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Story Surgery and Fish and Chips

Sara Cox is joined by award-winning children's author and 500 Words judge Frank Cottrell-Boyce for Story Surgery. Plus there's 30 minutes of back-to-back hits in the Half Wower.

Sara Cox sits in and is joined by award-winning children's author Frank Cottrell-Boyce for Story Surgery, to answer your writing queries ahead of the 500 Words deadline next week. Sara gets our mouths watering by telling us about her chippy tea saga and we find out how the listeners like their fish and chips. Plus there's 30 minutes of back-to-back hits in the Half Wower. Mike Williams is joined in the Sports Locker by Rugby Union reporter Chris Jones and today's Pause For Thought comes from Father Brian D'Arcy live from Enniskillen.

2 hours, 59 minutes

Music Played

  • Whitney Houston

    How Will I Know

    • The Best Of.
    • Arista.
  • Jack Savoretti

    Only You

    • (CD Single).
    • BMG.
    • 001.
  • The Jacksons

    ABC

    • The Best Michael Jackson & Jackson Fi.
    • Polygram Tv.
    • 1.
  • Sophie Ellis‐Bextor

    Come With Us

    • Familia.
    • Re/Essential.
    • 001.
  • Justin Bieber

    Love Yourself

    • Purpose.
    • Def Jam.
    • 5.
  • Five

    Keep On Movin'

    • Hits 2000 (Various Artists).
    • Sony Music TV.
  • Amy Macdonald

    Dream On

    • Under Stars.
    • Mercury.
    • 1.
  • ABC

    Viva Love

    • (CD Single).
    • Virgin.
    • 001.
  • Jamiroquai

    Love Foolosophy

    • (CD Single).
    • Sony.
  • The Coral

    Pass It On

    • (CD Single).
    • Deltasonic.
  • The Beatles

    Ticket to ride

    • The Beatles - 1.
    • Apple.
    • 009.
  • Ed Sheeran

    Castle On The Hill

    • Γ· Divide.
    • Atlantic.
  • Billy Joel

    My Life

    • Billy Joel - Greatest Hits Vol.2.
    • CBS.
  • Adele

    Rumour Has It

    • 21.
    • XL.
    • 1.
  • Paul Heaton & Jacqui Abbott

    D.I.Y.

    • What Have We Become.
    • Virgin EMI.
    • 001.
  • Toni Basil

    Mickey

    • Billboard #1 Hits Of The '80s (Various Artists).
    • Rhino.
  • Pulp

    Common People

    • (CD Single).
    • Island.
    • 5.
  • Martha Reeves and the Vandellas

    Nowhere To Run

    • Motown - The Hits Collection Vol.2.
    • Motown.
  • Florence + The Machine

    Shake It Out

    • Island.
  • Mark Morrison

    Return Of The Mack

    • (CD Single).
    • WEA.
  • Blondie

    Fun

    • (CD Single).
    • BMG.
  • Jodie Abacus

    She's In Love With The Weekend (ΒιΆΉΤΌΕΔ Introducing Session, 8th Feb 2017)

  • Michael Bolton

    Old Time Rock & Roll

    • Songs Of Cinema.
    • Frontiers Records.
  • One Direction

    Story Of My Life

    • (CD Single).
    • Syco Music.
  • Frankie Valli

    Grease

    • Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons - Ve.
    • Polygram Tv.
    • 18.
  • Haircut One Hundred

    Favourite Shirts (Boy Meets Girl)

    • Pelican West - Deluxe Edition.
    • Cherry Pop.
    • 001.
  • Madness

    One Step Beyond

    • Greatest Hits Of The 70's (Various).
    • EMI.
    • 5.
  • Heaven 17

    Temptation

    • A Kick Up The Eighties Vol. 5 (Various Artists).
    • Old Gold.
  • Imelda May

    Black Tears (feat. Jeff Beck)

    • Life. Love. Flesh. Blood.
    • Decca.
    • 002.
  • Frank Sinatra

    That's Life

    • My Way - The Best Of Frank Sinatra.
    • Reprise.
  • Samuel E. Wright

    Under The Sea

    • Absolutely Disney (Various Artists).
    • Walt Disney Records.
  • Blossoms

    Charlemagne

    • (CD Single).
    • Virgin EMI.

Pause for Thought

Pause for Thought

From Father Brian D’Arcy, a Catholic Passionist priest:

Who would ever imagine that a fixation with Disney films would provide the key to unlock a young boy’s autism? Yet that is precisely the theme of a riveting documentary β€œLife, Animated,” which tells the beautiful story of Owen Suskind’s life. This good news story is nominated for an Oscar at the end of the month.

Owen’s father, Pulitzer Prize winner Ron Suskind, explains: β€œthat his son Owen has a deep connection to movies, especially cartoons.Β  He’s watched them countless times, in order to make sense of his bewildering world.”

Owen seemed a perfectly ordinary, bright, baby until, mysteriously, at the age of three he succumbed, almost overnight, to a severe developmental disorder. He retreated into an unreachable world of silence and gibberish. His parents, Ron and Cornelia, and brother Walter, were distraught. When Owen was bullied at his special school, they knew their lives would never be the same again. Their perseverance, dedication, never ending hope and Disney films helped them rescue their precious son.

It was during a family viewing of β€œThe Little Mermaid” that their Eureka moment came. Owen insisted on re-playing one particular scene repeatedly. That’s when they discovered that Owen had memorized the dialogue perfectly. Later they learned he had memorized the entire scripts of almost 50 films and cartoons.

On a whim, Ron used the glove puppet of Iago from Aladdin to speak to Owen. Using Iago’s cartoon voice Ron asked Owen how he felt. Miraculously Owen spoke back to Iago and replied that he was lonely. That was the breakthrough.

With their exaggerated emotions, the movies provided the building blocks for Owen to make sense of his hidden world. Owen used cartoon characters to communicate what he felt deep inside his own hidden world.

With wonderful therapy, and heroic patience from his family, Owen has become a talkative, high-functioning young adult who has found employment, a girlfriend and independent living. He even travelled with his parents to France to speak about his experiences.

In God’s creation, everyone is special and unique.

Ron summed up his son’s uniqueness. Β β€œWhen we shared Owen’s story we thought he was one in a million. Which he is. Now we know he’s also one among millions.”

Broadcast

  • Mon 13 Feb 2017 06:30

Farewell Chris Evans: The best bits from his last shows at Radio 2

After eight years of hosting the Breakfast Show, Chris Evans leaves Radio 2.

500 Words

ΒιΆΉΤΌΕΔ Radio 2's story-writing competition for kids.