walker talks to visually impaired probation officer, Gill Wake, about the challenges she has faced at work and her views on the wider issues facing disabled people. Gill has over 32 years’ experience of working with offenders, some of whom would be classed as seriously dangerous. There are stories and funny anecdotes aplenty.

In this podcast, Tom Walker talks to Gary O’Connor about the challenges he faced in his personal and professional life while losing his sight as a result of the eye condition, Choroideremia. Gary tells Tom about the lengths he went to, to hide his eye condition from his employers and his passion for music.

In this Christmas edition of  the That'll be the Day podcast, tom Walker talks to the visually impaired comedian from Liverpool, Chris McCausland. Chris tells Tom about school; his first comedy gig at an open mic night; and the challenges for him, as a blind person, of working in television. Chris also has some hilarious stories that will provide you with some entertaining Christmas cheer.

In this edition of the That'll be the Day podcast, tom Walker talks to Gillian Stafford, a visually impaired woman from County Meath in Ireland, about the challenges she experiences in her daily life. During the conversation, Gillian speaks honestly and openly about the difficulties she has faced at university and in trying to secure employment. Gillian also reflects on the ignorance she has &nbsp...

In this edition of the That’ll be the Day podcast, Tom Walker meets the writer and actor, Adam Fenton on the stage of the Unity Theatre in Liverpool. Tom  talks to Adam about his solo-show, Tuning In, which was one of the events to mark Disability History Month. During their conversation, they discuss the challenges Adam faces as a neuro-diverse person.

In this edition of the That'll be the Day podcast, Tom Walker talks to Sandy Taylor, a visually impaired man who has led numerous successful campaigns with the National Federation of the Blind UK for better street access for blind and partially sighted people in Scotland, and further afield. Sandy talks honestly and openly about the challenges he has faced while losing his sight and the adjustment...

In this podcast, Tom Walker talks to Dave Conway, a former extreme athlete from Australia, about the climbing accident which left him seriously disabled. Dave tells Tom about the accident, the impact on his life, and how, despite being blind, he is carving out a new career as an artist.

What does equality look and feel like for disabled people like me? What are we entitled to expect from service-providers and employers? Are the terms 'reasonable adjustments' and 'less favourable treatment' still relevant? For answers to these questions, I have spoken to the well-known visually impaired disability campaigner, Alun Davies. In the 1990s, Alun was involved in high-profile  demon...

In this edition of That'll be the Day, Tom Walker talks to three people who have concerns about the impact of e-Scooters on visually impaired people. Their campaign has enjoyed considerable success, capturing the attention of the national media. One of Tom's guests, Rachel Pereira, tells us about her experience of coming close to being mown down by an e-Scooter in Nottingham City Centre.