NATURALIST, broadcaster and BTO president Chris Packham will describe the unusual circumstances of his life and career in what should be a fascinating hour-long TV programme later this month.
Chris is autistic - he has Asperger's Syndrome - which means he struggles in social situations, has difficulty with human relationships and is, by his own admission, " little bit weird".
But what if there were a way of taking away these autistic traits? Would Chris ever choose to be 'normal'?
In
the film, Chris invites us inside his autistic world to try to show
what it is really like being him.
He lives alone in the woods with his
'best friend' Scratchy,a miniature poodle, but he also has a long-term partner,
Charlotte, who discusses the problems Asperger's creates in their
relationship - she describes Chris as sometimes being "like an alien".
Chris experiences the world in a very different way, with heightened
senses (that at times are overwhelming) and a mind that is constant
bouncing from one subject to the next.
Growing
up at a time when little was known about autism, Chris was not diagnosed
with Asperger's until he was in his forties.
With scientific advances
offering new possibilities to treat his condition, Chris travels to
America to witness radical therapies that appear to offer the
possibility of entirely eradicating problematic autistic traits, but he
also meets those who are challenging the idea that autistic people need
to change in order to fit into society.
Confronting this deeply personal
subject with brutal honesty, and reflecting on the devastating
struggles of his adolescence, Chris explores the question of whether he
would ever want to be 'cured' himself or whether, ultimately, Asperger's
has helped make him whom he is today.
- The programme will be screened on BBC 2 TV at 9pm Tuesday October 17.
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